Zoopla warns: Eviction proceedings against landlords “will drive up rents”

Greg Tsuman, lettings director at estate agent Martyn Gerrard, said the increase in competition for individual rental properties signals “a step backwards from the positive progress the rental market has made” – at a time when inflation is easing and interest rates are falling.

He added: “I suspect the increase in the number of potential tenants per rental property is partly a reaction to the rumored changes in capital gains tax.”

Experts warn that the expected tax changes for landlords could lead to an oversupply of homes for sale and thus to significant price declines.

Lawrence Grant Copeland, a Manchester-based valuer, said in the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ latest market report: “Many landlords [are] Decision to sell due to possible new government legislation and possible tax implications which could result in a flood of new offers and therefore oversupply and price declines particularly in the higher price segment.”

Allan Fuller, a London-based valuer, said Rightmove had “over 1,000” apartments for sale in Putney. He added: “I’ve only seen that number in a lull. One indication of this is the number of landlords selling ahead of the government’s plans to hit landlords hard with the abolition of Section 21 and tax increases. Rental stock will fall and rents will rise.”

This week, the government unveiled plans to abolish Section 21, also known as summary eviction, by next summer. Under the Tenants’ Rights Act, all evictions require a court hearing to establish a valid reason for the eviction.

However, industry associations warn that the courts are “crumbling” and are simply not prepared for the increasing number of cases.

Mr Tsuman said the bill’s “lack of clarity” on how landlords can evict anti-social tenants and those who repeatedly fall behind on rent payments would increase the risk of a landlord being left with non-paying tenants. He added: “The potential losses this could cause will ultimately be passed on to future tenants through rent increases.”