Some BTL brokers and landlords have shared their doubts about the effectiveness of Andy Burnham’s new Good Landlord Charter.
Earlier this week, the Greater Manchester mayor launched a consultation on the charter, which is designed to bring together landlords and renters to improve the standards of homes in social housing and the PRS.
While several organisations operating in the PRS have shown their support for this initiative — including the NRLA and Greater Manchester Housing Providers — some landlords and brokers claimed the charter proposal may not be as effective as it is believed.
“As someone who owns and rents out properties, and also works as a mortgage adviser for other landlords, I have to say that this proposal is not as good as it sounds,” said Harps Garcha, director at Brooklyns Financial, adding that this initiative could increase the financial burden on landlords should the Good Landlord Charter demand a registration fee.
“Landlords already face many challenges in the rental market, and I don't see how this scheme will help them maintain their properties to a high standard. I agree that there are some bad landlords who need to be stopped, but I think the resources should be spent on targeting them, rather than punishing the good landlords,” she added.
Commenting on the announcement on X, property investor Chris Tinsley said the idea of the Good Landlord Charter was good in theory, but clamed that the voluntary aspect of it will see only good landlords sign up to it, while bad landlords would avoid it, thus not achieving its desired result.
Speaking as an investor and landlord on Newspage, Patricia McGirr, chief marketing officer at Finanze Group, said schemes need to target serial offenders who rent out sub-standard homes in order to improve relations and the quality of stock.
“As an investor and landlord with over 20 years in the industry, I've seen schemes to improve the quality of housing stock come and go,” she said.
“I have properties that are within formal licensing scheme areas and to say they've failed to make a major difference is an understatement — they've simply imposed additional financial penalties on landlords like me, who maintain our properties and take care of our tenants.
“Good landlords don't need a charter; in my opinion, blanket schemes are a waste of time, money and resources. We don't need administration; we need action and consequences for those who simply don't care.”
