Rushanara Ali, who has spoken out against 'unreasonable rent increases', relisted her four-bedroom townhouse in east London for £4,000 a month
  • fmstrat@lemmy.nowsci.comEnglish
    13·
    2 days ago

    This is a tough one. First, I don’t think MPs shoupd be landlords, but:

    • She wanted to sell the house
    • She waited until the renters contract expired
    • She did offer a rolling contract to the current renters at their existing rent until the house sold
    • They declined
    • She put the house on the market and opened it up to any short-term renters who wanted to stay there while it was on the market
    • She listed it for current going rate
    • Someone took it
    • The house is still for sale.

    To me, there isn’t much wrong with that, what is wrong is:

    • She didn’t wait 6 months. Not only is this terrible, but the optics are horrible and she should know that
    • She is using a tenant agency that tried to charge them a ton of move-out fees (She did have them canceled)

    And…

    She’s the HOMELESSNESS MINISTER?!?! Sheash.

    Edit: Some additional context from UK peoples - some letting agencies will relist your home without telling you. Fun stuff.

    • phutatorius@lemmy.zipEnglish
      63·
      2 days ago

      I own two properties that I let out. I never cheat my tenants, it’s bad for business. So (though I hate to put it like this): not all landlords.

      Only 99%.

      • Daefsdeda@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        32·
        2 days ago

        Lemmy usees hate you for it but they can’t imagine someone just temporarily needing to rent a place instead of buying it and being stuck there. It’s a logical exchange between a homeowner and a (temporary) home seeker so please ignore the hate hahaha.

        • MisterFrog@lemmy.worldEnglish
          21·
          2 days ago

          @phutatorius@lemmy.zip @the_riviera_kid@lemmy.world

          Depends, even if you’re a nice landlord who treats tenants fairly, if you’re voting for things that make house prices higher, or the rental market tighter, then you’re an arsehole.

          If you’re using periods of rapid rental inflation to also massively raise the rent, then fuck you. If you’re standing in the way of up-zoning, fuck you. If you leave your rental empty for a long time because you’re looking for at or above market rents, fuck you.

          However, if you’re just playing the capitalist game at the kiddie tables (2 properties like juuuuuust counts, maybe), while doing everything else in your power to work against capitalism, then I’m willing to grant there being landlords who aren’t arseholes, just people living in the system.

          Don’t hate the player, hate the game, and hate the players who aren’t trying to undo the game in some way.

          I’m inclined to agree not all landlords are bad, just most.

  • Lucidlethargy@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    28·
    3 days ago

    My landlord did this. He said he wanted to sell the place, then rented it again at a way higher price. Very illegal, but I moved out of the city - hard to do small claims from so far away.

    • But_my_mom_says_im_cool@lemmy.worldEnglish
      7·
      2 days ago

      As a Canadian, sensitive question but how come everyone in the government and labor party is Indian nowadays? Im just curious as I’ve noticed it as I read these stories

      • AnyOldName3@lemmy.worldEnglish
        121·
        2 days ago

        The UK has a lot of ethnic Indians because of the empire and encouraging immigration to replace people who didn’t survive WWII. The Labour Party has about as many people with Indian heritage as would be expected given population demographics. It’s probably just more than in Canada, so it seems like a lot to you.

  • BlackEco@lemmy.blackeco.comEnglish
    44·
    3 days ago

    FIY, the Minister’s party (Labour) is currently pushing a law to increase tenants’ rights, including preventing this exact situation from happening, which makes the whole situation even more ridiculous and hypocritical.

    Labour’s Renters’ Rights Bill, which will become law next year, prohibits landlords who have ended a tenancy in order to sell a property from relisting it for higher rent until at least six months after tenants have moved out.

    • BakerBagel@midwest.socialEnglish
      241·
      3 days ago

      Labour is a deeply unserious party that is trying to revert to Blairism. They want to look like they are doing something, but don’t actually want to change anything.

    • FundMECFS@lemmy.cafeOPEnglish
      16·
      3 days ago

      It’s also the party who willingly sent hundreds of thousands of disabled people including children into poverty. So not too off brand either.

        • FundMECFS@lemmy.cafeOPEnglish
          3·
          2 days ago

          Nah it doesn’t. It’s possible to criticise a party without people automatically thinking it means I support a fascist party. This two party thinking has to stop. They both deserve a fuckload of criticism.

    • needanke@feddit.orgEnglish
      21·
      2 days ago

      Sounds better than nothing but why even make it legal to evict tenants to sell a place in the first place?

  • KazuyaDarklight@lemmy.worldEnglish
    431·
    3 days ago

    Always a nice change of pace seeing terrible politicians from outside the US. Terrible for our outlook as a species, but a nice change of scenery none the less.

  • cyborganism@piefed.caEnglish
    26·
    3 days ago

    Look up France-Élaine Duranceau, minister of housing in Québec, Canada. Another fine example.

    • Magister@lemmy.worldEnglish
      22·
      3 days ago

      yep, she’s completely disconnected from reality. She bought her 700k$ house cash at like 30 something, cannot understand why people does not invest in real estate. She would be the one saying “are you trying not being poor?”