Ben Beadle from the National Residential Landlords Association has hit out at the budget for failing to boost the quantity or quality of private rented stock.
Beadle, chief executive of the landlord trade group, said: “The Chancellor has once again ignored calls to revitalise long-term investment in quality rented homes in favour of tinkering at the margins for short-term gain.
“Increasing taxes on holiday lets and cuts to Capital Gains Tax will make no meaningful difference to the supply of long-term rental properties. Meanwhile, those reliant on housing benefits still do not know if their benefits will be frozen from next year or not.
“With an average of 11 tenants chasing every home for private rent, social housing waiting lists at 1.3 million, almost 110,000 households in temporary accommodation and the number of first-time buyers slumping, the Budget needed to tackle the housing crisis once and for all. What we got was a deafening silence.
“This was a missed opportunity to make providing new homes to rent and buy the priority it desperately needs to be.”
Chris Tremlett, co-founder of UK Homes Network, also gave a lukewarrm verdict on Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s Budget.
He said: “The 2024 Budget announcement was met with anticipation, especially within the real estate sector, eager for reforms that would bolster the market. The early signs of the budget’s direction became apparent during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs), when the Prime Minister concurred with the notion of prioritising brownfield sites for future development.
“This stance, coupled with an accusation towards the Labour party of intending to “concrete over” the entire green belt, seemed to foreshadow a budget potentially unsympathetic to the needs of the property industry amidst a pronounced housing supply shortage.”
