Will rent controls help you get onto the property ladder?
Would you have a better chance of getting on the property ladder if your rent was cheaper.
Research shows that rent payments are often more than the monthly cost of a mortgage and it can be hard to save for a deposit if most your money is being spent on renting.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has proposed a solution in the form of rent controls.
He wants powers from the Government to be able to set rent controls in the capital.
Housing charities have, unsurprisingly, backed the move.
Shelter said: “The growing support and interest in rent control is a huge opportunity to improve the lives of millions of private renters.
“We’ll be looking to work with the mayor to develop a model of rent control in London that is enforceable, prioritises those struggling most, and avoids unintended consequences.”
However, landlords have warned it could mean more buy-to-let investors exit the sector, and a lack of supply means less choice, possibly lower standards and could result in rents rising in the run up to any changes. This could mean it takes even longer to save for that all-important mortgage deposit.
Economists have also cast doubts on the proposals.
Matthew Lesh, head of research at the Adam Smith Institute, said: “Rent control would wreck London’s housing market. It would discourage developers from building homes for London’s residents, and shut London’s door to immigrants by making it harder to find an apartment in the city. Sadiq Khan is showing he is economically illiterate by not realising the damage that rent control does to cities.
“Since they were implemented in Stockholm, you now have to wait up to 35 years for a rent-controlled apartment, with an average wait of 10 years. It has meant bribes, patronage, a black market, and poorly maintained apartments. Only the socially connected can get into apartments, reducing access for the poor and minorities.
“London’s Mayor should get back to fixing the issues within his control – like the Crossrail delay and knife crime – and spend less time demanding powers that would worsen the housing crisis.”
