Industry 'confused' by landlords' register

News Category: Legal

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The landlords and letting industry is "puzzled" about what the new government-proposed landlords' register is supposed to demonstrate.

Earlier this week, the Communities and Local Government department revealed proposals to improve the private rented sector, with a list of landlords' names and their properties part of those plans, but sector expert Malcolm Harrison does not know what this proves.

Mr Harrison, an independent property authority, said he is unsure of the purpose of the register.

"The difficulty that there has always been when it comes to the question of 'is a landlord up to standard?' is finding the bad landlords," he explained. "You still have that problem, in that the bad landlord won't register."

Landlords who are problematic will still "slip under the radar", the expert added.

Earlier this month, the lettings industry was also told that the Association of Residential Letting Agents will be establishing a new licensing scheme for companies in the sector.

Some of the reasons given for the initiative were to help consumers and clamp down on letting agents that mismanage properties.

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