Key Facts

• Amendment 139 would require landlords to provide evidence verified by a statement of truth before seeking possession on Grounds 1 or 1A.
• Amendments 143 and 144 prohibit evictions under grounds 1 and 1A within two years of the tenancy start.
• Amendment 192 ensures no rent is due in the final two months when using Ground 1 for eviction.
• The government believes that a six-month period at the start of tenancy during which landlords cannot use certain grounds provides the right balance.
• Amendments 203 and 204 are not supported by the government as they believe these would penalise landlords and could lead to financial hardship.
• Government amendments 2 to 5 deliver technical changes ensuring possession grounds work for both freeholders and leaseholders.
• The Renters (Reform) Bill addresses changes to tenancy agreements and eviction procedures.
• Amendment 138 aims to reintroduce prior notice requirements for landlords using ground 1.
• Pennycook supports amendment 194, which requires landlords to offer tenants first refusal on the purchase of a property.
• Amendment 136 aims to increase notice periods from two months to four months for certain de facto no-fault grounds.
• Grounds affected include occupation by landlord or family (grounds 1, 1A), sale of property (ground 1B), sale by mortgage (ground 2), superior lease ending (grounds 2ZA and 2ZB), redevelopment (ground 6), and compliance with enforcement action (ground 6A).
• Government figures show a rise in accelerated evictions: claims up 38%, orders up 32%, warrants up 31%, repossessions up by 29% from July to September of the current year.
• Research indicates that 34% of renters take longer than two months to find new housing, rising to 40% for those with children and 46% for black renters.
• Two months is often insufficient time for tenants to find alternative housing.
• Last year, 24,000 households were threatened with homelessness due to no-fault evictions.
• Hastings Borough Council's emergency accommodation spending increased from £500,000 to £5 million in three years.
• Sixty percent of private renters' salaries go toward rent.
• The amendment seeks to extend notice periods for eviction.
• Shelter reports that 40% of renters with children wait beyond two months currently in the Bill.
• There are 104,000 people living in temporary accommodation, costing local authorities £1.7 billion.
• Liverpool City Council's spend on temporary accommodation increased by 7,660% compared to 2019.
• Government amendments 1 and 9 introduce a new ground for possession to maintain student lettings cycle.
• The amendment addresses concerns raised by landlords and universities regarding potential impacts of reforms on the student housing market.
• Landlords must give tenants at least two months' notice under this ground.
• The MP is sceptical about the Government's amendment affecting three markets: purpose-built student accommodation, student-only houses in multiple occupation, and HMOs available for young professionals.
• Universities should have a duty to provide housing for all students who wish it, relieving community tensions over HMOs.
• The current measure could exacerbate market pressures on HMOs occupied by young professionals.
• Government amendments 1 and 9 propose a new possession ground for student HMOs.
• Paragraph (a)(ii) allows use of the ground if the landlord reasonably believed that the tenant would become a full-time student during the tenancy.
• The proposed ground can be used only between June 1 and September 30 each year.
• The Bill aims to facilitate annual cycles of short-term student tenancies.
• Landlords must reasonably believe all occupants in a property are students at the beginning of tenancy or face fines.
• Universities and landlords were consulted during the design phase of the mandatory ground for student tenancies.
• The new clause would require a review within two years of Royal Assent.
• The review must assess the effectiveness of the new or amended grounds for possession in securing evictions.
• It includes an assessment of the impact on tenant security and enforcement action use.
• The government's plan for evaluation builds on existing long-term housing sector monitoring work.
• Amendment 137 proposes a two-year review period which was voted down.
• MPs express concern about the lack of accurate data regarding the private rented sector.
• Amendments 6 and 7 will apply to ground 1B.
• The amendments aim to clarify what 'selling' means in the context of rent-to-buy properties.
• Amendment 147 by James Gray would expand Ground 1B to allow providers to offer properties to another tenant.
• Amendment 147 would ensure rent-to-buy schemes can continue as intended.
• Government amendment 6 includes the sale of leasehold interest in ground 1B.
• Government amendment 7 allows for ground 1B to be used when granting a lease over 21 years.
• Government amendments 8, 10, and 60 were proposed.
• These amendments reflect new 'prior notice' requirements for landlords seeking possession under specified grounds.
• The amendments aim to preserve enhanced security of tenure for certain assured tenancies.
• Government amendment 12 amends the definition of 'local housing authority'.
• Amendments allow private registered providers to use ground 6 for redevelopment under certain conditions.
• Tenants whose tenancy was granted via a local authority nomination retain long-term social tenancy.
• Amendment 148 seeks to extend the protected period from six months to two years.
• Ground 6 allows for eviction if a landlord wants to undertake substantial redevelopment.
• The amendment requires landlords to demonstrate substantial redevelopment cannot be achieved with tenants in place.
• Ground 7 requires a court to award possession if a tenancy has been passed by will or intestacy after the tenant's death.
• The landlord currently has 12 months to initiate proceedings, extended to 24 months under government proposals.
• Amendment 151 would limit the use of Ground 7 to social rented housing.
• Amendment 152 seeks to retain the existing 12-month period for initiating possession proceedings.
• Amendment 153 would remove new Ground 8A for repeated rent arrears.
• Amendment 154 proposes limiting the period to demonstrate repeated serious rent arrears to one year.
• Amendment 155 extends the period during which at least two months' rent was unpaid from a day to two weeks.
• Amendment 156 also aims to extend the period for unpaid rent from a day to two weeks.
• The proposed new ground 8A would require a court to award possession if a tenant fails to pay rent for three separate occasions over three years.
• Ground 8 already exists and covers serious rent arrears, requiring tenants to be at least two months in arrears when served notice and during the court hearing.
• The argument for ground 8A is that it prevents tenants from gaming the system by paying nominal amounts under the arrears threshold; however, this can also be done with new ground 8A.
• Ground 8A is considered punitive and could affect vulnerable tenants.
• The amendment would remove or make ground 8A discretionary, giving courts more flexibility in decisions.
• Amendments 154 to 156 aim to reduce the period of repeated serious rent arrears from three years to one year and extend the unpaid rent period from a day to two weeks.
• The amendments aim to support renters in crisis situations.
• Renters face repeated arrears due to cash flow issues despite being good for it long-term.
• Mandatory eviction grounds prevent discretion in court decisions and may lead to homelessness.
• The speaker mentions cases involving shopkeepers, young fathers with zero-hours contracts, and families facing relationship breakdowns leading to benefit delays.
• Ground 8A is intended to support landlords when tenants repeatedly fall into serious arrears.
• Amendments 153 to 156 and 180 propose narrowing the ground by requiring each instance of arrears to last two weeks within a one-year period.