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9:05 AM, 2nd July 2019, About 5 years ago 24
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Following on from the onslaught against the PRS emanating from Government, Councils and other anti-landlord bodies, the Alliance has now published its housing policy.
We have stated our case at the Fair Possession Coalition summit regarding the abolition of section 21. As the curtains come down on May’s failed Premiership, there is an opportunity for the new PM to address the housing issue, not by taking cheap shots and jumping on the hate band wagon, but by listening to the real stakeholders and acting accordingly.
We call upon our fair coalition partners to join us and sign off on this declaration. No more weak protests or words. Let us all give a reason to our members for joining our respective organisations. Landlords as hard working tax payers deserve real representation.
Join the Alliance here >> https://landlordsalliance.co.uk/
Our housing policy is designed, to stimulate the market, provide much needed accommodation, while providing choice by facilitating mobility and keeping prices down by offering real choice as well as helping Benefit tenants in to homes.
We must point out that Shelter who profess to want to help benefit tenants, have refused to bond said tenants and certainly do not provide accommodation for them, unlike hard pressed Landlords.
We now outline our blueprint for progress:
– Scrap Section 24 immediately. This measure subverts normal accounting rules. It failed in Ireland and is failing here.
– Retain Section 21. The threat of abolition is already driving shortages. The Landlord who purchased the property, maintains it and pays the mortgage naturally his rights overriding those of a tenant who pays a monthly rent. That’s the reality. To pursue the abolition is to undermine property rights.
– Remove Stamp Duty on all property under £500k.
– Remove Stamp Duty on all BTL property where the property has been empty for 12 months or requires major repairs.
– Remove Stamp Duty on properties being refurbished as HMO’s or converted in to 3 or more self contained units.
– VAT on building materials at 10%.
– Housing Benefit claimants – Introduce tax breaks to encourage landlords to accept this riskier demographic with UC paid direct to the landlord from day one. Parity of treatment with respect to contractual agreements. Both landlords and tenants to abide by the terms of the contract and where tenants break the contract and leave their UC continues to be paid to the LL until expiry of the contract.
– Reset the clock on Planning. Centralise it, removing council employees from any decision making on building and planning.
– Put all legislation for rented property on a single footing, no more anomalies applying different standards to the PRS and social housing.
– One government body to oversee all housing regulation removing activists and charities who bring nothing, but negativity to the table. Ensure this new body has representatives from the legal sector as well as government and the PRS.
– Amend the housing act 2004 to ban all Council Licensing Schemes which are nothing more than revenue raising scams by bankrupt councils introduced and given an appearance of legitimacy by biased consultations.
– Introduce a national database of landlords nationwide costing £50 per landlord for 5 years.
– No landlord to obtain housing benefit payments unless registered and cleared by HMRC.
– In areas of high homelessness, scrap min room sizes to get people off the streets until these measures kick in and more rooms come to the market.
We urge the Conservative leadership contenders to adopt these measures as a matter of urgency and invite the NLA and RLA to endorse them now. Lets get the rental market moving again. Lets give investors confidence and tenants choice.
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Big Blue
14:05 PM, 3rd July 2019, About 5 years ago
Love this list. Love it. Oh for a government that would implement it!
RichDad
14:35 PM, 3rd July 2019, About 5 years ago
Perhaps Mr Farrage would take this on, once Brexit is *really* behind us all? 🙂
AJR
14:35 PM, 3rd July 2019, About 5 years ago
This new Alliance Housing Policy is, clear, brief, and well focussed. Excellent, well done to all those involved.
As previously mentioned here there is definitely a need to add the CGT issue and the currently hopeless county court system.
Laura makes a key point referring to a ‘ a positive disruptor ‘ and yes, we do need to express our collective anger and call out the never ending criticism of a vital sector, which in truth
, is performing brilliantly and is an essential needed resource.
Well done Larry and others, please continue to call out the rot and say it the way it is for landlords.
As a matter of interest how is recruitment of new members going?
Larry Sweeney
14:38 PM, 3rd July 2019, About 5 years ago
Thanks Anthony, its going well but considering the nature of the onslaught it should be much better. I would like us to be the largest landlord body in the UK. Imagine how we could change the narrative.
landlord247
10:59 AM, 6th July 2019, About 5 years ago
Wow I read this blueprint and ALMOST joined up (and I still might).
There is a lot of very good stuff in there, however there is in my opinion also a Critical Error which is:
– Introduce a national database of landlords nationwide costing £50 per landlord for 5 years.
I do not trust the government or councils to have my best interests at heart at all. I do not want my name on any such list ever.
The government (and councils) would of course love to have a list of all landlords along with exactly which properties they own and how much the rents are etc. Then they could systematically destroy the plausibility of the business model (even more so than they area already). OR at least devise a ‘licensing system’ to stealth tax it to death costing the landlords time (jumping through hoops to ensure properties fulfil unrealistic and ever changing requirements) and of course money as the landlord would have to pay the new TAX (licensing fee) per property for the pleasure of having his/her time wasted.
What I want and what I believe any business owner in ANY sector really wants are:
- Consistent rules (not ever moving goal posts)
- and low tax rates
Unfortunately with every change of government there is a risk of a change in the rules. If you have read Labours proposals you will know it will be virtually impossible to be a profitable landlord if they get in (that is of course if they do what they are proposing).
Just the fear of Labour on the horizon combined with the fact I have seen attack after attack from Conservatives on private landlords, means I am now actually selling some of my properties and I do not intend to buy more, in fact I intend to buy an alternative business and am currently reviewing sectors where I think the rules are more likely to remain consistent.
It is a real shame because having now been a Landlord for more than half my life, I have hit flow and could very easily double the number of people I house in the next 3 years, but I realise doing that could expose myself to bankruptcy as a result of unfair taxes and gradually having my legal rights removed (no more section 21), everything being stacked more and more in the favour of the tenant who can and often does cause very costly damage to property knowing full well their landlords will let them off, but had they walked into someone else’s house and caused that level of damage they would rightfully expect to be arrested or given a bloody nose or at very least made to pay for putting things right.
Now we are not even allowed to take a deposit big enough to cover most issues. Tenants can leave without paying the last months rent having trashed the place and there is not a thing the landlord can do. In fact the tenant can not pay the last 4 months rent without any real concerns then vanish and apparently that risk with no legal recourse is ‘acceptable’ for private landlords. Well not for me its not.
But according to the government and council it should be. If anyone has ever had a Council tenant, they will know that even if the tenant has not paid their rent the Council actually advise the tenant NOT to move out until bailiffs physically remove them. On paper this creates an additional cost for the tenant, but the council know because the tenant has no job an attachment to earnings is not possible and a CCJ would be pointless so the landlords just suck up the losses.
Of course those losses, are partly clawed back through higher rents. The government and council know that too, but do not care they want to vilify the private landlords as far as I can see that is their current goal.
I just have not figured out why. My ONLY theory is really somewhat of a conspiracy theory, and it is that they have realised too many hard working people have managed to work hard save enough money for a deposit and then borrow the rest to then worker even hard providing homes for people and after 20 or 30 years of doing this those landlords are able to live off the fruits of their efforts. But that is allowing them to be financially free when their parents were not. It is as if the government do not want people to have that ability to make sacrifice early in life to reap the rewards later on. Almost like they WANT to put a STOP to social or financial mobility. And they have spotted that too many people from poorer backgrounds (like myself) managed to figure out that they could work 2 jobs to save up and buy some property and rent it out and then repeat the process until suddenly they were comparatively wealthy. It’s as if someone has looked and shook their heads and said, “We can’t have that now can we, let’s quick change the rules”.
landlord247
11:04 AM, 6th July 2019, About 5 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Laura Delow at 03/07/2019 - 11:09
Well put Laura, I agree with everything you wrote!
Laura Delow
11:45 AM, 6th July 2019, About 5 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Luke P at 03/07/2019 - 13:06
Just read your post Luke. Hysterical! I suppose if I was an MP my answer would go something like; "please forward your application in triplicate to my secretary with your resume and a covering letter & my secretary will get back to you within 10 working days"
Thanx for making my day Luke. Made me smile.
John walker
16:41 PM, 6th July 2019, About 5 years ago
There are good parts and others which are pure wishful thinking. Reduce all ideas to no more than a couple of sentences which may become a mantra for all legitimate LLs. No government is going to be in a position to scrap SDLT, unless it is done solely for BTL property. Ensure your aims are brief, easily understood and achievable. After all you must consider the intelligence of those who are your ultimate target.
Gromit
18:52 PM, 6th July 2019, About 5 years ago
Reply to the comment left by landlord247 at 06/07/2019 - 10:59
"The government (and councils) would of course love to have a list of all landlords along with exactly which properties they own and how much the rents are etc. "
They (HMRC) have that already for law abiding Landlords.
Chris @ Possession Friend
19:54 PM, 6th July 2019, About 5 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Gromit at 06/07/2019 - 18:52
Quite right Gromit, so Landlords might as well have some benefit out of the list !
as you say, If Government could join the dots ( combine data from HMRC, Council Tax and Benefits - they could compile a list now without any further input from Landlords.