Budget 2015 – Government intend to make it easier to sublet!

How can this possibly work in conjunction with landlord licencing?
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The law will also need changing to force insurance, mortgage and freeholders to allow it. Then the problem with HMOs being created by a tenant taking in a lodger needs considering. Likewise the law on immigration checks will need charging.

Likewise the tenant must clearly be responsible for any additional wear or damage to the property done by the lodger, and housing standards must be prevented from taking the lodger into account when doing a housing health and safety inspection.

But if the above was done, and it only allowed ONE lodger, and any tenancy with less than two bedrooms was excluded, I don’t have a problem with it.

(It must not allow someone renting a room in a HMO to take in a lodger!)

Reply to the comment left by "Mark Alexander" at "19/03/2015 - 15:06":

IMO the LL can veto sub letting on reasonable grounds eg infringement of licence conditions.

Reply to the comment left by "Joe Bloggs" at "19/03/2015 - 15:19":

I hope you are right, but that's not what it says.

What about other possible areas of veto, e.g. mortgage conditions, leasehold conditions, insurance conditions etc.?
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From an insurance point of view, unless they make it compulsory for underwriters to cover sub letting, then you will not be able to buy landlord insurance and any damage caused by the sub let will come out of your own pocket and not the insurer.

If it does go through, then you can expect another insurance product for sub letting to come to market ion addition to Landlord Insurance but I would expect the premium to be high as the risk is high. Who does the sub let contract with and what sort of tenancy will they have/responsibilities etc.

The insurer currently only insures the owner on the basis of a given tenant. It cannot then easily cover any Tom, Dick or Harry that may be sub let a room on a daily/weekly/monthly basis. There is a whole new set of referencing problems and liability to be dealt with here.

I would expect this to get bogged down in red tape quickly. But if it doesn't it will simply add cost for landlords as they will need additional insurance.

As a landlord, maybe we should start a petition against it? Just a thought...

Best

Jason

I have mixed feelings about this. I have run one HMO for professionals for 15 years and it is a nightmare because of the law and Council rules, which often conflict. The current legislation to cover this arrangement is hopeless, mainly because sharing is deemed to be the domain of students. The less housing, the more people will need to share and this will become more of an issue.

I want something flexible that means tenants may leave and be replaced by another with the minimum of fuss - if they can do something about that maybe on the model that seems to be common in places like Germany then great. Currently I have to serve a long-term contract otherwise I cannot issue a deed of assignment when they go (it only applies during the fixed term). I have had some tenants there for years and others come and go. It often serves local Interns and temporary language teachers at the local schools - on eight month contracts etc. when they go we/I/they find someone else. So, the contract is joint and several (I wish it weren't) and I have to de-register and re-register the deposit frequently and when it all gets messy issue yet another contract. I have been criticised for this but I wouldn't dream of making anyone responsible for their rent, so if there is a void I shoulder the burden (it's one room, never empty for long so not a big deal).

If they could simply pass on their tenancy to another person, then the tenants would choose who they would like the most - in Germany these places are in huge demand and they set up panels, viewings, 2nd viewings and then choose - so it can work and there is a successful model in place to be copied.

If the government can set up something along those lines then we may have much more pleasant, easy going, shared houses, than a lot of the rabbit warrens that are appearing all over the place or one and two bed flats that are almost unaffordable for youngsters in their first jobs.

I don't think in Germany however, that they have to check for immigration status, nor register the water bills and deposits, nor do checks if they don't want to....maybe I'll move.

Would they think it such a good idea if Council House & other Social Housing tenants were to start subletting? But of course that's different isn't it?

Reply to the comment left by "Nick J" at "19/03/2015 - 15:42":

I know that in the new laws coming into Wales they want to make it easier for someone whose husband/wife leaves so that they are left looking after the children maybe with a room spare - that then the tenancy doesn't necessarily end (as it would currently) and they can find someone to share with - well that is what we were told.

So no, it's not different. it happens all the time anyway.

Council House & other Social Housing tenants are allowed to have lodgers! (And limited short term B&B type setups for language students.)

Maybe the Chancellor is hoping to get into the Rent to Rent business? hahaha