People are being evicted from their homes while more than 2,000 York properties have been advertised as short-term holiday lets, an MP has said. 

Rachael Maskell, MP for York Central, said more regulations are needed on short-term holiday lets if York has any chance of solving its housing problems. 

The MP said she has seen section 21 ‘no fault eviction’ notices on houses in the city and believes holiday lets have a part to play in this.

Potential legislation going through parliament would see holiday lets require planning permission for a change of ‘use class’.

Another piece of legislation would enable local authorities to have a registration scheme whereby holiday let owners would have to provide data to operate, including safety certification, certain conditions that have to be applied and a fee paid.

“I’ve met extensively with the short-term holiday let industry, with owners, with agents, as well as obviously residents and as a result I have a really good grasp of the issues,” Ms Maskell said.

“They want to see the legislation as well, because they recognise there are many people operating within the industry who aren’t fully compliant with standards and therefore clearly they want to see the standards rise.

“But at the same time we know the impact that is having in communities, particularly in housing. 

“In housing what we’re seeing is the demand is outstripping the supply and the cost is going up. 

“In the private sector, we’re seeing section 21 notices being issued and private rented homes flipping over into Airbnbs.

“We’re also seeing many of those private properties being cash-bought in order to then be used for short-term holiday lets.”

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She added: “Today, 2,079 short-term holiday lets have been either in use or advertised.

“That’s a phenomenal amount of housing in York when we have got a housing crisis.”

A Section 21 no-fault eviction allows landlords to evict a tenant without having to give any reason for doing so, with just two months’ notice, according to homelessness charity Shelter. The charity claims that most renters move out before the end of this notice period to avoid the eviction claim going to court, therefore the repossession statistics only show part of a much bigger problem.

Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “Every eviction notice that lands on someone’s doormat brings with it fear and uncertainty. 

“No one wants to be forced out of their home, but these court figures show that’s happening to more and more private renters in this country.  

“The chronic lack of social homes means the demand for overpriced and unstable private rentals has ballooned, and more people are being pitted against each other in the hunt for a home.

“Every day we hear from desperate families who’ve been served with no-fault eviction notices for daring to complain about poor conditions, or because their landlord wants to cash in on rising rents. 

“No-fault evictions are pushing too many people needlessly into homelessness and turning thousands of people’s lives upside down.”

Although welcoming more regulations, York holiday let owner John Wright previously urged people not to dismiss the importance of his business and others like it.

“In Bishy Road where my holiday let is, there are bars and artisan bakeries where people visiting with expendable income spend their money,” he said.

“There has become a co-dependency with those shops and holiday lets to ensure there is a flourishing local economy.”

Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said: “This new world of ultra-flexible short-term lets gives tourists more choice than ever before, but it should not come at the expense of local people being able to own their own home and stay local.”