UK landlords stuck in 6-month queue due to system overload
Property owners face half-year delays when trying to remove problem tenants from their houses. Court system struggles with lack of staff while planned law changes might make situation even more complex
Property owners across Britain face a growing problem - they cant get their houses back from bad tenants due to huge delays in the system (which now takes about half-a-year)
Paul Shamplina from Landlord Action points out a real-life case: “The court-system feels broken; its the worst situation Iʼve seen.“ His organization found that some north-east London property-owners must wait until mid-2025 to get their houses back
Ministry of Justice data shows the problem is getting worse: right now it takes 24-and-a-half weeks to complete an eviction - thats longer than last years wait. The main issue: there are only about 300 bailiffs for all of England and Wales
Some changes might make things even harder; Labour party wants to:
- Stop no-fault evictions by summer 2025
- Make rent-debt time longer (3 months instead of 2)
- Add more notice-time for tenants
- Need court approval for all evictions
The housing market shows signs of stress too - UK rents went up 8.4% since last fall; London saw an even bigger jump at 9.8%. Meanwhile section-21 evictions hit an eight-year peak after Labour announced its plans
