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Activists oppose move away from Open Ended Tenancies

The Generation Rent activist group has come out against an amendment to the Renters Reform Bill which reversed the threat of open-ended tenancies in the student accommodation sector.

The original wording of the Bill removed fixed term tenancies, forcing student accommodation providers - both individual landlords and larger student accommodation services - to enter into open-ended tenancies, where there was no certainty of when a tenant may leave. 

This uncertainty, along with the impending repeal of Section 21, created widespread uncertainty over the availability of properties for incoming student tenants each academic year. These proposed reforms threaten to destabilise the well-established model of student housing.

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However, earlier this month the government issued an amendment to the Renters Reform Bill which allowed student tenancies to contain a ground for eviction, enforceable between June and August of every year, to keep student tenancies aligned with academic years. 

This will apply to HMOs in which “the tenant was a full-time student, or the landlord reasonably believed that the tenant would become a full-time student during the tenancy”. This can only be used with the intention of letting to another set of students the following year.

Much of the academic and property world welcomed this amendment as - it was thought - an uncontentious and common sense change.

However, now Generation Rent activists have taken an opposing view, writing on the organisation’s website: “We are disappointed by this change, which will embed a two-tier system and will undermine the rights of students who do not conform to traditional term times (eg medical students). 

“This goes back on the government’s commitment to students upon the publication of the White Paper, which said ‘It is important that students have the same opportunity to live in a secure home and challenge poor standards as others in the PRS (Private Rented Sector). Therefore, students renting in the general private rental market will be included within the reforms, maintaining consistency.’”

Generation Rent continues: “Reneging upon this lets down millions of student renters who will now not be subject to the security and flexibility enjoyed by other tenants. This change also represents another disappointing government concession to the landlord lobby at the expense of tenants’ rights.”

  • Barry X

    The genius of Generation Rent once again showing how desperate they are to be noticed and make a nuisance of themselves while at the same time how little they understand and how counter productive they are..... as well as just plain dumb and unable to distinguish between say, temporary student accommodation unintentionally caught by legislation intended (though equally wrongheadedly) for something else....

    BUT ....when reading this a little Generation Rent parody popped into my head.... just a bit of fun which I hope makes at least two of the perhaps three people in total bothering to reading this smile.....

    .....imagine if it came to the attention of the perpetually indignant Generation Rent people that most (but not *quite* all) CRIMINALS 'only' get fixed term PRISON convictions 🤯 ...and, even worse, it also came to their naive attention that the vast majority of prisoners are "unfairly evicted", i.e. released, long before serving even half of those usually absurdly short custodial sentences....🤯😱

    ....obviously ACTION MUST BE TAKEN..

    I can imagine Generation Rent's immediate and angry reaction: "ALL prisoners deserve the flexibility and security of open-ended FULL LIFE sentences"....

    ...🤔... "furthermore the government MUST abolish all the outdated loopholes allowing them to be released early from their cells before the ends of either fixed term or life sentances as many of them will have nowhere to go and so releasing them will effectively make them homeless".... plus of course "....this MUST apply to ALL prisoners irrespective of who they are or why they are there because such discrimination cannot be tolerated...."

    👍🤪🤣

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    Barry, that is brilliant! 👍👍👍

     
    Barry X

    Thanks @AL - appreciated 😉

     
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    Generation RANT continues: “This change also represents another disappointing government concession to LANDLORD'S RIGHTS at the expense of the tenants’ LOBBY.”

    The words in CAPITALS are my changes to reflect the change in emphasis. If only Generation Rant concentrated on finding real jobs.

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    Generation Rant are a brick short of a full load!!!!!

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    In their case I think they are the brick , it’s the load that’s gone missing

     
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    Politics of envy

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