Government set to regulate letting agents

Letting agents will be brought under new regulatory oversight as part of the Labour government’s plans for leasehold reform.

The new watchdog will set out codes of practices for agents In the form of “independent” regulation, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) confirmed.

Property agents will be required to obtain a license to do the job, as well as appropriate qualifications to operate.

If they fall foul of the required standards, the regulator will have the power to take their licenses away.

These measures form part of a wider consultation the government is planning for leasehold reform.

The government ultimately plans to legislate to give the Secretary of State powers to introduce caps on fees charged to leasehold tenants for “simple requests” like keeping a pet. The government will legislate to give the Secretary of State powers to put a cap on these fees that are “genuinely reasonable” and that landlords must follow.   

The powers will also cover privately managed estates where homeowners can face similar charges for minor cosmetic changes to their properties.  

Upcoming legislative changes will also enable a clampdown on administrative fees, where landlords can charge for providing documents on request, or even for simply notifying them of a change in mortgage provider.