As the subject of the regulation of short property let activity on sites such as Airbnb remains a hot topic, Edinburgh will be one of the first UK cities to introduce rules for the sector. This will include identifying areas of the city where short lets will be permitted, to help manage the supply of longer-term residential lets and short holiday lets in the popular Scottish capital.

The UK government's 2025 EPC target for the residential rental sector remains in place.

Published on 13 October, the third and final part of the government’s Household Resilience Study explores how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected people’s housing circumstances in England. While there are no shock revelations, the research does shed further light on ‘hidden’ issues like the ongoing arrears problem in the private rented sector. 

With more people in the UK renting than ever before, there have been an increasing number of calls for more regulation of the lettings industry including qualifications and licensing requirements.

New rules on smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in rented properties have recently been announced, as the government continues to push forward safety standards in the private and social rented sectors. While the rule changes have come out of a 2020 white paper on social housing, the amended regulations will affect private rented accommodation too.