Right to rent – how it affects your business

  • Right to rent – how it affects your business

    Have you ever wanted to become an immigration officer?

    Well if you’re a letting agent, or a landlord, you’re about to become one.

    Off the back of a trial in the West Midlands, Right to Rent is to be rolled out nationwide, starting this year. Right to Rent should not to be confused with Rent to Buy, Right to Buy, Buy to let or any other scheme that involves a combination of the words right, buy and rent. It’s about immigration, and specifically, the responsibility on landlords and letting agents to only let to people who are here lawfully.

    In addition to checking that a prospective tenant has the legal right to be here, tenancies will automatically be cancelled at the same point that visas expire. This is aimed at helping landlords to evict illegal immigrants.

    The industry has responded with cautious positivity.

    “Landlords are happy to help to check that tenants are who they claim to be” says Richard Lambert, chief executive officer at the National Landlords Association. “However this should not be a way for the government to pass the buck on to landlords when tacking illegal immigration”

    “We hope, before the scheme is rolled out nationally, that the government takes the time to review how the first phase in the West Midlands has worked and draws on the lessons from that, rather than ploughing ahead regardless”

    In practice, landlords and letting agents will be obliged to ask all prospective tenants for proof that they are British citizens, EEA or Swiss nationals, or that they have been granted leave to remain in the UK.

    If a person applying to be a tenant cannot provide evidence of their right to remain in the UK or there is a suspicion that the relevant documents are forged, the landlord must report the matter to the Home Office. There is also an online tool that is useful for landlords concerned that their prospective tenant may not have the right to rent, which can be found here. It currently only applies to the relevant areas of the West Midlands, but will include the whole of the UK when the scheme is official launched later this year.

    Landlords or letting agents found to be letting to illegal immigrants without making the proper checks will be subject to a fine of up to £3,000.

    A Home Office spokesman said: “Our experience in the West Midlands has shown that many landlords were already carrying out the type of checks which are now required.

    “An expert panel, which includes the Equality and Human Rights Commission as well as representatives of landlords and letting agents will oversee an evaluation of the first phase of the scheme before it is rolled out nationally.”

    There are some fears that landlords and letting agents will be worried about the prospect of forged documents, and therefore only let to those who are obviously British. This is racial discrimination and illegal, but hard to prove. There are also concerns that it doesn’t actually address the main problems in the sector, as dodgy landlords will continue to flout the law and cram immigrants into tiny dwellings. Additionally, there is no equivalent law for those buying a property, which would stop many of the ‘Buy to Leave’ investors from buying up prime properties in London and leaving them empty while local people are unable to pay the huge costs of a home in the capital.

    What do you think? Is it unnecessary paperwork or a good idea to help tackle immigration?

    Let us know in the comments!

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