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Forum Home  →  Discussion  →  Other areas of social welfare law  →  Thread

New legislation on how a landlord needs to serve Notice to Quit

Rehousing Advice.
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Nearly Legal has provided a brief overview of the changes which start October. So if you are providing Housing Advice to tenants under notice, you are going to have to read up on this, as I guess that a number of landlords will simply not get this right.

From October landlords who have up to now habitually served notice at the start of the tenancy…..will not be able to do this.   

http://nearlylegal.co.uk/2015/09/1-october-2015-section-21-day/

AEastwood
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Hi

Thanks for the info.

I have been trying to establish if all these changes are definitely commencing from the 1st October…seem to remember something about some of the changes being postponed. There doesn’t seem to be much info out there to evidence commencement dates, other than the AST notices and Prescribed Requirement Regs for the new Section 21 and prescribed information requirements.
Do you have any links to orders/regs for the retaliatory eviction changes or the changes to the Housing Act? Colleagues here are split as to whether these changes definitely take effect from 1st October….confusion reigns.

Many Thanks

Alison

Daphne
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Article here says there is a call for regulations to be delayed but at the moment the form is legally binding from 1 October - http://bit.ly/1NHscSR

Rehousing Advice.
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AEastwood - 18 September 2015 09:04 AM

Hi

Thanks for the info.

I have been trying to establish if all these changes are definitely commencing from the 1st October…seem to remember something about some of the changes being postponed. There doesn’t seem to be much info out there to evidence commencement dates, other than the AST notices and Prescribed Requirement Regs for the new Section 21 and prescribed information requirements.
Do you have any links to orders/regs for the retaliatory eviction changes or the changes to the Housing Act? Colleagues here are split as to whether these changes definitely take effect from 1st October….confusion reigns.

Many Thanks

Alison

 

The Nearly Legal site is a trusted source, so you can be confident that the changes will be in on October 1st.

However….. a couple of points to consider….

1) As Daphne’s note says there is a drafting error on the proscribed information landlords are requesting a delay.

2) The changes both on the way notice is served and the retaliatory stuff only applies to tenancies created on or after 1st October 2015,  so Housing Advisors (Homelessness) wont see a major impact for 4 monthes or so.


You appear to be running a bond scheme, so most probably you are worried now as landlord liaison is key to your job, and you have landlords you need to advise now?

In my view your landlords will need to be advised on the future changes to the way they serve notice.

They will need to be advised on their need to provide tenants a telephone number/contact address in writing and their repairing obligations and the possible consequences for serving notice if they do not meet these obligations.

They will need to provide their tenant a copy of this booklet https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-rent  I know the booklet does not look relevant, but they need to do this.

They will need to provide to obtain Energy Performance or Gas Safety certificates, as appropriate along with the Deposit protection information (if you are assisted with a deposit as well as a bond) They need to know about the need to pay back rent in advance, if the landlord serves notice and the tenant is not in arrears.

You might want to get a proper legal view as I am not an expert, and cant claim this list is comprehensive or correct.

Maybe others can add in or provide help.

Feel free to point out major errors etc.

 

[ Edited: 21 Sep 2015 at 01:24 pm by Rehousing Advice. ]
BC Welfare Rights
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http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2015/994/article/11/made

See link above with 1st October commencement dates. Section 37 is missing-prescribed form of section 21

AEastwood
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Thanks Martin

Yes, we run a bond scheme and need to be able to advise landlords of the changes and support tenants with repair issues, potential section 21 defences etc. We also operate a social letting agency for sharers subject to the single room rate of LHA, so in that circumstance we will also be acting for the landlord at the sign-up and throughout the tenancy. There is a lot to take in and I am surprised at the lack of publicity and information available.
Im ploughing through everything today…. just noticed that the How to rent checklist advises tenants that if they don’t have working smoke alarms fitted, they should fit their own-no mention of the new regs. Grrr

Rehousing Advice.
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No problems.

BTW can you lead with some new ideas on getting landlords to understand, the keenly anticipated…...  “Right to Rent ?”

Just Joshing…...

BC Welfare Rights
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That’s simple isn’t it Martin? If prospective tenant has slightly foreign sounding name or accent fob ‘em off and find one who doesn’t…

Makes me despair.

Rehousing Advice.
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I guess the challenge for our colleagues in Rochdale, is to convince landlords to come to them with their properties as they can actually understand the new checks and help with the verification….??

I personally reckon many letting agents are going to charge the proverbial arm and leg for doing this…....and I cant see smaller landlords understanding the guidance.  So a sympathetic local organisation that knows what they are doing might be a good option for smaller “buy to let” landlords that don’t want the additional hassle of the checks….....or err ....a max 5 years in the clink….........

BC Welfare Rights
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Indeed.

My point above appears to be bourn out here (Rightsnet, Housing, 23.09.15) http://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN07025/SN07025.pdf

“A mystery-shopping exercise carried out during the trial found that properties were available to a Briton, but not to a non-Briton, on 11 out of 27 occasions… The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants conducted a survey following the pilot which garnered a small number of responses at 76, 45 of which were from tenants/lodgers and 31 from landlords/agents. 42% of responding landlords said that they were less likely to consider someone who did not have a British passport and 27% said they were reluctant to engage with applicants with a foreign accent or name. Only one British citizen responding to the survey had been asked whether they had permission to be in the UK in comparison with 73% of responding non-British citizens

And your points too:

“The survey also suggested that the policy was not well understood by landlords or agents with 57% of respondents nationally and 40% in the pilot area claiming either not to have effectively understood the changes or not to have been aware of them at all… During the Bill’s Committee Stages, Norman Baker, the then Minister for Crime Prevention, argued that the cost to landlords would not be “particularly onerous,” but the Government’s impact assessment estimated that agencies would increase their fees to cover the costs of implementing the checks, costing tenants an additional £17.9m over 10 years…A report on the JCWI study in the Independent found that some tenants were being charged an additional £100 in administration fees”

Another thing that I have not seen mentioned in the coverage of this but wonder about is the potential for increased identity fraud. Landlords taking copies of passports, driving licences, etc., and having to store them for 12 months after the tenancy has ended. Presumably most will then dispose of them by chucking in the bin/recycling, or just leave them lying around and forgotten about, giving all kinds of opportunities for things to end up in the wrong hands. Not to mention the increased demand for fake documents that is bound to arise as ‘illegal’ tenants seek ways of avoiding detection. No doubt some unscrupulous landlords will see this as a good business opportunity themselves and another way of squeezing yet more cash out of vulnerable people.

Daphne
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New regulations have amended the error in the form - http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2015/1725/made

AEastwood
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Really helpful.

Thank you

Rehousing Advice.
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Yes…........ thanks Daphne good spot.

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https://nlauk.wordpress.com/2015/10/01/1-october-a-day-of-change-for-landlords/


A helpful guide from the National Landlords Association.