The introduction of rent control would be a “disaster” for tenants, argued the National Residential Landlords Association.
This initiative is based on a recent study which found that a third of private landlords would sell their properties if rent control were introduced.
Data compiled by research consultancy Pegasus Insight shows that 33 percent of landlords said the introduction of rent control would result in them having to sell some or all of their rental properties.
Ben Beadle, chief executive of the NRLA, said: “Whatever way you look at it, there are more tenants looking for a home than there are available.
“Ultimately, rent controls would be a disaster for tenants. They would only further reduce supply and undermine the few choices tenants currently have when looking for housing.
“Housing is expensive because there are not enough properties of all kinds, be it for personal use, social housing or private rental.
“The only way to solve this crisis is to increase supply across the board.”
supply and demand
In addition, the data also revealed that in the second quarter of the year, 82 percent of landlords in England and Wales reported strong demand for properties from tenants.
Demand was strongest in the South West, followed by the South East, the East of England and the East Midlands.
Demand was lowest in the northeast: 68 percent of landlords described it as strong.
This trend is likely to continue in view of “an already chronic housing shortage in the entire private rental sector,” say the experts.
Despite strong demand, landlords were twice as likely to sell properties last year as they were to buy rental properties, the association said.
According to the data, 8 percent of respondents had bought their properties to rent, while only 17 percent had sold them.
While 10 percent of respondents planned to buy a new home to rent out in the coming year, a third planned to sell in the same period.
This research comes alongside analysis by Rightmove which suggests that, based on current demand, around 120,000 additional rental properties are needed to bring rental growth back to a more normal level of 2 per cent per year.
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