The Renters (Reform) Bill has been debated for over a year and this week, on April 24th it had its 3rd and final reading in the Houses of Common with MPs passing the Bill.

Much has changed since the Bill was first discussed so what happens now and what does it mean for you?

The Renters (Reform) Bill just had its third and final reading in Parliament.

The Renters (Reform) Bill first came to the House of Commons in May 2023, but elements of the Bill have been discussed for many years.

So what areas does the Bill cover?

At each stage a proposed Bill can be amended and once more, last week’s reading confirmed some major changes versus the original plan. So what was planned and where have we ended up?

Ban on ‘no-fault’ evictions.

At the heart of the Bill was the banning of Section 21.

Section 21 is the process by which landlords serve notice on tenants when they wish to take a property back. When this notice is served, tenants have two months to leave the property.

Planned: Under this Bill, the plan was that landlords would only be able to serve notice if they have a ‘valid’ reason such as wishing to sell the property.

Now: Section 21 of the Housing Act will remain in place until an assessment has been made of the legal system to see if it could handle the changes. No date has been set for this so the current process stays in place for now.

Rent increases

Planned: Landlords will only be able to increase rents once a year and will need to give a minimum notice period of 2 months.

Now: This remains as planned.

Tenancy length

Planned: Minimum contract lengths for tenants to be abolished although a minimum notice period of 2 months was still required to be given.

Now: Tenants will not be able to give two months’ notice to leave a property until they have been in a property for four months. This means a minimum rental period of 6 months.

Pets

Planned: Tenants will be able to request permission to have a pet in their home and a landlord will not be able to unreasonably withhold consent.

Tenants will need to provide confirmation in writing that they have taken out pet insurance or that they will pay the landlord for damage caused.

Now: The Bill remains in line with the original plan although a landlord can still refuse pets if they have “reasonable” grounds to do so.

Summary

Since 2019, the government has vowed to outlaw no-fault evictions, but has struggled to get support from Tory MPs. The Bill has now passed and includes an indefinite delay to the end of ‘no-fault’ evictions.

Landlord groups have been supportive of the proposals, whereas pro-tenant groups believe the Bill has been watered down too much - specifically when it comes to Section 21.

What happens next?

Now that the Renters (Reform) Bill has cleared all its hurdles in the House of Commons, including amendments, it's onto the next phase which is to enter The House of Lords and this part of the Parliamentary process.

No dates have been set for this part of the process.

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Remember the information provided in this article is for information purposes only and should not be considered as advice.