Private Renting in the wake of the Coronavirus

There are lots of questions surrounding the new ‘emergency legislation’ that is set to be introduced to protect those who are private renting as Coronavirus measures step up nationwide.

Thousands of tenants have called upon the government to intervene before it is too late, and Landlords exercise their right to evict their tenants for not paying their rent. The trigger for the emergency legislation has been the worry and fear felt by tenants who are concerned they may be asked to leave their home if they cannot pay their rent as a result of the effects of the Coronavirus.

There may be many reasons related to Coronavirus for the late or non-payment of rent. Many could be made redundant, salaries might be paid late or not at all, the tenants may have to self-isolate, their children may become ill, they may have dependents to look after, all of which has a knock-on effect to their ability to pay their rent on time.

Tenants cannot be looked at in isolation, the Landlords will also find themselves in a difficult position and there is talk of offering landlords a three-month‘ mortgage break’ to relieve the burden if their tenant is unable to pay the rent to them, as normal.

The effects of this emergency legislation will remain unknown for some time. It is not clear whether or not evictions for other reasons (such as the simple service of a Section 21 Notice), can still go ahead. It is suspected a moratorium will be in place for the next few months, but it is not yet known how far-reaching this moratorium will be and if it extends to all evictions or just those affected by the Coronavirus.

WHAT TO DO NEXT

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