Recent data has revealed a troubling trend in England’s housing market, with over 2,000 households each month facing the threat of homelessness. This surge in insecurity comes as numerous private landlords decide to sell their properties. Uncertainty fueled by government delays in implementing rental reforms is often cited as a significant reason behind these sales.
The statistics paint a stark picture: over 40% of families who approached councils for temporary housing solutions did so after their landlords ended the tenancy to put the properties on the market. This trend is compounded by a survey from the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA), which found that almost one-third of landlords plan to downsize their rental portfolios. Only 9% intend to expand, with high interest rates being a major deterrent to maintaining or growing rental investments.
Record Highs in Temporary Accommodation
The fallout from this situation is particularly severe for vulnerable populations. A record high of 145,800 children are now living in temporary accommodation in England, marking a 12% increase over the past year. The homelessness charity Riverside has described the situation as a “humanitarian crisis unfolding behind closed doors.”
Despite an increase in demand for rentals, the supply of private housing available to rent remains 50,000 homes below the levels seen before the pandemic. This mismatch occurs even as the total number of privately renting households has remained stable at about 4.5 million over the last decade, not keeping pace with a population growth that added the equivalent of 1.4 million households.
Legislative Delays and Proposed Reforms
In the legislative arena, the Renters (Reform) Bill has recently re-entered the parliamentary discussion, aiming to abolish “no-fault” evictions—a move promised by the government five years ago but delayed until at least summer 2025 for new tenancies. Renters’ advocates argue for even tougher reforms, such as extending eviction notice periods to four months, offering eviction protections for the first two years of a tenancy, and capping rent increases.
The ongoing delays have created a climate of uncertainty affecting millions of renters and landlords, with many landlords citing these uncertainties as a primary reason for exiting the market. The NRLA has expressed that ensuring landlords feel confident and secure is crucial for maintaining stable tenancies.
Push for Stronger Tenant Protections
Meanwhile, advocacy groups such as Generation Rent criticise the NRLA for resisting stronger tenant protections, suggesting that the market will adjust even if some landlords exit. They advocate for policies that would allow the sale of homes with sitting tenants and require landlords to provide relocation payments to evicted tenants.
Shelter, a prominent housing charity, emphasises that rental reforms are not the main driver of homelessness; rather, it is the prevalent use of no-fault evictions that destabilise lives. They advocate for an overhaul of the Renters Reform Bill to provide tenants with longer protection periods from eviction and more extended notice periods, which would help them secure new housing.
Landlords’ Perspective
From the landlords’ perspective, the challenges are also significant. Neil France, a landlord with properties across England, shared that the inability to easily repossess properties without the controversial “section 21 evictions” makes being a landlord less appealing compared to more secure investments.