Landlords could soon be rated by tenants - and their earnings published for transparency

The government has released a white paper outlining reforms to social housing - including "tenant satisfaction measures" for landlords.

The white paper (a document setting out proposed laws before they are formalised in a government bill) is part of a "fundamental rethink" on social housing, following the Grenfell tragedy in 2017. The paper sets out the ways in which the government plan to make sure social housing tenants "have a voice" and that their landlords are held more accountable.

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As part of the reforms, the government has suggested bringing in "a set of tenant satisfaction measures for all landlords on things that matter to tenants," in order to measure how a landlord is performing across a range of responsibilities.

Tenant satisfaction and landlord transparency

The Regulator of Social Housing will then collect and publish these satisfaction measures so social housing tenants can see clearly how their landlord is performing.

Tenant satisfaction with repairs, tenant satisfaction with the health and safety of their home, and the fairness and respect shown by landlords are all measures that have been proposed for inclusion. Tenants will also be able to rate their overall satisfaction with their landlord.

On top of this, the government has also proposed that landlords publish three financial measures which provide clear information on how much they're spending on administrative costs and executive remuneration. These would be made freely available for tenants to access.

The drafted financial measures are:

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chief executive or equivalent salary, relative to the size of the landlordexecutive remuneration, relative to the size of the landlordthe landlord's management costs, relative to the size of the landlord

Social housing landlords will be asked to provide a clear breakdown of how their income is being spent so that tenants can see what funds are being spent on, and challenge landlords if it's not being spent on things that "matter to them."

The paper also pledges that complains about landlords will be dealt with fairly and promptly, and promises tenants will be treated with respect and will have a good quality home and neighbourhood to live in.

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