Government Response to the Decent Homes Standard
The Government’s response to the consultation on a reformed Decent Homes Standard signals a clear intention to raise the minimum quality of rented homes across England and, for the first time, to apply the same basic standard to both social housing and the private rented sector.
In straightforward terms, the Government is saying that every rented home should be safe, warm, in good repair, and free from serious hazards such as damp and mould, regardless of who the landlord is.
What is changing?
Until now, the Decent Homes Standard has only applied to social housing. The Government has confirmed that it will be extended to the private rented sector as part of wider housing reform.
This means private landlords will be expected to meet a defined quality benchmark that has previously only applied to councils and housing associations.
Trip the Light Fantastic
On the 20th March 2019 the long waited Fitness for Human Habitation Bill comes into law, shining a new spotlight on conditions in tenanted properties. As most agents will know, the Bill leans heavily on the Human Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) and the 29 hazards it lists to illuminate what makes a property fit or unfit to live in – one of which is lighting.
Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 – 20th March 2019 – FAQs
The Act revives a clause in the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, requiring all rented homes to be ‘fit for human habitation’ at the start of the tenancy and throughout the duration of the tenancy. We have all been used to the LTA 1985 – Section 11 – as it’s the go to piece of legislation for Property Managers.