For anyone who has ever rented or is currently renting in London, you’ll know just how difficult the landlord-tenant relationship can be.
However, the biggest shake-up to London renting, the Renters’ Rights Act, is coming into force 1 May, and Sadiq Khan has just announced a Renters’ Rights Enforcement Fund to ensure the new rules are being followed.
With over 2.7 million renters in the capital, the changes are set to impact a large section of those living in London.
How will the Renters’ Rights Enforcement Fund help renters in the capital?
The money, £400,000 in total, will be put towards helping renters understand their new rights, as well as supporting renters’ groups and unions ,while also funding training for borough enforcement officers.
The new act is designed to give security to renters, reform private sector renting and to keep rogue landlords who fail to comply with the new rules to account.
Some outlets have reported that the fund essentially allows renters to sue their landlords if they fail to comply with the new rules.
“With this funding, organisations can do more to support the law to reach into people’s homes and improve their lives,” says Ben Twomey, Chief Executive of Generation Rent.
Rebalancing the power between renters and tenants
The new act aims to tackle the power imbalance between renters and tenants by allowing renters to challenge rent hikes and adding extra measures to improve security to renters in their own home, such as extending notice periods.
A new YouGov polls reveals that three-quarters of Londoners would support a cap on how much rent could be increased each year.
Sadiq Khan says, “I’m pleased to announce a new Renters’ Rights Enforcement Fund so that renters in London know their new rights, from a ban on no-fault evictions to tribunals to challenge unreasonable rent hikes. It also means that crucially organisations will have more resources to make sure the new rules are upheld.”
