Shelter ask for Landlords views

Call me a suspicious old scaredy-cat conspiracy theorist but ...I completed it right up to the point where it asked for my name, e-mail and postcode. Then I got uneasy and chucked it. Just in case they're compiling a hit-list.

Completed, and I have as suggested provided quality and balanced feedback. This was relatively easy as there is no dirt on this landlord! Let's hope they are equally respectful with the information provided.

Reply to the comment left by Joe Armstrong at 14/06/2019 - 09:27
Totally agree, I did the whole survey but just didn't complete my name post code or email.

I don't currently have a good enough relationship with Shelter to be parting with that amount and type of data. They need to take me out for drinks first haha

The first question was strange, asking why we became landlords. There were one or two options (forgot the exact options now) which were about money - did we do it for an income, for a pension etc. and then there was one whether we did it to provide housing. Well, unless we are the Sainsbury family or Bill Gates, we mostly need to earn a living, so who would be doing it purely to provide housing? I think that is the question where they could be looking to twist things - saying we are in it for the money. With the report recently out, commissioned by Labour, calling for the 'de-financialisation' of property, the idea is that we must make no money from property. Shelter comes from this same territory. They think we can provide 'safe and secure' and 'affordable' housing, and choose to take those on benefits rather than those who aren't, and at the same time make no money from any of it and live on fresh air.

We ALL need to complete this, is doesn’t take long at all. I also left my details for them to contact me if they need to and I welcome them to contact me so I can tell them what a Landlord really goes through and how the job Is anything but a walk in the park !! Hopefully shelter may start to understand us and look at us differently, but I won’t hold my breath 🤞

I completed the survey and offered to be used for a case study. I also informed them of how they supported a tenant that owed me around £4000 in rent by providing the tenant with a free barrister and solicitor (paid by tax payer money of course) where all they concentrated on, was in quashing the eviction case by scrutinising the court documentation for very minor errors which resulted in me losing almost £5000 and having to redecorate a flat that was redecorated prior to the tenant moving in.

I have completed and left my contact details. I would also consider writing a blog.
I would like to show the side of land lording which is not well appreciated. The high development / upfront costs we bear and then take a rent over time to repay our activity.
This is how life is supposed to work in all areas, but shelter doesn't seem to appreciate this fact. It's the same for a student. You invest in education, load up on debt (nowadays), but over the longer term you repay the debt and make a surplus over your lifetime that you would not have accrued had you not done the education.
This is certainly how the housing works in my mind and this model should not be denigrated. Shelter need to understand this fact. I assume they want to focus on the hyper hard working landlords who have 100 houses approx and now appear super rich and arrogant. We need to get them to focus on what effort got them to this position. It seems rich / successful people in society nowadays are demonised because it all seems so easy and they have excess wealth.

So i would certainly like to write a blog detailing a before and after photo shoot on houses i do up. Each one takes 6 months work and i will renovate most things - D/G, new heating and electrics, new bathroom and kitchen, new plastering and decoration, improvement of insulation and vapour extraction, landscaping of garden, any roof problems solved etc etc.

I do all the work myself and will sometimes have a labourer. I don't get paid for all this work, but in the long run it keeps my costs down and overall return higher.

Reply to the comment left by Joe Armstrong at 14/06/2019 - 09:27
You don't have to provide personal details, the survey submits without them

Reply to the comment left by Binks at 13/06/2019 - 17:36
Yes I agree. We are professional home providers and should behave as such

Reply to the comment left by Dr Rosalind Beck at 14/06/2019 - 09:40
I am equally sceptical, with this 'reaching out' to landlords happening at precisely the same time that Labour launches its latest anti landlord (and frankly, anti tenants) manifesto. Shelter is inextricably entwined with Labour. The only response I got from Shelter to my question "why now" was
"We've been working with landlords to improve the PRS for everyone, and by appealing more publicly, we're hoping to engage with more landlords such as yourself who would like to see the sector work for everyone. (2/2) Alex @ Shelter"

I was going to add a screenshot of the twitter convo but can't see an 'add photo/whatever' button? Anyone?