Property portal

In June 2022, the government published the ‘A Fairer Private Rented Sector’ White Paper (the White Paper) setting out proposed reforms to improve the standard of the private rented sector in England which, among other items, included the introduction of a digital property portal. Chapter 5 “Better Compliance and Robust Enforcement” of the White Paper, sets out how the government envisages the property portal to meet its objective of reducing the number of non-decent homes by 50% by 2030. It begins by setting out the following which accurately reflects the title of the chapter itself:

• Landlords and tenants should understand how to comply with their duties and obligations. 
• Wilfully non-compliant or criminal landlords have no place in the market. 
• Local councils need strong and effective enforcement tools to crack down on poor practice.

This appears to show the government’s readiness to go beyond the existing Database of Rogue Landlords and Property Agents (the database), introduced following the Housing and Planning Act 2016, and the London Mayor’s Rogue Landlord and Agent Checker (the checker) to implement active and uniform compliance and enforcement which was not possible before. 

It’s worth considering how the property portal differs from the database and the checker and will go further than the database by being a ‘front door’ to tenants, landlords and local authorities to access information, ensure compliance and effective enforcement.  

The property portal and the database

One of the main differences between the property portal and the database is that the portal is intended to provide a systematic and step-by-step approach whereby all landlords will be legally required to register their properties. Failure to register a rented property will trigger the first stage of enforcement action against the landlord. This is not a function of the database. Instead, the database only makes it mandatory for local authorities to report when a landlord or property agent has received a banning order. Where a landlord or property agent has been convicted of a banning order offence or received two or more civil penalties within a year, entries are only added on the database subject to the local authority’s discretion, prior to which the local authority is required to give at least 21 days’ notice. On the contrary, the portal is intended to make it mandatory to enter all eligible offences and civil penalties and lift away the discretionary power of local authorities. 

Further, the information that is entered on the database is only accessible by local authorities. However, the offence data under the portal is intended to be publicly viewable subject to the General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act 2018 and consultation with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) 

The database however also has a system whereby a mandatory entry is kept on the system for the period the banning order is in effect or at least two years for discretionary entries. The database also provides a mechanism whereby the length of time may be reduced, and entries removed, as well as giving landlords and property agents a right of appeal where entries are included by the local authorities exercising discretionary powers. The White Paper does not make any reference to how long the information will be kept on the portal. Nor does it address the technicalities of how the data offence will be managed, including the procedure to be adopted whereby the banning order offence or civil penalty is appealed and whether these will be entered on the system or not until the appeal outcome. It may be that the landlords and property agents will have reduced rights of appeal as is the case with mandatory entries on the database. 

Many commentators think that the database has largely failed due to its inherent limitations, which include the fact that it is limited to local authorities and the approach of local authorities is not the same across the board. Where some local authorities prioritise private rented sector enforcement, others are not as robust. This has resulted in a variation in enforcement levels across England and a ‘postcode lottery’ for landlords and property agents where the local authorities are unable to crack down non-compliant landlords due to lack of information. The aim is that the property portal will address the deficiencies in the database as through the portal, the government seeks to provide for a national oversight of local authority enforcement in accordance with a uniformed national framework, strengthening consistency across the country. 

London: Rogue landlord and agent checker 

In London, there is also the mayor’s checker. The checker is different to the database and the proposed portal as it only contains information about landlords and agents who have been prosecuted by London local authorities for housing-related offences, by the London Fire Brigade (the LFB) for fire safety offences and expelled by one of the agency redress schemes. The offences are categorised in a tiered system whereby the offences listed under public tier are limited and retained for a shorter period of time. The offences listed under private tier include all the offences and are retained for longer but can only be accessed by the local authority and the LFB. The checker also has a reporting tool which facilitates tenants making formal complaints about a landlord or a property agent. The White Paper does not address how and whether the checker will continue to operate once a national portal is introduced. 

The advantages of the portal

One of the advantages for landlords and property agents is that the portal will allow them to build a public profile, whereby they will be able to demonstrate regulatory compliance and attract prospective tenants. It is hoped that this will drive out the wilfully non-compliant landlords (as they will struggle to operate) while also incentivising them to comply. However, for landlords convicted of eligible offences and civil penalties, it will mean a loss of business due to bad publicity. The White Paper is not clear whether the previous convictions will continue to be listed on the portal as well as the civil penalties where the landlords have paid the fines and remedied the issues which form the subject of the civil penalties. 

For tenants, the main advantage of the property portal will be awareness – both of their rights and to have the ability to distinguish between a good and a bad landlord and/or property agent. 

Likewise, for the local authorities, the property portal will bring all the relevant information together and should mean easier and more effective enforcement by being able to systemically identify rogue or criminal landlords. It might, however, also add another layer of admin limiting the function and effectiveness of the intended portal. 

It’s clear that the government is looking to ‘future proof’ the portal so it can flex to support future policy developments and support efforts to raise standards in the sector – something that the database and the checker have largely failed to do.  

Communication is key 

It is clear from the White Paper that communication is at the core of compliance and effective enforcement. The White Paper notes that the proposed reforms “will only make a difference if they are understood and effectively enforced.” This requires actively informing landlords and property agents of their obligations including registering properties on the portal and any continuing obligations in relation to property maintenance as well as providing guidance on how to comply with these obligations. The White Paper suggests providing landlords and property agents with a grace period to allow them to learn and comply with the new requirements. However, once again there is no proposal for the length of the proposed grace period. 

It also requires informing the tenants of their rights and how to use the information available on the portal to make informed decisions about where they choose to live. The proposals do make it clear however that landlords’ privacy will be protected, and tenants will only be able to access the relevant and necessary information to aid them in decision making. 

In line with this, the White Paper also refers to the increasing use of How to Rent (HTR) guides. Perhaps the government intends to incorporate information about the use and information available on the portal in the HTR guides to encourage the practice of landlords giving their tenants HTR guides, while simultaneously providing information on the property portal, although this is not stated clearly. 

The White Paper also proposes using a range of strategies and channels, including the Department for Work and Pensions and organisations like the Citizens Advice Bureau, the National Residential Landlords Association and Shelter to ensure those digitally excluded and other marginalised groups also have access to the information and are as aware of their rights.

Hopefully, the property portal will require landlords to take a proactive approach to property management, benefiting those landlords who are already compliant and encouraging rogue landlords to comply. It should also simplify enforcement for local authorities against the rogue landlords. For tenants it will mean having accessible information to make decisions and undertake due diligence checks before signing a rental agreement and binding themselves to the terms of the agreement. 

However, there a lot of unanswered questions that need to be considered to ensure the system is set up and works the way it is intended. The government has not yet set a date for when it plans to introduce the portal – the Renters’ Reform Bill is yet to be introduced.  The White Paper states that there will continue to be series of consultations and primary research will be carried out to ensure that the portal reflects the needs and requirements of its intended users. It is therefore likely to take a while before we have a clear road map of what the portal will actually include.