Scottish landlords have urged the country’s next government to formally recognise the sector’s importance by coming up with a dedicated PRS strategy.

Ahead of the elections on 7^th May, the Scottish Association of Landlords (SAL) says the omission has undermined investor confidence, deterring landlords from growing their portfolios.

Chief executive John Blackwood tells LandlordZONE that a sensible and multi-year long strategy would give many investors the confidence they need to consider growing their portfolios.

“Such a strategy should be clear about who it wants to include in Scotland’s private rented sector and what size that sector should be,” says Blackwood. “It is the single biggest thing any Scottish government can do to tackle the housing emergency.”

Blamed

Blackwood believes that after being blamed and scapegoated for so long, landlords are understandably nervous about the future. “The next Scottish government has to view the situation differently - as a relationship between tenants and landlords rather than something adversarial.”

SAL hopes ministers will abolish the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax Additional Dwelling Supplement and work closely with the UK government on key housing issues.

It also wants to see secondary rent control legislation which ensures landlords who have kept their rent significantly below market value to help tenants are not prevented from resetting the rent to market value, and for all landlords to get sufficient lead time to comply with a future minimum energy efficiency standard.

Promises

All the political parties have made promises in their manifestoes about housing. Labour proposes building 25,000 new homes a year across all tenures to 2031 while the Conservatives would end Land and Building Transaction Tax and reduce the Additional Dwelling Supplement on second and investment homes to 4%. The Green party wants immediate rent controls reintroduced and to reduce the rate maximum rents can rise annually from the current 6%.

The SNP recently proposed offering first refusal at a fair market rate to tenants if their landlord wants to sell their property.

Urgency

David Alexander, CEO of letting agent DJ Alexander Scotland (pictured right), says easing planning regulations, accessing funding through the Scottish Investment Bank in the case of the Labour party or through pension fund assets by the SNP may be sound ideas but the clear way to ensure more housebuilding occurs is to limit building restrictions, encourage investment, and make Scotland an attractive place for homebuyers, property investors, and landlords to come.

"Post election there may simply be more indecision, more delays, and more unnecessary regulation which hampers investment," adds Alexander. "I would hope that whatever the composition of the new Scottish government that they will put housing at the top of the agenda and ensure that the current housing emergency is addressed and does not exist in five years’ time. Anything less would be a disgrace.”

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