The Renters' Rights Bill will 'do more harm than good', peers were told in its final Lords' debate.
Conservative peer Baroness Scott of Bybrook told fellow peers: "We are left with a piece of legislation that risks doing more harm than good.
"Uncertainty around fixed-term tenancies, poorly defined possession grounds, and reliance on stretched tribunals are driving responsible landlords away from the sector."
She added: "It treats the pressures of scarcity – rising rents, insecurity and limited choice – as issues that can be regulated away. Regulation without supply is a dead end."
Royal Assent in October
Baroness Scott was speaking in the final debate of the Bill, which is now heading back to the Commons, and could be law by the autumn.
Legislation experts are predicting that the Bill, with its abolition of Section 21 'no-fault' evictions, will receive Royal Assent in time for the Labour Party conference in October.
The Bill is the biggest shake-up of the private rented sector in three decades and will see student landlords moving to periodic tenancies.
All landlords will also have to use Section 8 with evidence for ending tenancies.
The Bill, which looks set for a final debate in September, also has a four-month notice period for selling a landlord's property or reoccupying it.
It also strengthens grounds for evictions due to tenant breaches like rent arrears or antisocial behaviour.
A Decent Homes Standard will also be brought in for the PRS, while the planned landlord database and ombudsman will need secondary legislation.
'Good landlords have nothing to fear'
Liberal Democrat Baroness Thornhill supported the reforms and said: "We on these benches have been clear throughout the Bill that we support it very much: its main provisions, including the abolition of no-fault evictions and fixed-term tenancies, and its clear emphasis on tenants' rights and much more transparency.
"There is no doubt that it is a radical Bill that will make significant changes to the private rented sector."
She added: “It has also been said, and I wish to repeat it, that good landlords have nothing to fear from these reforms, and we on these benches sincerely hope that will be proved to be the case."
In concluding the short debate, the Parliamentary under-secretary of state, Baroness Taylor of Stevenage, said: "For the thousands of renters and the good landlords who have been disadvantaged by the actions of rogue landlords around this country, not to mention the local
authorities that have had to pick up the pieces of the failure to act over the last 14 years, which has created the worst housing crisis in generations, I hope this Bill will be a blessed relief."
Student tenancy safeguards
Nathan Emerson, Propertymark's chief executive, said: "Throughout the passage of the Renters' Rights Bill through the House of Lords, Propertymark's campaigning has made a difference in ensuring that the Bill is more practical for letting agents, landlords and tenants.
"These include securing pet damage deposits and student tenancy safeguards."
He added: "However, before the Bill heads back to the House of Commons to be reviewed after the summer recess, as it is due to deliver some of the biggest changes to the private rental sector in decades, Propertymark urges MPs to consider the implications this Bill could have on fixed-term tenancies and the impact it could have on the shrinkage of supply in the private rental sector."
NRLA demand for implementation timelines
Ben Beadle, the chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, met with Matthew Pennycook, the housing minister, recently to discuss the Bill.
Mr Beadle said: "I pressed the minister on the need for clarity around the timelines for implementation to help prepare for the changes ahead.
"At present, we don't expect confirmation of this until Royal Assent."
Eviction impact on courts
However, one big issue to be resolved is the Bill’s impact on courts if tenant evictions increase.
The government is refusing to publish the Justice Impact Test even though one government committee revealed there are already major delays in county courts.
The document gives details on the Bill's impact on courts, as well as tribunals and legal aid.
The government turned down a Freedom of Information request from Reapit, a proptech firm.
The firm says it is appealing that decision.
Its commercial director, Dr Neil Cobbold, said: "There is a clear public interest in understanding how the justice system is expected to respond to the changes."
Student landlords will be disappointed
Simon Thompson, the managing director of Accommodation for Students, said: "There will be a lot of student landlords who will be disappointed by the changes the Bill will bring.
"Moving to periodic tenancies will be an issue that the sector will have to work around - the government just doesn't understand what the impact will be."
He added: "The NRLA is right that all landlords need clear guidelines to follow, and there will be concerns over the secondary legislation that is needed.
"There will be more admin for landlords and hopefully the court backlog will be resolved for the inevitable rise in eviction cases being brought."
