News

Today at Westminster Hall, MPs debated a proposed ban on letting agent fees charged to tenants.  The debate was called by Kevin Hollinrake MP and was responded to by Minister of State for Housing and Planning, Alok Sharma MP.

Commenting on the Westminster Hall debate on banning letting agent fees NALS CEO, Isobel Thomson said:

“NALS welcomed the cross-party debate on the fee ban and confirmation that the Minister has adopted a common sense approach on holding deposits with his announcement that they will be exempt from the ban but he gave no clear indication of when legislation might come forward.

“We were encouraged that MPs quite rightly expressed concern about the implications of rent increases as a result of the ban and the impact on those least likely to afford them. Of real interest was the Minister’s commitment to consider the ban on tenant fees in the context of wider work in the private rented sector, something NALS called for earlier this year.

“This is positive news and an indication that he has listened to the call for an end to piecemeal legislation. His clear reference to regulation was welcome as well as his willingness to explore options for what a regulatory framework might look like.”