The RLA is going up against the government to get the new homes tax scrapped- citing evidence that it ‘punishes’ would-be renters.  It makes a case for not applying the 3% stamp duty levy landlords invest in property adding to the overall supply of housing.

A new report being published by the RLA’s research exchange, PEARL, warns that the country faces a net loss of 133,000 homes for private rent over the next year.

This follows government figures showing that between March 2016 and March 2017 England saw a loss of 46,000 private rented homes.

The RLA policy director, David Smith, said that with the demand for private rental homes showing no sign of slowing up – despite efforts to encourage homeownership – government was “always mistaken” to place homes to own and to rent in opposition to each other rather than seeking to supply more homes in all tenures.

Despite government support for ownership, the RLA’s figures – based on questioning over 2,600 landlords – show that 84% have seen tenant demand increasing or remaining stable.  The Association of Residential Letting Agents has also found an increase in demand for private rented homes.

Much of the reason for the fall in supply has been the decision to restrict mortgage interest relief to the basic rate of income tax and the decision to add a 3% levy on stamp duty for the purchase of additional homes.

Though the government has been working to boost the supply of homes to rent by corporate developers, analysis by the RLA suggests that just 2% of all private rented households in the UK are in homes developed by corporate investors.

To the RLA, the majority of landlords are, and will continue to be, individuals and small businesses, best positioned to support small and medium-sized construction firms.

Smith said: “Corporate investors are failing to provide the new homes to rent at the pace and scale we need. They are also poorly equipped to meet the housing needs of towns and rural areas.  The government should use taxation more positively and not penalise landlords who are contributing to badly-needed homes to rent.”