Landlord representatives and student groups are calling on the Government to amend the Renters’ Rights Bill, warning that new rules on student lettings could reduce access to higher education.
The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA), supported by student organisations, has written to Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook urging revisions to proposed rules for houses in multiple occupation (HMOs).
The current draft allows landlords of student houses with three or more tenants to regain possession at the end of the academic year to re-let to the next cohort. However, smaller properties—those with one or two bedrooms—are excluded. According to the NRLA, these homes make up around a third of off-street student accommodation.
The House of Lords has already backed an amendment to include smaller properties, and MPs will debate the matter again when the bill returns to the Commons on 8 September.
NRLA chief executive Ben Beadle said the current plan risks creating shortages: “Unless MPs act, future students could find their ambitions blocked—not by grades, but by a lack of somewhere to live.”