EU TENANTS WORRIED BREXIT WILL LEAVE THEM HOMELESS

August 11, 2016

Three in ten (31 per cent) European Union (EU) citizens living in the private rented sector (PRS) say they are worried that the result of the referendum will make it harder for them to rent in the UK.

The findings*, from the National Landlords Association (NLA), also show that a quarter (25 per cent) say they are worried that landlords would be less willing to let to non-UK nationals following the decision to leave the EU.

The poll of almost 1000 renters found that 18 per cent of private renters –approximately 2 million people – are EU citizens who currently have the right to freedom of movement within the EU.

However, there are concerns about whether or not EU citizens will be able to remain in the UK if the right to freedom of movement is removed or restricted during the process.

Richard Lambert, Chief Executive Officer at the NLA, said:

“These findings show that a significant proportion of tenants from the EU are genuinely concerned they’ll have to uproot themselves from their work, studies, or friends and family on the strength of the referendum result.

“There is still a great deal of uncertainty surrounding the referendum, but we want to reassure European citizens living in the UK it’s simply not the case that landlords will stop letting to them just because the country has decided to leave the EU.

“However, if the right to freedom of movement within the EU is curtailed during the exit negotiations, then landlords may have no other option than to end tenancies rather than facing fines and even jail time if they let property to someone without the legal right to remain in the UK”.

Breaking News from:

Alex Brent
PR Executive, NLA
020 7820 7904
alex.brent@landlords.org.uk

Christopher Walkey

Founder of Estate Agent Networking. Internationally invited speaker on how to build online target audiences using Social Media. Writes about UK property prices, housing, politics and affordable homes.

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