New research released today (18 September) into Scottish tenancy reform unveils crucial insights for shaping legislation across the UK, especially the new Renters’ Rights Bill which was introduced to Parliament last week (see our reaction here). Critically, the research finds that legislative changes have driven improvements in the sector, without adversely affecting landlords, but that legislation must be strengthened for renters to have truly secure, high quality and affordable homes.
Led by Indigo House and funded by the Nationwide Foundation, the RentBetter research project was carried out across five years (2019-2024) to examine the impact of the Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act 2016, which marked the first time in recent history that a UK nation sought to fundamentally change how the private rented sector operates. Researchers conducted thousands of interviews with tenants and landlords to comprehensively assess the impact of the changes to Scottish tenancy law.
The full research report, the key findings and the recommendations can be found on the RentBetter website, and you can sign up to attend a webinar on 30 October, to hear Anna Evans, Director of Indigo House, talk through the findings alongside Tom Darling (Renters Reform Coalition) and Susan Aktemel (Homes for Good).
read the full research report READ THE EXEC SUMMARY sign up to the webinarWhy is this research so significant?
In England, many of the reforms proposed in the English Renters’ Rights Bill, which had its first reading in Parliament on 11 September, mirror those that took place in Scotland. These new findings provide vital learnings for policymakers in England – especially at this critical time.
At the same time, in Scotland, the Housing (Scotland) Bill was introduced to parliament in March 2024, and is set to introduce further changes to the PRS, including measures to limit rent increases. This research offers unique and compelling evidence which should be used to improve conditions and protections for renters across Scotland.
What were the key research findings and how could this impact the private rented sector?
- The Renters’ Rights Bill has the potential to be foundational to tenants’ ability to live in safe and secure homes. The vast majority of tenants (80%) surveyed in Scotland were confident that they would be able to stay in their current property for as long as they would like. Introducing the Renters’ Rights Bill is therefore an excellent step in improving the lives of England’s 12 million private renters.
- The 2016 changes have not had undue negative effects on landlord perceptions or actions. Landlords’ initial concerns about the tenancy changes proved unfounded, and landlords are in general now satisfied with the 2016 changes.
- Scottish legislation has not gone far enough in some areas, and the government must not make the same mistakes when delivering PRS reform in England. Renters are being unlawfully removed from their homes through the abuse of grounds for eviction – for at least one in five renters evicted by a landlord who said they intended to sell, the property was not ultimately sold. The governments of England and Scotland must learn from these challenges and close loopholes open to unscrupulous landlords to abuse new grounds for eviction.
Luke’s story:
Luke moved into a privately rented flat in May 2019 and experienced shocking conditions. In the video below, you can hear more about his experience. After battling to have repairs carried out, he eventually had to take his landlord to the tribunal who ordered that the issues should be resolved.
Following this however, Luke received an eviction notice, under the grounds that the landlord was going to sell the property. After being evicted for this reason in 2022, the property was not sold and Luke found it back on the market. “I was not surprised to be the victim of a revenge eviction. It was disappointing of course as it had cost me money, time, and effort to find a new home. It felt as though the landlord thought that they could do whatever they wanted and ignore the rules.”
Luke once again took the landlord to tribunal and was awarded compensation, but actually receiving the compensation has not been easy. “From the time I moved out in February 2022 it took just over a year to start receiving compensation…. After the tribunal ruled in my favour, I needed to employ a Sherriff to enforce the order for payment, including instructing them to seize assets from their business as they initially refused to pay.”
- The PRS cannot be fixed by top level legislation alone. Despite having increased rights under the new tenancy system, tenants usually do not know about these rights or know how to use them, and their awareness of rights has not improved over the last five years. Only 1% of the renters had ever contacted their local council enforcement team. The governments of England and Scotland must set out what wider support it will provide to renters and what new funding will be provided to local authorities to properly enforce regulations.
- Issues in the PRS cannot be addressed in a vacuum. Most tenants in the PRS feel ‘stuck’ in the private rented sector due to an inability to access ownership or social rented housing. While the Renters’ Rights Bill is a welcome step, we need an overall strategy which confirms the role of the PRS, to ensure there are enough homes of all tenure types to meet housing needs and deliver sufficient truly affordable housing.
Catriona’s story:
Catriona struggled with poor conditions in her flat, which affected her physical and mental health, but she struggled to get repairs done and didn’t have any alternative options. She said “It was a very stressful and exhausting experience. Things just kept getting worse in terms of the leaks and the mould. And my landlord was doing nothing about it.”
With a lack of options available, Catriona gave her landlord time to fix the issues, but eventually had to get support. Catriona said: “It was very stressful. And in future I think I would be more inclined to simply move.” However, facing financial pressures from high rents, Catriona also had to compromise on the size and location of her flat: “It was really just a decision that was made for us. We can’t afford to be spending £1500 a month on rent so we needed to find the best we could with what we have. We still live in a good area but it’s not as central as I would like.”
- Legislation to date in Scotland has not improved affordability in the PRS. Limits on in-tenancy rent rises have had some positive impacts, decreasing rent increase levels which has increased security and affordability for some sitting tenants. But legislation has not delivered affordability as a whole, as advertised rents have continued to increase. And under 1% of tenants had ever formally challenged a rent rise. More needs to be done to deliver affordability in both England and Scotland, and the Renters Rights Bill will not be enough to make renting affordable. This must be carefully thought through and will only be effective if delivered in conjunction with a wider housing strategy.
Joshua Davies, Programme Manager at the Nationwide Foundation, said: “This report underscores the critical importance of well-executed legislative reform, and the government must learn from its findings to deliver effective reform in England that provides genuine change for renters.
“Following the publication of the Renters’ Rights Bill, the government now has a critical opportunity to learn from what has happened in Scotland, and close loopholes that allow unscrupulous landlords to abuse new eviction grounds. What’s more, transforming the private rented sector hinges on restructuring the tenancy system in England. It is not enough to address isolated issues; we need a more comprehensive approach to reform that will allow tenants to know and use their rights. It’s critical that we look at the housing system as a whole, removing our reliance on the PRS alone to increase the availability of social and genuinely affordable homes.”