New Welsh leader urged to oppose rent controls

Propertymark has called on the new First Minister in Wales Eluden Morgan (main picture) to rule out rent controls.

Morgan succeeded Vaughan Gething who resigned earlier this month after losing support within the ruling Labour group in the Welsh Senedd.

Last month the Welsh government launched a consultation on ‘fair rents and adequate housing’ within which housing minister Julie James revealed she is considering rent controls.

The consultation asks for the views of those within the private rented sector on a wide range of subjects linked to affordability, supply and demand and what constitutes ‘fair rent’.

Given this, Propertymark has immediately released a statement with a clear message to the First Minister.

The new First Minister must realise that rent controls are not the answer.”

Nathan Emerson, CEO at Propertymark, said: “The new First Minister must realise that rent controls are not the answer when it comes to the long term stabilisation of rents.

“Instead, the Welsh Government should enhance their overall relationship with the private rented sector to enhance current housing supply by reviewing property taxation”.

He said he wants to see housing made a key priority by the Welsh government.

Help to Buy

“In addition, measures such as extending Help to Buy to the second-hand housing market would also increase home ownership.

“Baroness Morgan should also prioritise bringing forward the Welsh Government’s delayed white paper on fair rents and adequate housing if she is serious about tackling Wales’s housing crisis,” he said.

Propertymark has consistently voiced strong opposition to a rent freeze or cap proposed by Labour, as was introduced in Scotland by the SNP.

Decimate

And landlords reacted angrily to a proposed rent freeze or cap in Wales last year, warning it could “decimate” the rental sector.

A Welsh Government green paper suggested a limit on rent increases may help tenants as the cost of living crisis bites hard.

Welsh nationalist party Plaid Cymru included rent controls in its manifesto for the General Election, saying action was needed to ensure local people were not priced out of the rental market.

Main picture: BBC News