The blog is back!

Return of the portal

Eviction delays (again) and the possible abolition of section 21 notices.

Apologies but for unforeseen and unavoidable reasons, the blog has temporarily been more or less out of action for the last 2 months. But we’re back!  Here are a couple of quick updates on the landlord portal and the current restrictions on evictions.  

Landlord Portal.

As you probably know, our old version of the landlord portal was discontinued late last year. We have been working on a new improved version but have had various obstacles along the way. We are hopeful the new portal will be in place soon and will make an announcement as soon as we can. Please note that many former users will have to complete a new registration before they can be given access. Obviously, we will tell people what they need to do once arrangements are finalised.

Evictions and section 21 notices.

In March, when the COVID-19 crisis first emerged, the government put in place a temporary  block on landlords ending tenancies without tenant agreement and on evictions. These were eventually lifted but new restrictions are now coming in, at least in areas of high COVID-19. In areas with a COVID Tier 2 or Tier 3 alert, courts can award possession against a tenant, but it has been announced that bailiffs (or enforcement agents) will not actually carry out evictions. https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2020/10/bailiffs-not-enforcing-possession-court-orders-in-tier-2-and-3-areas. The government is also considering proposals to end Section 21 notices (the standard way to end a tenancy and against which there is no legal defence for tenants). At the moment, this is a proposal only – but be warned, it could happen. If Section 21 goes, the only recourse for landlords would be to serve a Section 8 notice. These can work but there are significant limitations on how and when they can be served and courts can refuse to allow a Section 8 to go through.  There are some important things you should be doing to maximise your chances of success in the courts should you ever need to serve a Section 8 notice:

• Ensure you have followed all the appropriate regulations about how to manage a tenancy throughout it’s course.
• Keep completely accurate records of all aspects of how a tenancy has been managed, so that it can be demonstrated how you have managed the property and keep a completely accurate record of all payments received from or demanded of, the tenant.
• Act professionally at all times – even if provoked by a difficult tenant.

We will post on this subject again if more changes on ending tenancies / evictions are announced.

Oliver