You probably already know that the Queen’s Speech in 2022 committed to the “Renters’ Reform Bill” being passed under the previous government. Now in 2024, you just want to know when will it become law because it affects your rights as a landlord or tenant. Read on to find out…
Currently, the Renters’ Reform Bill is stuck in the ‘2nd Reading Stage‘, within the House of Lords and it may never progress from there.
The next stage for the Renters’ Reform Bill was due to be the Committee Stage within the House of Lords, as it neared the end of the process. However, things have changed dramatically, and the bill, now to be called the “Renters’ Rights Bill” might need to start from scratch.
Here’s what happened:
Impact of general election
The 4th July general election meant that parliament was dissolved in May 2024, and all activity put on hold until the new parliament is in place.
Once UK parliament is dissolved, all parliamentary seats become empty until the new parliament is decided, subject to the outcome of the election. This meant that progress on the Renters’ Bill was put on hold.
The result of the general election was a new government being elected – a Labour government.
While the Labour party has indicated strong intent to push forward with the abolition of Section 21, the bill has been renamed. The bill is no longer the ‘Renters’ Reform Bill’, but rather the ‘Renters’ Rights Bill’.
In addition to the new name, it’s very likely that it will be treated as a completely new bill, and will therefore need to start the entire process from the beginning i.e. passing through the House of Commons all over again, and then through the House of Lords, before finally gaining Royal Assent, and becoming an Act of Parliament .
Conservative MPs voted to indefinitely delay the original bill
On the 24th of April, under a Conservative government, MPs voted in favour of plans for an indefinite delay to ending Section 21 evictions while the effects of the new tenancy system on the county courts are assessed. This means that the abolition of section 21 would not have become an enforceable law unless the court system was first deemed capable of efficiently dealing with tenant evictions under the proposed new regime.
There is no clear timelines if, or by when any assessment of the courts will be completed under the new government. Since the determination to pause the bill related to the Conservative’s Renters’ Reform Bill, this doesn’t affect the new Labour version, The Renters’ Rights Bill.
However, since both the Conservative bill and the Labour bill are essentially the same, it means that Labour’s version will implicitly have the same issues as its predecessor i.e. the UK courts will not be equipped to deal with the abolition of section 21.
If courts are not equipped to deal with the abolition of section 21, then it’s not clear how Labour plan to get around this matter without carrying out an assessment of the courts, and quite likely needing to overhaul the court system to make it possible. Labour have promised to provide a detailed outline of their new Renters’ Rights Bill in October 2024, so we should know more then.
What’s next for the Renters’ bill?
While Labour have promised to provide a detailed outline of their new Renters’ Rights Bill in October 2024, it’s very unlikely that they will be able to solve the issue of the courts not being equipped to deal with the abolition of section 21.
If the new bill gains royal assent while courts are not equipped to deal with the proposed new eviction processes efficiently, the bill could be passed, but remain unenforceable. This would happen if there are some condition that needed to be met first (such as the courts being deemed fit to deal with a massive increase in eviction hearings).
If however the bill became an enforceable law while the courts were inadequate, it could cause major chaos in the rental sector. Such legislation might drive landlords to sell their properties instead of renting them, resulting in shortage of rental property and large volume of housing stock hitting the open market and pulling down house prices.
It’s clear from what Labour have said, that they are determined to abolish Section 21 no fault evictions, but how? No one knows. We’ll just need to wait until October to find out.
When will the Renters’ Rights Bill become law?
No official date has been confirmed by the government as to when the Renters’ Rights Bill will become law. However, assuming that it does become a law, unenforceable or not, regardless of the courts being capable or incapable, then we estimate that it will be law between Oct 2025 and Oct 2026.
How we predicted when the Renters Rights Bill will become law
The King’s Speech announced the new bill in July 2024. The previous Conservative version of this bill took 12 months to reach the House of Commons after being announced in the Queen’s Speech. So, we can probably expect something similar with Labour’s edition of the bill. Labour have indicated a number of times their eagerness to abolish Section 21 quickly, so perhaps they may be able reduce this timeframe down to around 6 months.
Once a bill reaches the house of commons, it must go through five key stages of being refined and discussed in the house.
After its journey through the House of Commons, the bill progresses to the House of Lords, where again it must pass through the same five stages there.
Once the House of Lords is done and dusted, the bill is ready for review and approval (royal assent) by the monarchy. Once approved by the monarch, the bill becomes an Act of Parliament (but not necessarily an enforceable law).
This entire parliamentary process typically takes about 6-12 months.
So, starting from the King’s speech in July 2024, allow 6 – 12 months for the bill to reach parliament, plus another 6 – 12 months for it to gain royal assent. This equals 1 – 2 years.
More often than not, new bills become an Act in April or Oct, so the odds are that the Renters’ Rights Bill will become legislation between Oct 2025 and Oct 2026.
However, as noted earlier in this post, an Act of Parliament is not necessarily a law. Sometimes a certain amount of time, is allowed, or certain conditions must be met, before an Act becomes a Law per se.
It’s quite probable that in this case, even when the Renters’ Rights Bill becomes an Act, it will not become a law until the issue of the courts has been resolved thereafter, unless Keir Starmer and his cronies are willing to throw the home rental sector under the bus.
Once the bill enters parliament, it will go through a 6 – 12 month journey as outlined below:
Renters’ Rights Bill in Parliament
1. First Reading (House of Commons)
Date: Unconfirmed
This is the initial introduction of the Renters’ Reform Bill in the legislative body. It’s a formal step that signals the start of the legislative process.
2. Second Reading (House of Commons)
Date: Unconfirmed
The second reading involves a more detailed discussion and debate about the bill’s general principles. It usually takes place a few months after the first reading.
3. Committee Stage (House of Commons)
Date: Unconfirmed
During this stage, the bill is examined in detail by a committee. They may propose amendments and make changes to the bill.
4. Report Stage (House of Commons)
Date: Unconfirmed
During this stage, the bill is critiqued by MPs who take the floor and voice changes that they would like to see added to the bill.
5. Third Reading (House of Commons)
Date: Unconfirmed
The final version of the bill, as amended, is debated during the third reading. Further amendments may be made at this stage.
6. First Reading (House of Lords)
Date: Unconfirmed
This is the initial introduction of the Renters’ Reform Bill to the House of Lords
7. Second Reading (House of Lords)
Date: Unconfirmed
The second reading involves a more detailed discussion and debate about the bill’s general principles.
8. Committee Stage (House of Commons)
Date: Unconfirmed
During this stage, the bill is examined in detail by a committee. They may propose amendments and make changes to the bill.
9. Report Stage (House of Commons)
Date: Unconfirmed
During this stage, the bill is critiqued by lords who take the floor and voice changes that they would like to see added to the bill.
10. Third Reading (House of Lords)
Date: Unconfirmed
The final version of the bill, as amended, is debated during the third reading. Further amendments may be made at this stage.
11. Royal Assent
Date: Unconfirmed
Once both houses of the legislative body have approved the final version of the bill, it receives royal assent from the reigning monarch. This step is the formal approval that turns the bill into an Act of Parliament, but it’s not yet a law.
Is the renters reform bill fair for landlords?
Many landlords consider the renters reform bill to be unfair because it looks like it will it very difficult for landlords to get rid of “bad” tenants who are not more than 2 months in rent arrears. Rent arrears are not the only aspect of a tenant’s behaviour that makes a tenant “bad”. There are many other factors, including; antisocial behaviour, late rent payments, damage to the property etc.
As things stand now, the only financially viable and almost guaranteed way that a landlord can evict a tenant is with a section 21 or a section 8. Each of these typically cost a landlord about £1000 – £2000 in legal fees.
Only when the tenant is over 2 months in rent arrears can the landlord can leverage a section 8.
In current practice for most landlords, all other reasons for eviction (apart from 2+ months rent arrears) generally use a section 21 to get rid of the tenant. This is down to costs and time. Small-time landlords can’t afford massive legal fees.
There are other sections that can be used for evictions, but they have a low eviction success rate, and they each require a court hearing where the case will be assessed on an individual basis, and without any certain outcome. For landlords, this means legal fees that can reach into the tens of thousands of pounds, and with no level certainty of a successful eviction.
Often judges will do everything possible to avoid evicting tenants because they want to contain the nation’s homelessness problem, and limit pressure on social housing. So, instead of eviction, judges will often rule in favour of a middle ground outcome such as a suspended eviction, or order the tenant to replace damaged items, or some other solution where ultimately the landlord still ends up with the troublesome tenant living in the property.
Due to these worrying dynamics, the National Residential Landlords Association has argued against the Conservative’s version of the bill, calling for an improved court system as well as further improvements to bill’s grounds for eviction. They have asked for these to be introduced before section 21 is amended or abolished. Since the renter’s rights bill will do away with section 21, based on current information, it means that landlords who need an eviction may have a lengthy and costly court battle to contend with.
What can landlords do?
There is very little landlords can do to stop the bill. But the new bill does contain a new provision whereby if landlords are selling the rented property, then that in itself may be a no-questions-asked grounds for eviction. Resorting to selling a property just to get rid of a tenant might seem a bit extreme, but it may become one of the only reliable and affordable means of eviction for many landlords.
Selling a property with a bad tenant can be made very difficult by a tenant, because legally, landlords need permission from the tenant before they, or any agent acting on their behalf, can enter the rented property. Since property viewings by prospective buyers rely on property access, it’s easy to see how plans to sell can be stifled by a bad tenant refusing such access. Property Rescue can help landlords with uncooperative tenants. We will buy any property, even one with problematic tenants. Something to keep in mind if you have this issue, so do get in touch with us.