Renters evicted as landlords act before law changes - BBC Newsnight

For newbies, be aware that this is a grossly oversimplified scenario. For one thing, you can't get a mortgage on an investment property without at least 25% down payment. Two, it's easy to see comps for house purchase prices, but it takes a lot of research to understand the comps on rent prices. The trick is to find a place where renting is more expensive than buying, but those places are less common because of this very type of scenario. Three, you have to remember that rent number he's using is supposed to be net income, not gross. So you have to think about costs for taxes, insurance, maintenance and vacancy when you're researching investments. All that said, real estate investing is a good tool for wealth accumulation. But it isn't foolproof.

It’s a bad time to be a young generation that is dealing with this. My generation had it quite easy compared to this. Government failed once again.

I have a section 21, My landlord has given them to ALL his tenants and there are many of us and he is selling up and getting out. So that is a significant amount of families all looking for the same size rentable properties in the same area at the same time and rents are going sky high, many have moved north away from their families, jobs and support to an unknown future. This country's housing is a mess.

housing costs are getting insane and within 10 years if nothing changes...the suicide rates and homelessness will rise....

The real underlying problem seems to be how mortgages work in the UK. Fixed mortgages expiring every few years and having to get a new rate just seems crazy to me as an American. Our mortgages are 15-30 years long. One of the biggest reasons for the housing crisis in the US was the over use of adjustable rate mortgages where the interest would shoot up after several years. If landlords can’t afford their mortgages they’re going to need to jack up the rents.

What's the point in a contract if the landlord can break a clause so easily? Contract states 5% rent rise cap. Landlord wants over double that. Contract says no so he just evicts them with no reason to get that rent rise anyway. So what's the entire point of a contract if it means nothing?

Here in Sydney, Australia, real estate agents are encouraging landlords to raise rents by 40-100% because of the rising cost-of-living, and the 3-4% rise in interest rates! Most wage-earners have been struggling to receive any wage-rises over the last 5+ years!

The reason for landlords evicting tenants is not panic: it’s reality. The laws the government made regarding EPC’s states they must at least be a C in order to rent them to tenants. Secondly, mortgage interest rates are extremely high right now. Landlords don’t make a fortune from renting unless they charge very high rents (£900+). The government has screwed both tenants and landlords because landlords will be fined £30,000 PER HOUSE if they’re renting to tenants at an EPC less than C. Oh and the cost of improving an EPC from a D to a C can be upwards of £10,000. Most landlords don’t have that kind of cash. The EPC thing is part of the net zero. The government are deliberately making decisions that are screwing small time landlords and tenants and young first time buyers. The government are playing both sides, here’s what they’re doing: 1) they are reducing the availability of rented properties by increasing restrictions on smaller landlords, this allows the big time landlords to raise their rents (higher demand, lower supply) - higher return for big time landlords. 2) they’ve increased interest rates so only the 1% can afford them. This prevents first-time investors buying property, prevents small time landlords growing quick enough to stay ahead and pay down their mortgages. It also drives the property prices down which means some small time landlords HAVE to sell up because their LTV ratio isn’t satisfied. Banks won’t lend without leverage. Also, it makes property cheaper for the big time landlords so they’re able to capture more of the market share. Eventually, property prices will rise high again and the small time landlords will have been pushed further behind and the big time landlords will have leap decades ahead keeping them on top. 3) inflation, they’re draining everybody out of their savings with inflation so nobody can afford to buy or invest. So instead they’ll have to rent and work which is a never-ending cycle that benefits big time landlords and cripples the middle and lower classes. Pushing first time buyers even further back. 4) Subpar house building; the government is not giving the economic boost and political support construction needs to make more houses. This keeps supply down and prices high, forcing majority of people into renting forcing them to work all their lives. It’s all designed specifically to empower the elites and cripple the majority of the people. It’s not right and this country needs a revolution because nothing is being done to the interests of the British public

Brighton depresses me every time I go there for a day out. It reminds me of London in that it’s never developed and yet everything is so expensive. Rents included.

Brighton is an absolute nightmare to rent in. I lived there for years but eventually was priced out

Within 4 seconds and the BBC made a mistake; Brighton is in East Sussex! 🤦‍♂

Thatcher created the rentier class by selling of our social housing.

I had to move almost every month when I was a student ..it has to work both ways so landlord and tenants are both happy ,some tenants trash the property and some landlords ignore damp and general repair jobs ..so complex but governments need to find a solution to give balanced rights ..there are too many horror stories going on and students that study need security while they do that ,difficult when the goal posts keep moving .

The issue is that either the renter or the owner must in some way pay insurance and property taxes if they want a "permanent roof" with utilities like electricity, gas and water. Because of this, many people—at least in California, where I currently reside—are living in tents. No taxes, rent, mortgages, or insurance. The number of people who tell me they live in their car that I meet amazes me. Its crazy out here!

I had a landlord, house was rented out at below market price about £100 - £200, no tenancy agreement. He stated that he doenst do repairs (house is in good condition when he rents) and when he says go I have to go and no deposit. Sounds dodgy ? Nah best landlord Id ever had. He gave me 2 months notice to leave (4 years being there) after I went he checked out the property and found that I had damaged a wall. We agreeded on £150, settled. Why cant all landlords be like this?

My rent went up £50 in May. I was told by the landlord it's due to inflation...he knew my benefits would rise by 10% in April ..it's pure greed

Are we supposed to feel sorry for the landlords? Why its even a business to make money of living quarters, it is a human right

The couple might have been better off agreeing the 12% increase - despite it being against the capped 5% contract terms - because if the rental is not too big for them, and so downsizing was not viable at a cheaper rent than the hiked market rate the landlord is now asking, they were unlikely to achieve a lower rent for a similar sized property elsewhere unless they move away from the area, where they might then need to factor in heightened travel costs to get to work or college. Plus they still face all of the same insecurities. So better to stay put, surely! Furthermore, they might have suggested a more creative solution of their current landlord who they have got to know which might not be achievable elsewhere : to simply loan the landlord the 7% over capped rate whilst the crisis was on, and then to reclaim that money back from the landlord, once mortgage interest rate rises ease off. That way the couple get to stay in the same place they'v made a home and the landlord gets to survive by keeping them there and to avoid voided periods. Not ideal, perhaps, unless they were renting an oversized property where they could simply move to smaller and cheaper rental, but there was no other better solution for them and just moving for moving sake after receiving a s.21 for not agreeing the above capped rate was not doing them any favours.

Landlords, just remember, you are in it for the profit but the tenants are in it because it's their home.

The couple here are just priced out of market. That’s it, nothing more. Market rate just jumped up so quickly and they can’t afford their life style choices. Landlords need market rate, just like if I was to sell my car, I would want market value. At supermarket , can’t expect to pay what I’ve been paying last year ! It’s not greed , it’s hard realty of our economy.