Member Article

'Tension For Tenants' Following New Bill Announcement

Set to be implemented in spring 2018, the Draft Tenants’ Fees Bill- outlined in the Queen’s Speech on June 21 - will bring forward proposals to ban landlords and agents from asking tenants to make any payments as a condition of their tenancy with the exception of the rent, a capped refundable security deposit, a capped refundable holding deposit and tenant default fees.

It also introduces a cap on holding deposits at no more than one week’s rent and the security deposits that tenants leave with landlords, or their letting agents will be capped at a maximum of one month’s rent.

The Bill was introduced with the aim of tackling unfair fees on tenants to make the private rental market more affordable and competitive. However, Andrew is concerned about the impact this will have on a variety of tenants. He said: “This Bill is going to have major implications for tenants, particularly those with anything less than perfect references or those who have pets.“At the moment, someone who may be viewed as a higher risk can mitigate this by paying a higher deposit so that the landlord is still happy to accept them as a tenant. If people in this circumstance can no longer pay a higher deposit, then there is a lot less chance that a landlord would want to accept them.”

The proposed changes will also impact on people who wish to rent with pets, as Andrew explains: “Tenants who have got pets always pay a slightly higher deposit to protect the landlord against the extra risk of damage to their property caused by their pet.

“Even as it is, the majority of landlords don’t accept pets, so if you can’t collect a higher deposit then there will be even less landlords who would allow pets.”

More can be found at www.aksresidential.com

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