Section 21 Notices face the axe!
The Government announces plans to abolish no fault possession proceedings!
It has been all over the News....The Secretary of State for Housing Communities and Local Government, James Brokenshire announced plans to consult on abolishing no fault section 21 notices.
“By abolishing these kinds of evictions, every single person living in the private rented sector will be empowered to make the right housing choice for themselves – not have it made for them. And this will be balanced by ensuring responsible landlords can get their property back where they have proper reason to do so.." James Brokenshire, MP
The Prime Minister makes it clear that she believes the change would protected more than 4 million rented households in England from "unethical behaviours" and "give them the long-term certainty and peace of mind they deserve."
The Government seem determined to push this one through and it will no doubt be the biggest change to the private rental sector this generation has seen.
Whilst the announcement raises huge concerns for landlords and quite rightly so, one thing is for sure, the change won't be over night and if done right this may not entirely be a bad thing.
At Woodstock we have helped hundreds or thousands of Landlords all over the Country successfully evict tenants using section 21 and it is rare that there is no legitimate reason for the notice being served. Section 21 notices, whilst technically "no fault" are rarely used to remove a paying tenant without rhyme nor reason. The heavy use of the section 21 notice and the accelerated possession procedure were instead long since favoured due the fact that it used to be the fastest, least risky and most cost effective way to evict a troublesome tenant or get you property back should you need to move back in, renovate or sell.
However, there are now many technical traps set for landlords wishing to serve a valid section 21 notice and the backlog at the courts means that this is often not the fastest way to obtain possession. Some courts currently take several weeks to issue the claim, many more weeks to serve the defendant and even more delays are faced once the request for possession is filed. Then if bailiffs are required landlords are often faced with even further lengthy delays. The notion therefore that section 21 notices allows Landlords to unethically evict a tenant from their property by giving them just 2 months notice is a complete myth. The reality is it currently takes at least 5 months and often much longer.
In stark contrast, when serving a section 8 notice on grounds of rent arrears or breach of the tenancy for example, only 2 weeks notice is required. Proceedings can then be issued on the following day and a court hearing usually secured within 6 weeks and confirmed on the day of issue.
The Government have made it clear that in seeking to abolish section 21 no fault possession they will revisit schedule 2 of the Housing Act 1988 so that responsible landlords have the ability to remove tenants where they have a legitimate reason to do so.
So whilst the notion of the removal of section 21 is admittedly a little scary for landlords, I will reserve my judgement until we see the proposed redrafting of Schedule 2 - what grounds will they introduce/amend and how tough will the tests be - what hurdles will Landlords face?
One thing is for sure though, the Government cannot make this huge change without also addressing the administrative mess that we face with the courts. More hearings will no doubt be required and the need must be adequately met.
The private rental sector remains an ever more important part of the housing market. The Government have to get this legislation right or the negative impact it could have on the private rental sector will be huge. Get it wrong and Landlord's will be further deterred from entering the market and the supply of rental properties will fall. This is of course bad news for tenants who will have less choice and are likely to face even higher rents (although Labour will no doubt continue to push for protection against rent hikes). Get the drafting right and as intended, well meaning landlords will be adequately protected, safe in the knowledge that the private rental sector is a good place to invest and they have the ability to safely protect their asset and swiftly remove tenants where they have a legitimate reason do so.
We will no doubt be blogging a lot on this topic in the weeks and months to come so watch this space....
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