Addressing supply in the private rented sector
Housing demand continues to outstrip supply across Wales and landlords face rising costs from higher interest rates, licensing fees, and increased taxation. Urgent measures are necessary to encourage investment in the private rented sector, including:
- Revisiting Land Transaction Tax – exempting long-term rental properties from the four per cent surcharge on additional homes, which currently acts as a barrier to investment.
- Reviewing landlord taxation – particularly the impacts of mortgage interest relief changes and the removal of key allowances, which have reduced confidence and contributed to landlords leaving the sector.
Increasing energy efficiency without shrinking stock
To achieve the Welsh Government’s ambitions for decarbonisation, funding streams must be accessible to the private rented sector. Ministers should reintroduce targeted tax allowances, such as a modernised Landlord’s Energy Saving Allowance, to offset the cost of upgrades, and ensure future schemes avoid a one-size-fits-all approach and are tailored to different property types and ages.
It is also vital that clear guidance is provided for agents and landlords, backed by grants and loans, to deliver improvements without making homes unaffordable or pushing landlords out of the market.
Fair rents and LHA
The Welsh Government has consulted on rent controls through its Green Paper on the Right to Adequate Housing and Fair Rents. Propertymark is strongly opposed to rent controls, which would reduce supply, not increase it.
Instead, Ministers must focus on expanding supply across all tenures, including new affordable and social homes, raising Local Housing Allowance rates so that tenants in receipt of support can access more of the rental market and building confidence among landlords to let to households on lower incomes by ensuring the welfare system is effective and timely.
Getting more people onto the housing ladder
The Help to Buy Wales scheme is an important route into home ownership for first time buyers, but its focus on new-builds limits choice and fails to reflect the realities of the Welsh market. The Scheme should be broadened to include the purchase of existing properties, not just brand-new homes.
Alongside this, the Welsh Government should consider introducing other equity loan or shared ownership models to increase the pool of both new and second-hand homes accessible to first-time buyers.
Helping businesses to thrive
The Welsh Government’s ongoing efforts to support businesses through grants, loans, and advisory programmes have been important in helping property agents, landlords, and small businesses navigate economic uncertainty, particularly during periods of inflation, energy price volatility, and rising borrowing costs.
To enhance this success, property sector businesses with a physical presence on the high street should be eligible for the same business rate relief offered to retail, leisure, and hospitality.
