The government are due to announce a fairer private rented sector policy called the “Renters Reform” bill, that aims to improve the living conditions for millions of private tenants in the UK. As it stands, for the approximately 13 million of us who rent privately, there are currently no easily enforceable laws to protect tenants against poor living conditions. In fact, the government estimates that there are approximately 2.8 million adults who are paying to live in properties that are simply not fit for the 21st century.
Safe and decent living conditions
It should go without saying that everyone has a right to live in a property that is of a certain cleanliness and safety standard. Why should anybody have to suffer living in a property that has health and/or safety issues that should have been identified, addressed and resolved before the tenant moved into the property? Yet all too often this is the case. Many tenants across the nation are currently living in awful conditions, with serious issues such as dampness, decay, leaks, unsafe flooring, boiler problems, and electrical issues being the most common problems they face. Whilst the majority of private landlords will do the right thing and satisfactorily resolve these problems for their tenants, unfortunately, there are some landlords who will elicit a promise of the problem being resolved at an unspecified later date, or even simply ignore it altogether. And with private landlords previously being able to wield a significant amount of power over their tenants, many tenants would not raise any complaints as they were scared that the landlord may raise their rent as a result of issues being resolved, or even in extreme circumstances, actually evict them!
A fairer private rented sector
To combat the widespread disregard for tenants rights, the government has promised a fairer private rented sector through the Renters Reform Bill. One of the key tenets of this bill will be the creation of the Decent Homes Standard in the private rented sector. Previously, the Decent Homes Standard was only applicable to social housing, but with the passing of the Renters Reform Bill, any landlord renting property privately will be lawfully required to adhere to the Decent Homes Standard. This means that ANY landlord who rents properties privately will have to provide evidence that their properties have passed the minimum standards in decent living conditions. This evidence will be in the form of a “Certificate of Condition”, which will show that the property in question was passed as fit for human habitation. By passing this new law the government will create a fairer private rented sector where every home is protected against unsafe and unhealthy conditions. So if you are a private landlord then you will need this Certificate of Condition, which is where House MOT can be of help.
How can House MOT help?
House MOT is a team of experts with huge experience in the housing industry and will offer your property a virtual home MOT. What is a virtual home MOT? A virtual home MOT is exactly what it sounds like, this is a complete check of your entire property to assess the condition of the property, as well as highlighting any issues or potential issues with the property. This is done remotely by one of our experts, who will direct a landlord through the property using the camera of a smartphone or tablet device, directing the landlord to aim the camera at selected areas. You can read more about what is involved in a property MOT here. If there are any issues that need to be addressed then we at House MOT will send you a report detailing each problem, in the order of severity that they need to be resolved. If your property has no immediate issues then we at House MOT will issue you with a “Certificate of Condition” that will show your property is in a legal state of condition ready to be rented to a tenant. If there are issues that need to be resolved, once you have done so and shown our team the evidence (again by remote viewing), we will then issue the Certificate of Condition. As a landlord you will help towards a fairer private rented sector by adhering to these new regulations.
Contact our expert team at House MOT to discuss how we can help your property gain a Certificate of Condition.
