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The purpose of this paper is to sketch the UK housing backdrop, review the student private rented sector (PRS) and assess the experience of post-graduate university student tenants in the PRS.

A literature review puts the issues of student-PRS responsiveness into context and helps to untangle some UK housing issues. The private sector’s size, growth and performance is assessed by reviewing secondary data. In-depth interviews were then conducted at a regional university campus.

The study confirms accumulating evidence of an unbalanced UK housing market. The study identified four main PRS issues: first, rapid university expansion without accompanying residential construction has sparked rampant PRS growth with, second, quality issues, third, in tight letting market conditions, rented agent service levels fell and fourth, part of the problem is complex PRS management procedures.

The research has three noteworthy limitations. First, the macroeconomic analysis integrated secondary research without independent modelling. Second, the views of letting agents, university property managers, planning officers or landlords were not canvassed. Finally, the pilot interviews were geographically restricted.

When they expand, universities, local authorities and industry players need to give due consideration to plan for, design and develop quality student accommodation. Over-reliance on the PRS without informed oversight and coordination could undermine student experience and erode long-term UK competitiveness.

The lack of quality student rented accommodation mirrors a general housing malaise around affordability, polarisation and sustainable “dwelling”. Standards and professionalism in the rented sector is part of the overall quality mix to attract global talent.

The preliminary investigation uses mixed-methods to investigate PRS service delivery. It illustrates the interplay between professional property management and wider issues of metropolitan productivity, sustainability and resilience.

This paper aims to investigate the views of landlords and agents on the voluntary scheme, along with their opinions of the Welsh Government’s proposals to make accreditation compulsory for landlords and agents renting or letting in Wales. This paper is based on a conference paper given in India at the RICS COBRA 2013 Conference. Landlord Accreditation Wales (LAW) is a voluntary accreditation scheme for landlords and agents operating within the private rented sector (PRS) in Wales. When it launched in 1999, it was a pioneering accreditation scheme offering voluntary rather than legal regulation of the Welsh PRS.

A questionnaire, designed and developed in partnership with LAW, was sent out nationwide. All the landlords and agents on file were sent the questionnaire by LAW. This was followed up by reminder e-mails, along with the promotion of this national project at locally run landlord and agent events. The research provides a snapshot and coverage of the views of landlords and agents connected to LAW only.

The PRS in Wales, as with the rest of Britain, still suffers from negative imagery because of the behavior of a minority of agents and landlords that operate poor housing management practices and standards. While on the whole popular amongst landlords and agents, voluntary regulation is unlikely to tackle these issues effectually. Accordingly, the Welsh Government intends to make registration and accreditation within the PRS compulsory. The results of this empirical study show that the LAW scheme has positive effects on the standards and practices of a number of landlords and agents. The proposal to have mandatory registration and accreditation in Wales has not been met with overwhelming support from landlords and agents. Instead, there are significant pockets of uncertainty about, and resistance to, the introduction of legal regulation within the PRS.

The research contributes to the existing literature surrounding the regulation of the PRS by providing a distinctive insight into the views of landlords and agents on voluntary accreditation within the PRS in Wales as well as examining their opinions on the proposal to impose mandatory accreditation throughout the Sector.

This paper considers the evolution of government policies regarding the provision of housing in the private rented sector and the regulation of landlord behaviour by mapping this onto known regulatory theory. It argues that the current regulatory trajectory is highly problematic both from the perspective of land law (by further attenuating the conception of property rights) and indeed regulatory compliance.

The approach maps successive governments’ policy stance, what is known of the configuration of the sector and the current demand for housing against evolving regulatory theory (in particular compliance). The piece draws on both property theory and economic analysis.

Enrolling private sector landlords to enforce policies, other than those relating to the landlord and tenant relation (as indicated by the “right to rent” provisions), and attempts at professionalizing the sector may be highly problematic. Furthermore, the growth of regulation may impose an increasing regulatory burden on a significant proportion of the sector, namely, the smaller landlord especially those owning who own only one property.

The hypothesis has not been tested aside in a generalized manner by making reference to the evidence obtained by other researchers and landlord associations. It is for other researchers who may wish to test the hypothesis empirically.

This paper includes a view that has not (to the author’s knowledge) been expressly articulated by Government or through its policies and is one which it may wish to reflect upon.

This paper adopts a novel stance by deploying regulatory theory with understandings of property to highlight potential adverse effects.

This paper aims to analyse the extent to which the government’s recent proposals to end no-fault evictions will result in “family-friendly” tenancies.

It applies the theoretical scholarship on the meaning of family and home to the current law relating to private rented tenancies and the government’s proposals to increase security of tenure in the private rented sector.

Security of tenure is important to a number of the key aspects of home. However, feelings of home are better protected by security of occupancy, which requires more than de jure security of tenure. For families to feel at home in the private rented sector, they must be permitted to personalise their home and to keep pets. Further legislative changes could achieve these changes. However, for families to really make a home in the private rented sector, they need to exercise some choice over where they live and for low-income families; this will only be possible with broader policy changes.

This paper contributes to the important scholarship on the meaning of home and applies this to the very current debate on the rights of tenants in the private rented sector.

The residential private rented sector (PRS) has the potential to make a significant contribution to the housing needs of the future. The PRS benefited from regulatory changes in the late 1980s that removed fetters to rent levels and tenancy length. The historic under‐investment is being re‐evaluated and the PRS is beginning to emerge as a viable corporate and institutional investment vehicle. The strategic assembly of portfolios, which may be highly specialised or more general, can be identified from published demographic forecasts. Finance for new‐build, refurbishment and bulk acquisition can be sourced from specialist residential investment funds. The overall effect of these measures is beginning to make the PRS a reinvigorated investment opportunity with long‐term potential.

After 90 years of decline caused by economic and social factors, the deregulation and fiscal changes in 1988 brought about a structural change in the private rented sector. The emergence of a true open market, altered investment criteria and demographic and lifestyle changes have led to the creation of a multi‐billion pound investment market. Investors, managers and valuers have had to develop new skills and attitudes to adapt to these changed circumstances.

The purpose of this paper is to help landlords and property managers to understand what they can do to increase tenants’ satisfaction and propensity to renew their lease, and their willingness to recommend their landlord to other people.

This paper analyses almost 5,000 interviews with private rented sector (PRS) tenants in the UK, conducted over a four-year period, to investigate determinants of resident satisfaction, loyalty (lease renewal) and willingness to recommend their landlord. Statistical analysis is performed using respondents’ ratings of satisfaction with many aspects of their occupancy as explanatory variables. Comparisons are made between interviewees who renew their lease and those who do not renew.

The research finds that “ease of doing business” with their landlord is a strong predictor of residents’ satisfaction, loyalty and advocacy. Other key indicators for lease renewal include relationship management, rent collection and residents’ perception of receiving value for money. Tenants’ willingness to recommend their landlord depends mainly on their relationship with their landlord, how the landlord compares with tenants’ previous landlords and the property management service they receive.

Limitations to this research include the fact that the residents have a single landlord and live on a single estate, one with particular cultural significance, therefore potentially restricting the general applicability of the findings. Although the sample size is large, the number of residents who have reached the end of their lease is relatively small, because the estate has only been occupied by PRS tenants since 2014.

Over the past five years, the PRS has become a significant asset class for institutional investors in the UK. This research should help to improve the landlord – tenant relationship in the PRS, and to increase occupancy rates without compromising rents.

The large sample size in this research, and the use of repeat interviews at various stages of a resident’s occupancy, highlight early signs of discontent that a landlord can act upon to reduce the risk of a tenant moving elsewhere.

This paper aims to analyse the extent to which recent changes in the law, most notably the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 and proposals for changes in tenant redress, will help tenants living in the private rented sector (PRS) with issues of disrepair and poor living conditions.

It applies theoretical scholarship on procedural justice, to two proposals for reform, namely, compulsory membership of redress schemes and a new housing court or use of the first-Tier Tribunal for claims relating to disrepair.

The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 will not provide decent private rented homes without increased security of tenure and a requirement for inspection prior to letting. Tenants should have the right to a fit home at the time of moving in and a cheap and relatively fast method of redress when things go wrong. A combination of compulsory licencing, membership of an ombudsman scheme and either the transfer of disrepair cases to the first-tier tribunal or a new housing court would provide the best overall solution for tenants with regard to repair and condition.

This study contributes to the important scholarship on procedural justice and applies it to ongoing current debates regarding disrepair in the PRS.

The residential private rented sector (PRS) represents a major investment opportunity for individuals, corporates and institutions following the sector’s deregulation in 1988. Yet the sector retains historic perception problems by institutions. The development or expansion of a portfolio introduces a further range of costs and difficulties above those typically associated with acquisition in the commercial sector. Various mandatory and voluntary codes operate, acting as further regulatory factors. Difficulties with performance measurement, particularly indices, are highlighted and the applicability of financial market models is questioned.

To apply path dependence theory and analysis to the regulatory framework for private-rented housing in Britain, especially affecting houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) and addressing the increased involvement of the planning system through planning use classes, permitted development rights and Article 4 directions.

This paper identifies critical junctures in primary and secondary legislation for housing and planning and analyses individual local authority responses in planning policy documents and tribunal decisions.

The rise of the HMO reflects wider changes in society leading to new forms of household and inter-generational inequalities. Local authority discretion and locked-in responses have resulted in different regulatory regimes for housing and planning, recently favouring existing communities of owner-occupiers against HMO residents, seen as transient populations not committed to the neighbourhood.

Potential for further research on demographics and household formation, and on reviewing planning and appeal decisions involving HMOs.

The research is apparently the first specifically addressing planning regulation of the HMO from a path dependence perspective, in the context of planning protection of the single-family dwelling house and marginalization of other forms of housing.