Why a Welsh Housing Survey can improve lives in Wales
Access to safe, secure, high-quality homes is a fundamental right for all. In this piece Samuel Rees, Public Affairs Officer at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, sets out the wide-ranging impact a Welsh Housing Survey could have on Wales' private rented sector.
Homes play an important role in both our physical and mental wellbeing, particularly since the Covid-19 pandemic began. Housing policy in Wales needs to take a holistic approach and decision-makers shouldn’t be setting arbitrary targets and policies with proper information.
That is why the RICS is supporting calls for the creation of a Welsh Housing Survey – alongside partners from the NRLA, Chartered Institute of Housing, the Tenancy Deposit Scheme, Tai Pawb, ARLA-Propertymark and Homes for All Cymru.
A Welsh Housing Survey offers the opportunity to develop a comprehensive evidence base to influence decision-making on critical housing issues in Wales.
The English Housing Survey, created more than 50 years ago, provides a strong evidence base for decision-makers on a range of important issues, most notably the circumstances under which tenancies end. Moreover, data can also be gathered on the following important subjects: buying expectations, social housing satisfaction, and energy performance and behaviour.
Today, housing data currently collected in Wales is a good starting point for advising and shaping policy discussions. However, it isn’t detailed enough to allow policymakers to make informed decisions about long-term housing legislation.
A Welsh Housing Survey offers opportunities to collect statistical data and first-hand case study information on a range of important matters including:
- The tenant/landlord relationship in the private rental sector, especially the specific reasons why a tenancy may have ended.
- The financial circumstances of residents, including the level of disposable income and savings for renters, and the ability and appetite for purchasing a home.
- The overall quality and standards of homes, including accessibility, adaptability, and safety.
- The energy performance of Wales’ properties. This is particularly important as Wales balances fuel poverty with the need to decarbonise and retrofit its housing stock.
An example of where such a survey would be beneficial is through the new energy performance requirements in the private rental sector.
Improving the energy performance for homes is fundamental to tackling climate change, and with landlords now required to ensure their properties achieve a minimum of EPC C, the survey will allow us to monitor the impact on tenants. This includes tracking the comfort and quality standards in homes, and the influence the changes will have on tenant energy usage and potential fuel poverty.
Furthermore, we know one of the biggest challenges in the private rental market is constantly changing legislation and restrictions. Landlords need market stability otherwise there is a risk that many private landlords will leave the sector, creating an unfavourable environment for prospective landlords to enter.
The Renting Homes (Amendment) (Wales) Bill, for example, represents the fourth major change in the private rental sector in Wales in recent years. It brings into effect significant changes for landlords, such as the introduction of six-month notice periods.
Evidence collected through the English Housing Survey shows less than 10% of tenancies in 2019-20 were ended by the landlord, with the Welsh Government estimating that figure to be higher in Wales. If a Welsh Housing Survey existed, and demonstrated similar findings as the English survey, it is very likely we could have seen a different approach to these proposals, an approach which doesn’t bring such a shift in regulation and supports both tenants and landlords.
A Welsh Housing Survey, if properly funded, implemented, and utilised, will not only help better inform decision-makers, but also create a better housing environment for current and future homeowners, tenants, developers, and landlords.
The proposals to introduce the Welsh Housing Survey have already secured cross-party support, and the next Welsh Government must commit early on to the introduction of a survey that will shape future housing strategies and create homes fit for the future.
Samuel Rees is the Public Affairs Officer, Wales for the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
