Private Rented Housing

(asked on 10th January 2023) - View Source

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will undertake a formal assessment of the extent of supply problems in the private rented sector.


Answered by
Baroness Scott of Bybrook Portrait
Baroness Scott of Bybrook
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
This question was answered on 24th January 2023

Since 2010, there have been a range of policy changes affecting private landlords. These include tax changes for buy-to-let landlords, changes to the Stamp Duty Land Tax, and the growing role of the build-to-rent sector.

The English Housing Survey provides information on households and housing stock. The proportion of Private Rented Sector (PRS) households has remained relatively stable for nearly a decade. The PRS was 19% of households in 2013-14 and continues to be at 19% according to the latest data for 2021-22, collected during the pandemic.

The department also continues to monitor key sources of market data as an indicator of supply and demand. Rightmove's Rental Trends Tracker reported that in Q3 of 2022, tenant demand had increased by 20% while available properties to rent had decreased by 9% compared to Q3 of 2021. The department will continue to follow these statistics closely including to examine the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic and its aftermath.

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