Industry expert issues rallying cry to agents over Renters’ Rights Bill

An industry expert has urged agents to engage with Members of Parliament to influence the new Renters’ Rights Bill for the benefit of the Private Rented Sector.

Neil Cobbold, commercial director of Reapit | PayProp, said: “Property professionals need to understand exactly what is being proposed and prove to politicians that they are the true custodians of reliable information about the PRS.

“We know from the experience of the former Renters (Reform) Bill that MPs are prepared to listen. We managed to achieve changes to the legislation as it went through Parliament. Now, we must do the same again.”

That Bill was stopped when Parliament was dissolved after the general election was called.

Plans for Labour’s new Renters’ Rights Bill were outlined in the King’s Speech and, while they were light on detail, the most controversial proposal – the abolition of Section 21 (so-called ‘no-fault’) evictions – was mentioned specifically.

Massive court backlog still needs a solution

Labour won the election with a massive 172 seat majority and has followed through with the pledge on Section 21 abolition, expanding landlords’ possession grounds and introducing the Decent Homes Standard to the PRS.

“The devil will be in the detail,” said Cobbold.

“As it stands, this new Bill will encounter the same problem as the last one – a massive backlog in the courts that may damage landlords’ confidence that they can regain possession of their properties when necessary.

“We need to wait and see what new measures the government intends to put in place to mitigate this and establish the timeline for change.

“But at first glance, agents will be best placed to suggest the necessary amendments to ensure this Bill works for the sector.

Good quality homes the goal for all

“There are literally hundreds of new MPs following the election result and this is a great opportunity for agents to make themselves known and share their experience, data and local knowledge.

“While some may be worried about the change of emphasis from rental reform to renters’ rights, looking at the current proposals this is largely the same as the policies proposed by the previous government. It is important we don’t get caught up in political rhetoric but work towards improving the sector.

“We know that there are around 15 households chasing every available home to rent at the moment. Even higher levels of demand will simply push up rents further. The government must ensure the measures in the Bill do not compromise the housing supply in the PRS.

“Agents are the experts in the sector, but agents, tenants and landlords all want the same things: good quality homes and a stable lettings market.”

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About PayProp:

PayProp is an automated transactional and reconciliation platform for the residential lettings industry that is both easier to use and more powerful than existing solutions offered by banks and traditional software vendors. The platform sets the standard for speed and accuracy of payments, cost and payment status transparency, offering customers complete transactional control, and regulatory compliance.

PayProp was launched in 2004 and started trading in the UK in 2015. Since then it has quickly grown to become one of the largest processors of rental payments for the residential lettings industry, processing over £2.6bn in rental payments annually on behalf of thousands of letting agencies.

In the United Kingdom, PayProp is regularly consulted by governments on private rented sector issues and has been featured in the Telegraph, FT Advisor and ITV News. The company is recognised for its achievements by Kerfuffle, the Negotiator, the 2023 Global Business Tech Awards, the ESTAS and as an Industry Supplier by Propertymark and Safeagent.

On 4 December 2023 Reapit and PayProp announced that the two companies had merged. The combined company offers clients the opportunity to have a single provider that delivers capabilities across sales, letting, property management and client account management.

For more information, visit: www.payprop.com/uk

About Reapit:

Reapit is the original, end-to-end business technology provider for estate agencies of all sizes. We’ve been helping sales and letting agents to build relationships and grow their businesses for more than 25 years. Our technology connects property professionals in Europe, the Middle East, Australia, and New Zealand with buyers, sellers, tenants and landlords to power the relationships that change lives.

In the United Kingdom and Ireland, Reapit’s market-leading technology product suite provides estate and letting agents with powerful tools covering lead generation, sales, lettings, property management, client accounts, key management reports and analytics, underpinned by a robust security infrastructure.

Worldwide, Reapit technology is used by over 78,000 agents in more than 15,000 branches, with over a million properties under management, enabling them to run their businesses, identify opportunities for growth, efficiently sell homes, manage rental properties, collect rent, communicate with their clients, and deliver an outstanding customer experience every time.

For more information visit www.reapit.com