NRLA blast Housing Minister’s court system remarks
1 year ago | 10 comments
NRLA warns landlord database will fail tenants
12:01 AM, 29th November 2024, 1 year ago
14
The NRLA has criticised the government’s plan for a landlord database as “bureaucratic”.
Under the Renters’ Rights Bill, a private rented sector database is set to be established, which the government claims will “give assurances to tenants”.
However, the NRLA has slammed the government for the lack of information on what will be included in the database.
Travesty if the database simply became a bureaucratic list of homes
Ben Beadle, chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, said: “The database of private rented properties must go beyond a basic directory. It needs to provide tenants with clear, meaningful information designed to empower informed decisions on their next home.
“This will help tenants identify the vast majority of homes that are safe, secure and well-managed by responsible landlords.
“It would be a travesty if the database simply became a bureaucratic list of homes and landlords with little else besides.”
Database will fail to help tenants
The NRLA warns that the database will fail to help tenants determine whether properties are safe and secure.
The landlord organisation suggests at a minimum, gas and electricity safety certificates should be fully digitised so they can be easily uploaded onto the database, alongside already digitised Energy Performance Certificates.
The NRLA also says the database should include a signed declaration by a landlord which confirms that a property meets the requirements of the planned decent homes standard for the sector.
The government says the database will provide tenants with better information to make informed decisions when entering into a tenancy agreement.
They also claim that landlords will need to be registered on the database to access certain possession grounds.
Tags:
decent homes standard, electricity safety, Energy Performance Certificates, gas safety, Housing Legislation, Landlord Database, Landlord Registration, NRLA, Private Rented Sector, property safety certificates, renters rights bill, tenant decision-making, tenant safety
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Member Since July 2023 - Comments: 179
4:40 PM, 29th November 2024, About 1 year ago
Reply to the comment left by Dizzy at 29/11/2024 – 13:16
I would support this if
The fact a cert is on the database acts as being ‘served’.
However as with EPC we know it won’t!
Member Since October 2023 - Comments: 201
5:47 PM, 29th November 2024, About 1 year ago
What the industry really needs, is a tenant database (with history). That way we can weed out the trash and dash mob.
Member Since September 2018 - Comments: 3508 - Articles: 5
6:09 PM, 29th November 2024, About 1 year ago
From what I can understand this database it to list ‘meaningful’ information on safety standards and ‘assurances’ to tenants.
So what is proposed to go on there exactly? Where’s the list?
EPC’s are already in the public domain so any tenant can look this up, as is the property if it is subject to being in a selective licencing area. Details of what this means is also publically available to tenants.
None of this info is necessary for existing tenants as things like gas, elec certs and EPC will legally have to be given to them anyway BEFORE a contract is signed, so what is the value and benefit of the database for existing tenants exactly?
If it is for POTENTIAL tenants then surely, it makes sense that a LL only needs to put the information on ONCE the current tenancy ends and before they start advertising for a new tenant?
So the tenant will ultimately be paying for the privilege of being able to access all the same info that is already currently in the public domain (and that the LL has to legally issue them with before a tenancy begins anyway), they they have never bothered to look at anyway.
I hope it comes with the ability to visually see how many times a certain record is viewed. That will be very telling indeed and a perfect way of showing that the whole bloody thing is pointless! 0 views and 4 lettings later…???
Does anyone know how , who and when a decision is being made on what is proposed to go into this dbase
Member Since August 2022 - Comments: 100
10:04 AM, 30th November 2024, About 1 year ago
Let’s give the NRLA the benefit of the doubt for once. I think there may be a valid point here.
A more meaningful database, with certificates etc already uploaded, could give the NRLA the argument to say:
a. no need to serve these documents with a new AST because they are already there
b. no need to prove to court these documents were served when issuing a S8 (or S21 for as long as that lasts)
c. no need for Selective Licensing schemes because they are duplicating the work.
I would argue this is a win for Landlords.
But yes, I agree that a database of tenants is a must. Airbnb does it very well. I got someone struck off Airbnb for poor behaviour. Why not apply the same principle for tenants? It’s perhaps the stick that we all need.