The anti-landlord war waged by successive Labour Housing Ministers continues, with the latest measure proposed by Healey - a website where disgruntled tenants will be able to post poisonous comments about their landlords with impunity.
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Questions:
1) Who will verify the veracity of their comments and ratings? How will this site prevent disaffacted tenants from simply making up allegations that could damage their landlord's prospects of re-letting?
2) When is this one-sided nonsense going to stop? How many more times is the current government going to beat up private landlords, most of whom do an excellent job, while protecting tenants, many of whom do not deserve it?
Although I am a responsible landlord who maintains his properties in excellent order, and works hard to keep my tenants happy, I am INCENSED by this one-sided measure.
Twice in the past three years, I have had tenants trash my properties, at a total cost of over £22,000, which I was unable to recover. But where exactly can landlords post their gripes about unscrupulous tenants who are consistently late with rent, leave owing rent or having damaged property? If we publicised any accusations against tenants, we would find ourselves in court.
So labour housing idiocy and electioneering continues, following on from HIPs, EPCs, deposit protection, and LHA payments direct to benefit claimants. Clearly Labour does not love landlords, and they could scarcely make their hatred more clear. But beating up landlords publicly will win votes in some sectors, so they do it.
It was the Conservative reforms of the Landlord and Tenant Act that restored balance to the PRS, leading to improved quality and choice. By mindlessly backing tenants against landlords, Labour is set to undo 25 years of improvement, and alienate private landlords so much that they will only reduce the choice of accommodation, and drive up rents to counteract the ever-mounting cost of risk and compliance.
Thank God we only have to tolerate this shower for a few more months.
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