If you're a landlord in Wales you need to read this article now ! Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016.
I am sure that you have heard about the significant changes that are taking place this summer regarding the way we rent homes in Wales. The proposed date for changes to come into force is the 15th July 2022, however, we are still waiting for confirmation of this date.
In brief the changes are as follows:
Assured Shorthold Tenancies (AST) will be replaced by Occupational Contracts.
The Welsh Government have offered free Occupational Contracts, but these are significantly weighted in favour of the tenants, so we have asked our legal experts to look at the contracts and incorporate terms to give our landlords the maximum protection possible. All current AST’s must be replaced with the new Occupational Contract’s within 6 months and for all our managed landlords we will take care of this. Any let only landlords that need a replacement contract should contact us to discuss what is required or may wish to convert to a managed service.
Carbon Monoxide detectors must be fitted in every rental home.
Carbon monoxide detectors will need to be fitted in all homes that have a fuel burning appliance, this includes boilers, hobs/ovens, gas fires, log burners etc. There will need to be one fitted in each room where there is an appliance so most homes will need at least one and in some cases two or three. This is an immediate requirement, so we are currently getting together prices for this work and we will keep you updated.
Electrical Certificates will be required for all rental homes.
An electrical inspection must be carried out at each property and any remedial work done to bring the electrical installation up to a satisfactory standard. There is a 12-month window for this work to be carried out and we are speaking to our contractors to provide some costings for the electrical inspections. Remedial work will be priced on each individual property.
Hard wired smoke detectors will be a legal requirement in rental homes.
There is a legal requirement for a hard-wired smoke detector on each floor of a rental property, additional battery powered smoke detectors may be fitted as required. There is a 12-month window for these to be installed and we are currently asking our contractors for a cost to supply and fit these detectors.
Email communication will be important.
Under the new Occupational Contracts, there will be more than 30 new notices that will have to be regularly issued and received from tenants during the life of the contract. Most of these must be actioned within a fixed time-period, failure to do so will be seen as deemed consent or may require the landlord to pay compensation. So having a provable track record of tenant requests, acknowledgements and approval will be very important. I would strongly urge all landlords who rely on paper communication to upgrade to an email service, this will allow you to stay within the permissible time frames. Failure to serve the notices correctly may also have an impact on your ability to serve an eviction notice on your tenants if you need to do so.
Other significant changes are
Notice periods under the new Occupational Contracts will be a minimum of 6 months and tenants will have improved succession rights under the new system. Landlords will have greater obligations under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) which will require them to keep their properties in good condition.
Finally
This is a completely new housing legislation for renting properties in Wales. As such there are many areas that have not been made clear in the guidelines, and there have been no legal test cases to set precedents in all the areas of the new law. With this in mind, we will be keeping a close eye on any further changes as they happen, and we will have legal support to guide us through the legislation as required.