Propertymark has today responded to the Welsh Government’s imminent launch of its Renting Homes Act
The Act aims to improve security of tenure for renters by, amongst other things, increasing the period of notice that a landlord must give when seeking repossession of their property in instances where the renter is not at fault.
The Renting Homes Act 2016 comes into force on 1 December 2022.
Tim Thomas, policy and campaigns officer for Propertymark, said: “Letting agents and their landlords showed great flexibility at the outset of the pandemic in their support of extended notice periods, but again we have a government pursuing permanent changes to what were supposed to be temporary measures.
“The Welsh Government says extending notice periods for existing tenancies from June is necessary to bring down the rising cost to taxpayers of temporary accommodation.
“What it fails to understand is the knock-on effect this strengthening of tenants’ rights will have on the confidence of landlords.
“New tenancies will also have to comply by 1 December.
“The private landlords our member agents represent have become important housing providers, but they need to know they can regain possession of their property when they need to do so.
“The best way to support tenants is to focus on policies that can increase the supply of housing rather those that will constrain it.”
Propertymark is hosting a webinar about the Renting Homes (Wales) Act at 12pm on 23 November.
Simon White, Head of Housing Strategy for the Welsh Government, will explain the biggest shake up of Welsh housing law in detail and take questions.
