By Steve Roulstone

 As this report shows, it is still not difficult to find evidence of poor standards in the Private Rental sector. Yet again the Industry as a whole suffers from the performance of one individual as we suffer by reflection, although I note there is no mention of an agent in this case. The frustration for me as a Letting Agent is that we are available to give the kind of advice that would ensure standards could be upheld should we be asked, and of course listened too!

Property shortages do not help.

As I am only too aware, during periods when available housing to rent is at a shortage the limited choice means that many will not have the options they would appreciate when choosing a property to live in. I have just experienced something similar when looking for a Country property and only because I happened to look very early one day and by an incredible piece of luck (the person I asked for directions was part of the family who owned the property; access gained no more than thirty minutes later!) did we manage to get first ‘dibs’ on a Farmhouse close to where we work. But for those who are not so lucky, they can be forced to take the best of what is left and of course conscious decisions cannot form part of the process.

Professional links.

Just like the new Kitemark being pushed by our industry at present, professional links for both Landlords and Agents would allow people to have a considered decision to make; lack of available property removes that decision in so many cases. Not that I would ever discourage anybody from forging such links, as the person reports from the local Landlords association, poor Landlords do exist and the more we bang the drum about professionalism the better we will be heard. So whenever possible Tenants should look for some kind of link with a body who promote good standards to give them some re-assurance about the lease they are entering in to and the future maintenance of the property they wish to call home for the next few years.

Advice is needed.

As the property programmes show, good advice is not always listened too, but when it comes to basic standards, unless a Landlord has asked, or been offered advice by somebody within the profession, then there remains nothing more that can be done to say if the Landlord then goes on to look after the property in question and therefore the Tenants who will presumably be paying the Landlords Mortgage or giving them a good living, or if they take the opposite view and look at the situation purely from a financial standpoint, which is surely what causes the majority of problems for Tenants and just will not spend on basic housing standards that most of us would view as second nature. (and of course is covered by Government legislation)

Another call for registration?    

The result (indeed the National picture) is more proof of the need for some form of legislation to put a stop to the ease with which people can become Landlords without even asking one simple basic question about the Tenants rights, even though they are going to have such an influence on the standard of the Tenants life for the duration of the agreement. At present the need is becoming greater as Landlords, being no different than anybody else protecting their income at the moment, look for ways of cutting expenditure where possible. But when that decision effects the life of others, that’s when we should be able to turn  to those who legislate the Country for support, but hopefully the comment from the Housing Minister Grant Sharps, that the situation was under review in the medium turn suggests that the banging is beginning to get through!

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