Evictions on hold
The government has announced a further extension to two pieces of temporary legislation, both brought in to provide tenants with greater security in their homes during the pandemic.
The ban on evictions, which had already been extended, will now run until the 31st of May. Until then, evictions can only be enacted under strict circumstances such as extreme rent arrears. Landlords can still file possession claims and should be encouraged not to delay their submissions as the court closures in 2020 have created a substantial backlog of hearings.
Increased Notice Periods For Landlords
Fortunately, at Reside we are not currently dealing with any evictions, so news of an extension to notice periods may be of more relevance to our landlords. Statutory notice periods to terminate a tenancy are 2 months from a landlord, and one month from a tenant, but in August 2020 the government introduced the Coronavirus Act 2020 (Residential Tenancies: Protection from Eviction), which increased notice periods for landlords to 6 months.
These temporary regulations were initially due to expire on the 31st March 2021, at which point notice periods would have reverted back to the statutory 2 months, but have now been extended until ‘at least’ the 31st May 2021. There is much speculation as to what the government’s long-term plan is for Section 21, and we are unlikely to know more about the future of this policy until mid-May.
Reside is an award-winning independent letting agent in Bath. Please get in touch if you would like to discuss any aspect of letting or managing your property; we would love to hear from you.
Toby holds a Level 3 ARLA Propertymark qualification and runs the 'engine room' at Reside, making sure that properties are perfectly-presented and that they are let quickly at a good rent. When not working, Toby is happiest when enjoying a day's cricket.
