In the 2021 London mayoral election, a critical campaign message from Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan was to freeze private rents and control them through proposed ‘London Private Rent Commission’.
He has struggled to get momentum on this promise and now seems to have hit a new wall with the release of the ‘A fairer private rented sector’ by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. This white paper made a point to address rent control stating:
“The government does not support the introduction of rent controls to set the level of rent at any point of a tenancy.
Rents are negotiated and agreed between landlord and tenant”
This comes at a time as London rental prices are on the rise and the private rental sector is preparing for diverse changes from both legislation and the state of the economy.
Written by Toby Dawson