Greater flexibility to keep pets in homes amongst range of Housing Bill measures
New legislation will introduce a range of measures to improve renting in Scotland, including strengthening tenants’ rights to keep a pet.
Measures in the Housing (Scotland) Bill will allow a renter to make a request to keep a pet in their home and for that to not be unreasonably refused by their landlord. Currently, it is entirely up to the landlord whether a tenant can keep a pet, and they must be given written permission to do so.
Other provisions aimed at providing a good quality, and affordable rental market also include a system of long-term rent controls, with the Scottish Government working with tenants, landlords, investors and developers to bring forward a system that works for tenants and supports investment in private rented housing.
Housing Minister Paul McLennan said: “Pets are an important part of the family for many people across Scotland. Tenants have the right to feel at home in rented accommodation and having more control over keeping a pet can play a big part in that and can have additional benefits for their mental health and wellbeing.
“This is just one of a range of measures in the Housing (Scotland) Bill, including long-term rent controls, which will help improve the lives of renters and create an affordable, high-quality, and fair private rented sector.
“The Bill also meets the Scottish Government’s ambition to improve the renting experience in Scotland, whilst also encouraging landlords to invest.
“We will continue to work to create a system that strengthens renters’ rights and supports continued investment in the rental market.”
Gilly Mendes Ferreira, Director of Innovation and Strategic Relations for the Scottish SPCA said: “We welcome the provisions included within the Housing (Scotland) Bill, particularly the safeguarding of the rights of tenants to keep pets and hope that these measures will foster a more inclusive and compassionate rental market.
“Our research has found that over 75% of tenants stated they had a pet for emotional (77%) and mental health (83%) support.
“This survey also highlighted that seven out of 10 tenants would risk becoming homeless if they were no longer able to keep their pet in their current accommodation.
“Sadly, we also found that 37% of tenants stated that they have had to make that unimaginable choice between having a pet and having a roof over their head.”
It was always on the cards that if restrictions were to be introduced on short-term letting in Scotland, Edinburgh would be first out of the blocks. And, sure enough, the council last month introduced a city-wide “control zone”.
The capital, which for obvious reasons is the country’s tourist Mecca, has become a magnet for Airbnb-style short-term lets over the last decade, leading to concerns about housing shortages and perceptions about anti-social behaviour.
Under draft proposals which will now go to Scottish Government Ministers for final approval, property owners will soon need planning permission to be able to operate short-term lettings and will have to apply for a change of use certificate from the planning department.
What is less well known is that the council has always had the power to require planning permission in the event of a material change in environment, such as short-term rentals. The difference is that, from now on, this will be mandatory.
It should be noted that the proposals only apply to secondary lettings, i.e., properties which are not an owner’s primary residence. People will still be able to let out their homes while on holiday, or rooms in their home while they remain in residence.
However, while the new restrictions appear to be forging ahead, it still remains unclear what policies the local authority will eventually apply. The current Development Plan – the overarching guide to future council thinking – makes no mention whatsoever of short-term lets.
Nor, surprisingly, does the document designed to replace it, the City Plan 2030, which again does not concern itself with the issue – making it increasingly difficult for property owners to plan ahead.
One can only speculate at the moment about whether permissions will be granted for continued short-term use, and on what grounds. Nor is there any clarity about whether numerical limits will be imposed.
Were there to be limits, it would be reasonable to assume that applications would be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, so landlords hoping to remain in the market might be advised to act sooner, rather than later.
There is, of course, an existing provision in law whereby if a short-term let has been operating for more than 10 years, with no action against it by the council and no action to conceal its operation, then it is entitled to a Certificate of Lawfulness to continue operation, though necessary evidence will be required.
As of the start of this month, there have been nine applications so far this year for planning permissions for short-term lets, only two of which have been granted – and they both involved Certificates of Lawfulness.
What to do if applications fail is clearly now a matter of immediate concern for property owners and DM Hall’s specialist rural arm Baird Lumsden is currently embarked on an information campaign around the sales, letting and management options which remain open.
It has gone into the issue in depth, in anticipation that Highland Council will be the next authority to impose short-term let restrictions around the Badenoch and Strathspey area, and is reaching out to concerned parties.
Informed and impartial advice of this nature is something of a port in a storm for property owners who are caught between a rock and a hard place as the restriction net tightens.
There has been anecdotal evidence of landlords exiting the short-term market and moving to longer lets in the private rental sector. But regulation in this sphere of activity is getting stricter all the time, and the imminent New Deal for Tenants will do nothing to ease landlord pain.
On a superficial level, it is easy to understand the council’s hope that properties taken out of short-term lets will find their way back into the housing stock, thus easing ongoing shortages.
But a counter-argument, articulated by bodies such as the Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers, is that lack of house-building is as much of a contributory factor to shortages, and that short-term lets bring in huge volumes of valuable tourism revenue to the city.
As things are, some smaller operators may indeed be forced to sell up and quit the market, although larger letting concerns will almost certainly continue to jump through the necessary hoops.
In this volatile environment, expert professional advice is the only real safeguard, and prudent property owners and landlords will seek it out as timeously as possible.
Calum Allmond is Head of Architectural Services at DM Hall Chartered Surveyors.
For further information, contact DM Hall Chartered Surveyors, 27 Canmore Street, Dunfermline KY12 7NU. T: 01383 621262. E: dunfermline@dmhall.co.uk.
One in four landlords in Edinburgh are considering selling their rental properties due to problem tenants, with unpaid rent and damage running into thousands of pounds cited as the main problems.
Households renting in the private and social sector have been severely affected by UK Government welfare policies, according to a new report released by the Scottish Government.
The Impact of UK Welfare Policy on Housing report (below) highlights the negative effect of Universal Credit on both tenants and landlords, due to the major increase in rent arrears. In East Lothian for example, 72% of social housing tenants claiming Universal Credit were in arrears, compared to 30% of all tenants.
In addition, the UK Government’s freeze on local housing allowance rates – a benefit paid to private rental tenants – has also substantially limited households ability to afford rent on properties.
The Scottish Government funds the full mitigation of the bedroom tax, which would otherwise affect over 70,000 individuals who would lose an average of around £650 a year, as well as providing additional funding for direct mitigation of welfare reforms, wider direct support for those on low incomes and advice and other services.
Housing Minister Kevin Stewart said: “Almost half a million Scottish households receive some form of financial support for their housing. It is clear that UK Government welfare cuts are having a devastating impact, with money taken from the pockets of people across the country, pushing them into crisis and debt.
“We are doing all we can, with the powers we have to protect those on low incomes from these devastating UK Government cuts – spending more than £125 million this year alone to do so. This includes £62 million to fully mitigate the ‘bedroom tax’, help for those impacted by the freeze in local housing allowance, as well as providing support for low-income households.
“This report builds on previously published evidence of the undue pressure on people that UK government changes to our welfare system are causing, including housing. We want to ensure everyone has access to a safe, warm place to call home – as part of that, the UK Government must urgently change course.”
In the private sector there are limits in the maximum housing benefit payable against rent, set in relation to household size and local market rents – the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates. The LHA rate was reduced as part of the coalition government welfare reform, to the 30th percentile of market rents, and has remained frozen since 2015.
“In the 21st century, we need a private rented sector that is modern, stable, flexible, predictable and fair for those individuals and families that call it home” – Graeme Brown, Shelter Scotland
The City of Edinburgh Council has signed its support for a national campaign calling for fair rent for all.
Leader Councillor Andrew Burns and Deputy Leader Councillor Sandy Howat put their names to Shelter Scotland’s Make Renting Right campaign, which aims to make Scotland’s growing private rented sector fit for the 59,000 households in the capital that rent privately.
The campaign complements existing work between the Council and private landlords, which includes giving advice about what they must do by law, and how they can resolve problems with tenants. They are also legally required to register with the local authority by law and apply and comply with specific licences.
Councillor Burns said: “The Council has given its full backing to Making Rent Right because we are committed to housing people in high quality and affordable homes, which is a vital step in our battle against poverty.
“Renters are entitled to be treated fairly and while the majority of landlords do so, too many people are still experiencing the opposite. This campaign is a great step towards protecting them.”
Councillor Howat said: “We are delighted to support such an important and worthwhile campaign. Thousands of people rent in this city for many reasons, with many of them doing so by choice, and ensuring that they can do so safely and at a fair price is vital.
“The Capital Coalition is committed to providing affordable homes and will continue to work closely with our partners in order to do so.”
Graeme Brown, Director of Shelter Scotland, said: “We are pleased that the City of Edinburgh Council has joined our calls for a better private rented sector for tenants and landlords.
“Along with the council, we want to see a private rented sector that is fit for families and protects all tenants – a sector that provides long-term homes, not short-term housing.
“Too often we hear of people being moved on, evicted or rents increased unreasonably, forcing people into the disruptive cycle of having to move house – every six months in some cases – preventing them from ever being able to put down strong roots and being part of a community.
“In the 21st century, we need a private rented sector that is modern, stable, flexible, predictable and fair for those individuals and families that call it home.”
Pictured (L-R): Matt Lock, Hubs Manager for Shelter Scotland; Fiona King, Shelter’s Campaigns and Public Affairs Manager; Deputy Leader Councillor Sandy Howat; Leader Councillor Andrew Burns; Adam Lang, Shelter’s Head of Communications and Policy.
