Shelter Calls For New 'Five-Year Private Rental' Contract

The housing charity Shelter has called for a new five-year private rental contract, which it claims would give people living in the sector greater stability.

The charity said a new type of tenancy called the stable rental contract should become the norm across the rental market in England to help people put down roots and give landlords greater certainty over returns.

It suggested that under the five-year contract proposal rents should increase in line with inflation each year, giving tenants and landlords predictable outgoings and incomes.

The proposed contract should also include flexible terms so tenants can leave with two months' notice, and that landlords be able to end the tenancy if they want to sell the property or evict bad tenants.

The call comes as research shows private rents have soared for the fifth month in a row, reaching a new high.

A wave of graduates requiring accommodation renewed the pressure on a market already facing strong competition from would-be buyers struggling to get on the property ladder.

Campbell Robb, chief executive of Shelter, said: "With a generation priced out of homeownership, renting is the only choice for growing numbers of people.

"But with the possibility of eviction with just two months' notice, and constant worries about when the next rent rise will hit, the current rental market isn't giving people – particularly families – the stability they need to put down roots."

(H)