Tens of thousands of renters across the North West will be saved from forking up to £6,747 of rent upfront thanks to new plans introduced to Parliament by the Labour government today.
There are currently 554,000 renting households across the North West, a figure that has increased by 69,000 (14.3%) since 2010.
Currently, there is no limit to how many months’ rent landlords can require tenants to pay upfront to secure a property. This loophole – coupled with high demand for rental properties – has resulted in some landlords forcing tenants to pay extortionate sums of money upfront, in the form of several months’ rent, before securing a tenancy.
Deposit Protection Scheme data shows that, between May and December last year, 1-in-8 surveyed landlords asked for between four and six months’ rent upfront for one of their rental properties. Labour analysis of Rightmove and HomeLet data shows that for the average renting household in the North West, this is the equivalent of between £4,498 and £6,747, excluding security deposits.
Under new measures introduced as part of Labour’s Renters’ Rights Bill, the amount of rent landlords can demand in advance will be limited to a maximum of one month’s rent.
The bill also includes a raft of measures to boost renters’ rights, abolish no fault evictions, apply Awaab’s Law to the sector and ensure landlords do not unreasonably withhold consent when a tenant requests to have a pet in their home.
Labour says it’s actions stand in stark contrast to the previous Conservative government who shelved plans to boost renters’ rights, leaving households exposed to spiralling costs and poor housing.
Angela Rayner MP, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government said:
“Labour will put an end to renters being charged eye-watering up-front costs when they take on a new tenancy.
“Whilst the Tories completely failed to deliver on their promises to renters and bowed to vested interests on their benches, Labour’s Renter’s Rights Bill will transform the rights of renters, ending rental bidding wars and ‘no fault evictions’ for good.
“Labour is getting on with our Plan for Change, increasing living standards across the country and putting more money in working people’s pockets.”
