What are the key takeaways from the King’s Speech every landlord needs to know?

Since Labour swept to power in early July, landlords across the UK have been waiting to hear what, if anything, is going to change in the rental sector. The previous government’s Renter’s Reform Bill was culled as the last Parliament wrapped up, leaving promises and assurances dating back to 2019 dead in the water.  

There’s nothing a landlord hates more than perpetual uncertainty. 

But then, finally, on 17th July, HRH King Charles III entered Parliament to deliver the King’s Speech, giving us all some much-needed clarity. Will the Labour government hit the ground running and push through new legislation as a matter of urgency? It looks like the answer is yes. So, which reforms are likely to impact landlords the most? 

Renters’ Rights Bill

As widely believed, the new Renters’ Rights Bill will ban Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions. However, uncertainty around how the courts will cope with increased legal demands has been tempered by the caveat that the legislation will also introduce ‘new, clear and expanded possession grounds’ to allow landlords to reclaim a property. 

The Government has made clear this is a top priority so expect legislation to be drafted in the coming months. 

Awaab’s Law

Legislation permitting, the Decent Homes Standard and Awaab’s Law will come to apply to the private rented sector. 

Awaab’s Law is named after two-year-old Awaab Ishak, who died in 2020 after prolonged exposure to mould in his family’s housing association home. For private landlords, the legislation will introduce strict timescales for action to resolve hazards in their rental properties and prevent similar preventable deaths. 

Ending the rental bidding wars

In April 2024, it was reported that over the last two years, almost one in five tenants had failed to secure a rental property after a bidding war. Responding to this, the Government is looking to bring an “end to rental bidding wars” by disallowing agencies or landlords from encouraging higher bids from prospective tenants. 

Similar to a system in New Zealand, it would likely allow renters to voluntarily offer a higher amount. 

It’s worth noting that in New Zealand, the policy has been branded a failure. 

Right to pets

Since the pandemic, there has been a sharp rise in people owning pets, many of them in private rental accommodation. The new Government is looking to pass legislation that allows tenants to request landlords fairly consider their right to have a pet before automatically rejecting their applications. 

How this will be worded, enforced and what the exact penalties for refusing pet owners are have yet to be outlined. 

What's next?

Where we go from here very much depends on how the Government and the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Angela Rayner choose to approach the sector. 

Setting the tone, the briefing notes that accompanied the King’s Speech made clear that a Labour government supports and appreciates the work of ‘responsible landlords’: 

We value the contribution made by responsible landlords who provide quality homes to their tenants and believe they must enjoy robust grounds for possession where there is good reason to take their property back. However, the Government is determined to level decisively the playing field between landlord and tenant by providing renters with greater security, rights and protections, and cracking down on the minority of unscrupulous landlords who exploit, mistreat or discriminate against tenants with bad practices such as unfair rent increases intended to force tenants out, and pitting renters against each other in bidding wars.

The bottom line seems to be that if a landlord is determined to evict tenants on a whim, rent substandard accommodation and exploit demand with skyrocketing prices, then this isn’t great news. 

For the rest of us, we’re just glad there’s finally some clarity. 

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