New Bill To Give Tenants In The UK The Legal Right To Keep A Pet
Generally, finding a new place to rent can be stressful. Sometimes, you may find the perfect home and lose it within a few minutes because someone else was faster in making a deposit.
Finding a home is even more stressful for people who have pets because many landlords frown upon having pets in their homes. Landlords against pets often claim that they can make their homes unkempt.
Thankfully, tenants with pets in the UK can now breathe a sigh of relief as a new bill dubbed "The Renters' Reform Bill" is set to stop landlords from discriminating against pets.
The bill, considered the biggest shakeup of the private rented sector in 30 years, will force landlords to allow tenants to keep their pets in their rented homes.
A government source who spoke about the new bill said it would "give tenants a legal right to have a pet if they wish."
Aside from giving tenants the legal backing to have pets in their rented homes, The Renters' Reform Bill comes with other perks, including holding landlords accountable for the overall condition of the property, disallowing 'no-fault' evictions, and ending fixed-term tenancies.
The overhaul was announced on June 16 by the Housing Secretary, Michael Gove.
What will the new bill do?
The Renters' Reform Bill will outlaw fixed-term tenancies and replace them with open-ended agreements, allowing tenants to stay in a home for as long as they need and move when there is a good reason to do so.
In addition, the bill will abolish the 'no-fault' Section 21 evictions, which previously gave landlords the power to evict tenants without reason.
Lastly, landlords will be forced to refund tenants their rent if the homes are not in acceptable condition. This is a welcome development, considering that a report from some sources shows that a fifth of the properties people currently rent are deemed unfit to live in.
The new bill brings social housing standards to private rentals and puts an end to people living in damp, unsafe, and cold homes. There are also measures to help responsible landlords repossess their properties from anti-social tenants.
The Renters' Reform Bill is a much-needed major shakeup of the housing sector because many pet parents or would-be pet parents have been unfairly denied the companionship of their pets or forced to find alternatives due to discrimination by landlords.
With the new law in place, landlords must provide a valid reason to refuse to admit tenants with pets into their homes.
If a landlord refuses without a legitimate reason, tenants have the full backing of the law to challenge such a decision. Thankfully, the bill provides relief to potentially aggrieved landlords, as it allows them to request insurance to cover any potential damage caused by pets.
Although the bill is the first major step toward a more inclusive and better quality of life, there is still room for further improvements, as the skyrocketing prices of houses nowadays add to the difficulty of finding decent homes.
In the meantime, tenants can hold on to their pets while expecting better days ahead.
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