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0:03 AM, 3rd November 2023, About 7 months ago 73
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Angela Rayner has promised to abolish Section 21 straight away if Labour wins the next general election.
In an interview with LBC, the Shadow Housing Secretary answered questions from worried landlords about the removal of Section 21.
Ms Rayner argued that “no-fault evictions are causing misery for people”.
One landlord told the Shadow Housing Secretary that he houses vulnerable people in his properties and the removal of Section 21 will frighten many landlords.
He said: “I specialize in taking homeless people and people from charities who are ex-drug addicts. I take these people on the condition that they get one chance, they can’t mess it up.
“If Section 21 was abolished I would not be able to take these vulnerable people because I could not get rid of them.”
The landlord emphasised the critical role Section 21 played in his ability to help house vulnerable people.
“I have had instances where I have had to use Section 21 because I’ve had an ex drunk who’s been homeless and after five or six months he’s gone back on booze and I’ve had to go through that process. What happens if I can’t do that anymore?
“I wouldn’t be able to take the risk and take people who are homeless or ex drug addicts from charities and that’s all I specialize in. I ask you will you abolish Section 21?”
Ms Rayner told the landlord that no-fault evictions would be abolished immediately under a Labour government.
“Yes, we would abolish Section 21. I’m being honest with you and I gave you a straight answer. I know that the court system is in a mess at the moment and that needs sorting out.
“There’s so many good landlords out there and they’re frustrated by the current situation and the work you are doing is really important.
“However, on balance, Section 21 is causing misery for a lot of people because it is used to turf people out without any explanation or excuse.”
She added: “We need to make sure there’s a fair balance between renters and landlords and being honest with you I think at the moment it’s much too much towards landlords as opposed to tenants.”
Elsewhere in the interview, one landlord told Ms Rayner scrapping Section 21 would cause chaos in landlords trying to gain back possession of their property.
He said: “Most landlords don’t have an issue renting to any tenant that looks after the property and pays the rent.
“However, if it all goes wrong and the landlord wants their property back, they don’t want to wait nine months and they don’t want to have to spend several thousand pounds.
Ms Rayner interrupted and asked: “Is that why you think so many of these Section 21 notices are implemented and imposed on people at the moment because they are significantly used?”
The landlord argued back saying most landlords don’t issue a Section 21 without a valid reason.
He said: “The main reason a landlord will use Section 21 is because they want a tenant out for a reason.
“The tenant might be in breach of the lease or they are causing a disturbance. Section 8 is going to stop all that and therefore landlords will flee the market or the ones that are in the market won’t let to tenants on lower incomes.
“At the end of the day, a landlord has to know that they can get their property back quickly and efficiently.”
The full video can be seen here
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Landlords are 'being pushed out of' the PRS 
Monty Bodkin
15:08 PM, 4th November 2023, About 7 months ago
This ties in with my other link of 10% fewer rental properties;
https://moneyweek.com/moneyweek.com/personal-finance/tax/CGT-bills-rise
LANDLORDS EXODUS DRIVES UP BILL
A significant proportion of the latest CGT taking comes from sales of residential property, with 139,000 taxpayers reporting 151,000 disposals in the 2022/23 tax year, amassing a total liability of £1.8 billion - significantly larger than the tax year prior.
philip allen
15:49 PM, 4th November 2023, About 7 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Dylan Morris at 04/11/2023 - 08:29
"Successive Tory governments since 1988"?
Where have you been living Dylan?
philip allen
15:51 PM, 4th November 2023, About 7 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Southern Boyuk at 04/11/2023 - 10:06
Who will you be selling to?
Seething Landlord
17:30 PM, 4th November 2023, About 7 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Russell Cartner at 04/11/2023 - 16:05
Which of my statements was meaningless?
Seething Landlord
17:40 PM, 4th November 2023, About 7 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Monty Bodkin at 04/11/2023 - 15:08
It hardly demonstrates a significant exodus if only 139000 individuals (which will include some selling second homes rather than rental properties) out of 2.8 million landlords have mostly sold just one property. The missing information is how many of them were lost to the rental market; some will have been bought by existing or new landlords.
Monty Bodkin
19:47 PM, 4th November 2023, About 7 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Seething Landlord at 04/11/2023 - 17:40
"It hardly demonstrates a significant exodus if only 139000"
That's just in one year alone! This started in 2016 and looks like continuing for some years.
All the industry experts, including RICS and the Bank of England are saying the same thing.
But even if you genuinely believe in Rayneromics over them, don't you think it would be a good idea for any Government to be damn sure before destroying the PRS any further?
Monty Bodkin
20:19 PM, 4th November 2023, About 7 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Monty Bodkin at 04/11/2023 - 19:47
I also find it rather odd that any genuine landlord is not experiencing this first hand.
Seething Landlord
20:40 PM, 4th November 2023, About 7 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Monty Bodkin at 04/11/2023 - 19:47
Extract from the recent Commons Library research report on the RRB: "The English Housing Survey (EHS) has also found that the private rented sector experiences more churn than any other sector. In 2021/22, 620,000 households moved within the sector, while 315,000 households moved into the sector and 242,000 households moved out".
That shows a net increase of 73,000 households in the PRS during the year so presumably the number of properties has increased by a similar amount.
https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-8756/CBP-8756.pdf
I agree that a number of landlords have sold since 2016. Their reasons for selling are largely conjecture but could include S24, increased interest rates, inability to meet affordability criteria, selling one or more properties to pay down mortgages on others, worry about future EPC requirements, increasing regulation and penalties, not to mention concern about the removal of S21 and other elements of the RRB. All of these have arisen under the current government so have nothing to do with Rayneromics.
Monty Bodkin
21:39 PM, 4th November 2023, About 7 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Seething Landlord at 04/11/2023 - 20:40Rayneromics;
"Well, landlords, you know, we've got a countless amount of landlords"
They are easily countable, optional and leaving in droves.
And it is hitting the poorest hardest.
....
Any landlord would know this, let alone a shadow housing minister.
Monty Bodkin
21:56 PM, 4th November 2023, About 7 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Monty Bodkin at 04/11/2023 - 21:39
And again, I find it rather odd that any genuine landlord is not experiencing this first hand.