Housing Rights, with support from TDS NI, will be holding it’s annual conference on private renting in Northern Ireland on Wednesday 15 November 2017, at the Skainos Centre, East Belfast. The conference will examine best practice for the private rented sector (PRS) across the UK and Ireland.
Tenancy legislation provides people with vital protection against homelessness, by legislating against harassment and unlawful eviction and ensuring that certain rights are enshrined in law. Some agents have tried to circumvent these protections by issuing tenants with “licence agreements”, which purport to diminish the tenant’s legal status.
The Child Poverty Action Group successfully argued that the Department for Work and Pensions should not refuse claimants access to an appeal tribunal if they had failed to request a mandatory reconsideration of a benefit decision within a four-week time frame.
Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) and Citizen’s Advice Bureau (CAB) have both recently published research relating to the experiences of people living in the private rented sector (PRS). Both organisations have recommended improvements in order to protect tenants from affordability issues and disrepair, and ultimately help prevent people from losing their home.
A recent English High Court has provided some interesting observations in respect of the circumstances as to when a homeless decision can be revisited. Although the English position has variances to the law in Northern Ireland (NI), it does provide some useful guidance, and allows us the opportunity to look at aspects of the law in NI that are of relevance.
The Department for Communities has released the Northern Ireland Housing Bulletin for January – March 2017. The Bulletin demonstrates ongoing trends in several current policy issues, such as homelessness, housing supply and house prices.
