To think rent increases “because of inflation” are immoral when many landlords own outright?

[RentRealityCheck]

I keep seeing rent hikes justified with “inflation”, even where the landlord has no mortgage and their costs haven’t meaningfully increased. At that point it feels like pure profit-taking, passed directly onto tenants who already have no leverage and with huge knock-on effects for stability, mental health, family life and society more broadly.

AIBU to think this isn’t just market forces but greed and that pretending otherwise ignores the damage being done?

All true, but that still doesn't address the point that was originally brought up and to which I was replying, it's going on tangents. That a £10k bill for painting windows left the poster with no money even after rent had been paid. Painting windows isn't the tenants responsibility though is it? As the flat owner, it's theirs, it is building maintenance.

The result of the current status quo is a mess of affordability and immiseration of a majority of Renters. What I want to know is when the 'Labour' party are going to stop caving into the rich like a giant sink hole full of shit!

Quite obviously because of the lack of supply of housing.

Yes, to shelter, I don't think that right is supposed to be interpreted as the right of a Landlord to own six or seven properties or the right of some parasitic investment company to throw their millions into a pile on a remote island! I mean how many shelters does one man need! Don't these people worry about the Pearly gates!

All I’m reading are demands for other people’s property and how everything is other people’s fault. It’s that sort of world view that causes people’s problems. It’s fixable, but will take some individual effort and responsibility,

Look on any property search site and find multiple for sale and for rent properties?

It’s the right to own property which includes renting out. Believe it or not, some people do not respect other peoples property.

Yes I’m sure someone who rents out a flat worries about going to hell. No wonder some people struggle with attitudes like this,

I mean what is stopping people then, why haven't theye gone ahead and bought a property.

I own a property so I'm unsure why you are patronising me. It is a desire not a demand to see a soul restored to communities and for their to be some equity in this world.

Would you rent out your property if you had to work abroad for a year ?

£280,000 property for sale £30,000 deposit (if you have saved hard) mortgage over 25 years = £1400 month. My renters pay £1000 for a brand new home I receive less 10% letting fee all maintenance gas safe insurance accountant etc - I’m not going to hell I don’t think!

Well if they are maxing out their exploitation of people in dire straits, then yes perhaps they should give some thought to their moral compass but that is something between an individual and their conscience to decide.

Rent goes up as the cost of maintaining the building goes up in line with inflation. Maintaining the boiler, repairing plumbing, general maintenance. The buildings don’t look after themselves. Plus it may be somebody’s only source of income.

I'm not against letting properties, I am agreeing with the OP as well you know!

I also said rent. Complaining gets them nowhere. Take control of their own future

Landlord costs have gone up significantly more than inflation in recent years for those of us with mortgages. There is also huge risks involved now especially for us in Scotland because its so difficult to evict non paying tenants. In my experience and opinion, the best landlords tend to be the so called accidental landlords, owning usually one but at most a small number or properties. I care about my flat, I want tenants who will look after it etc etc. But its us who are hit the hardest with the cost increases and the risks. Its very difficult.

So you’d become an immoral landlord risking going to hell?

You are presuming the landlord chose to do this and it wasn't mandated by the building leasehold.

A solid group of people believe landlords should be out of pocket for maintenance costs on the basis that they will have a capital gains in the future. And this is probably true for corporations with access to finance and loans but not true doe private landlords who use the rent to pay the mortgage and maintenance. The idea that people should be ok with running a negative balance sheet for years is detached from the reality of being a landlord - where, for example, you have to submit tax returns and proof of rent to show it's a profitable venture. Or do you expect banks to loan on money pits?

People don't seem to expect to pay for anything in this country - everyone seems to want someone else to subsidise their living. Expecting your
landlord to subsidise your housing costs because you "think" the rent is too high for the costs you imagine they have is about you. Just buy your own place.

Spot on, WhereIsItPlease

I don't dispute that the housing market's been allowed to descend into a mess, but there's an inclination to seek out a bogeyman to blame - in this case landlords - without any consideration of the wider picture

It's becoming pretty obvious that, with private landlords being driven out of the market, the situation's getting worse rather than better, so it's hard not to wonder whose fault it'll be next

Yes, those are the official figures. My point was that the numbers of people living in the UK may be much higher than the official figures. Information coming out of food purchased, sewage produced, pressure on reservoirs etc suggest that the actual figures are higher.

Either way, even the official stats will result in higher rents as the population grows.

That’s a population increase equivalent to London, Manchester and Leeds in 25 years. And that’s the stat being used to reassure people that we don’t have to worry about housing?

Yes, and that's on top of the increase of over a million in the last 2 years!

As far as rents go, the only way is up!

I have rented several properties in the past before I got a mortgage to buy a home.

Most of my landlords were very good and as the years went by, very kindly did not increase the rent because I was a good tenant. This was well meaning but then when I left to a new property the jump in rent price to market rent for a similar size property was quite a shock!

Charging under market rent as an individual landlord can end up hindering the tenants from being able to move out, as they can no longer afford another property.

I think rental prices are insane at the moment, but I don't think it's individual landlords that are the problem and understand why they too need that income when their own costs are going up.

Again, none of my posts have advocated or implied that letting a property is immoral. I do agree with the OP though and think Landlords who use the excuse of 'market forces' but are actually just greedy- exploiting the powerless and inflicting misery on people who are giving half and more of their salary over to them, should really question their moral code.

I can see my Pearly gate reference was lost on you as you don't appear to comprehend that 'greed' is a sin. If you don't understand that reference, why don't you take a festive one like, A Christmas Carol, the miserly businessman, Ebenezer Scrooge is the equivalent of the 'greedy Landlord' or would you rewrite this tale of morality, maybe Bob Cratchit could work a bit harder, maybe even get a second job as a delivery driver in the evening!

I agree with the sentiment, but you could apply it to all essential services.

A rent cap based on the house's value would probably be a better option than one based on market demand. but this is also littered with anomalies.

A good landlord will look after their good tenants. A friend who is a landlord left his rents stagnant for nearly a decade, but he's slowly over the last 4 years had rent increases, still way below market value, apart from one, when his tenant left, his agent put it on the market for £400 per month more than he was previously charging. Snapped up within a week.