Landlords in England would be banned from charging more than a month’s rent upfront under changes MPs are due to vote on on Tuesday.
Angela Rayner, the housing secretary, has amended her renters’ rights bill to limit the amount of money property owners can demand before a tenant moves in, as part of a package of new protections for those in rented accommodation.
The move is one of a number of amendments Rayner has proposed before the bill is debated again by MPs on Tuesday afternoon. The housing secretary is also planning to stop landlords charging friends and family who have acted as guarantors if the renter in question has died.
The amendments add to the core measures in the bill, which will ban no-fault evictions for the first time and make it easier for tenants to demand prompt repairs from their landlords.
Rayner said: “For far too long working people and families have been at the mercy of a fickle and unfair rental market, faced with outrageous upfront costs, and struggling to find a safe and secure place they can truly call home.
“We are delivering on our promise to transform the lives of millions of renters so families can put down roots, allow their children to grow up in secure and healthy homes, and make sure our young people can save for their future.”
Tom Darling, the director of the Renters’ Reform Coalition, said: “For too long, extortionate rent-in-advance demands have allowed landlords to discriminate against poorer renters. It’s great the government have acted on this and listened to renter groups by setting out clearly that this practice will be prohibited.”
Alex Sobel, a Labour backbencher who had called for limits on upfront payments, said: “This amendment addresses the specific challenges I’ve heard from constituents in Leeds Central and Headingley, while also benefiting renters nationwide and I am delighted the Angela Rayner has decided to ban rent in advance.”
Rayner continues to face pressure to go further in making renting cheaper by limiting how much a landlord can raise rent during the course of a tenancy.
A total of 36 Labour, Green and independent MPs have signed an amendment calling for the government to prevent owners from raising rents by more than either inflation or average earnings increases. Ministers have so far refused to back such calls, saying capping rents could discourage developers from building new homes.
Darling said: “As the legislation moves forwards, we hope they will continue to listen to calls for the bill to strengthened, such as by getting rid of the loophole that allows landlords to evict tenants using extortionate rent hikes by introducing a cap on rent increases.”
