Tenant Fees Bill clears final parliamentary hurdle
A clear majority of MPs vote to push the Tenant Fees Bill through its final debate in the Commons and it will now receive Royal Assent.
The Tenant Fees Bill has passed it final hurdle in the House of Commons and will now receive Royal Assent before becoming law on June 1st.
Its final debate in the Commons took place yesterday after 293 MPs including Hunters’ chairman Kevin Hollinrake (left) voted in favour of the bill and 220 voted against.
“I am in principle and in practice very supportive of the Bill—I have been right from the start—despite my business interests and despite the extreme consternation within the industry at my support,” said Hollinrake during the debate.
“It is absolutely right that there be a firewall around a tenant’s ability to shop around when they have found a house or flat they want to rent.
“We are right to believe in free and competitive markets. This was not a free and competitive market, and it is right that we act in this area.
“It is right that landlords pay for their own tenancy agreements, inventories and referencing. I support all those things.”
Several minor technical amendments were included and passed, including one which banned agents from compelling tenants to enter into a contract with them for services – for example for inventories.
But an amendment tabled by Labour’s shadow housing minister Melanie Onn (right) to reduce the deposit cap to three weeks’ rent was not included.
David Cox, Chief Executive, ARLA Propertymark (left), says: “The tenant fees ban is now an inevitability, and agents need to start preparing for a post-tenant fees world.
“ARLA Propertymark members should sign up to regional meetings, and our annual Conference on 2nd April at London ExCel, where there will be various talks from experts on the ban and what it means for your business.”
Read more about the ARLA conference.
I’m a small Lettings Agency and have been working from home for the past six years, to build up my portfolio. I now manage just over 100 properties and I’m in the process of opening up an office on the High Street. I only charge tenants reasonable fees, but this ban is going to hit me hard. It would have been better if the fees were capped, just like with the amount of the bond that can be taken.
If 220 MPs voted against the ban, then surely this says something!
Like the person above has said – the criteria for a tenant being accepted is going to tighten and in my opinion, this will cause hurdles for those who are perceived as a high risk and not the ‘perfect tenant’.
We’ve prepared already: No tenancies with pets any more, minimum tenant financial criteria has just gone up, no shares at all, and we have sold off 20% of PRS stock already with more to follow.
Another genius bit of law.