The proposal to end the “qualified” and “non-qualified” division in the rental market is one of the options being considered in a major reform of housing, which also proposes law changes to establish shared equity ownership, reintroducing the States scheme to help people with deposits and stopping developers from sitting on permits to build homes.
Although there’s a shortage of homes, developers are sitting on permits to create around 2,000 more. Laws could be toughened up to create tighter timeframes for development, or to make it harder for developers to renew their five-year permits.
Work is already going on to create stronger regulation and standards in the rental sector, and to create security of tenure legislation.
Housing Minister Anne Pryke announced the proposals as part of a consultation into how to reform housing rules.
She said: “Every Islander should be able to live in secure and stable housing, and this strategy sets out the role that government has in helping deliver this.
“Good homes and good neighbourhoods feed into almost every one of the Strategic Priorities outlined by this Council of Ministers – from improved health and wellbeing, to transforming our town into a high quality place where people want to live and visit.
“We know that there are issues to face, but by continuing to work with housing providers, industry and key stakeholders, I hope we can put in place a strategy that works well for Jersey’s future.”
You can have your say on the proposals here.