With the Scotland football team flying off to Germany for the Euros, and the 2024 Olympics taking place in Paris, we are looking at what could be a very exciting year ahead. It’s set to be a busy year for the private rented sector (PRS) too, with an already busy calendar of forthcoming developments and events.
Updates in legislation
The year will see important updates to legislation which will affect tenants as well as landlords. The eviction moratorium which was put in place initially in 2022, was recently extended and is now set to end on 31st March 2024. The ban was part of a set of emergency measures, which included the rent freeze, during the cost-of-living crisis to ease its impact on tenants living in rented properties and prevents enforced evictions from landlords in Scotland. There are, however, some exceptions to this ban, and full details can be found here. More news from Holyrood is anticipated this year, with First Minister, Humza Yousaf, having announced plans for a housing bill in the 2023-2024 programme for government.
Events to look out for
On the 5th and 6th March, Scotland’s Housing Festival 2024 will take place. The event from the Chartered Institute of Housing will occur over two days at the SEC in Glasgow, with housing professionals from across the country in attendance. This event is a fantastic opportunity to network with experts in the industry and learn about all the latest trends in housing. On the same day of the 5th March, The Propertymark Scottish National Conference will also be taking place, with venue and itinerary details expected soon.
November 2023 saw the long-awaited return of Scottish Letting Day, the flagship conference from The Scottish Association of Landlords (SAL). The event returned after a three-year hiatus and was a great success, with over 700 delegates, guests and exhibitors. It is hoped that the event will return in 2024. Meanwhile, a variety of events will celebrate accomplishment within the PRS, with both the Herald Property Awards for Scotland and the Scottish Home Awards set to take place. Both ceremonies recognise great achievement and progress within the industry.
A busy summer ahead
Away from events and announcements, there is of course the day-to-day business of letting in Scotland. Summer is always an exceptionally busy time for movement in the PRS, particularly amongst young people. The exam period for 2024 will take place between 22nd April and 30th May, with results day on the 6th of August, so expect to see many students applying for both university and housing as they receive their grades for the year.
Finishing up with university or college, students will be moving out of their temporary student accommodation. A lot of these students will be moving back into their previous place of residence, whilst some may even look for new homes elsewhere. On the flip side, at the end of the summer when an academic year begins, a new set of students will begin to look for temporary homes, many of these students setting foot into their own rented property for the first time. It’s important that students understand how processes like deposit protection work, as too often is the case that students move out of their university housing unaware that their deposit needs to be reclaimed before it can be paid back. SafeDeposits Scotland has plenty of useful guidance on how tenants who have moved out can request a repayment.
2024 is shaping up already to be a very interesting, and very busy year for the PRS. Whilst this is just a small snapshot of important events anticipated throughout the year, calendars are surely likely to fill up as the year gets underway.
