Investigation reveals how landlord’s £5,000 licensing fine was quashed

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A landlord in London had a £5,000 fine for renting an unlicenced property quashed by a judge after a council officer admitted the borough’s enforcement team temporarily ignored its own guidelines, it has been reported.

Michael Labinso, who was looking after a property in Ilford on behalf of his mother, was caught up in an aggressive enforcement campaign by Redbridge council in NE London during 2018/2019 that sought to prosecute landlords operating properties without a licence, issuing 100 fines in six months.

Prior to that the council had always initially engaged with landlords to persuade them to licence their properties, and only moved to prosecution and a fine if their attempts to coax them into action were rebuffed.

But it has now come to light following an investigation by the area‘s local paper that for at least a fortnight the council abandoned this approach and moved directly to fines under its selective licensing scheme.

Deviated

During a 2019 court case the judge highlighted that the council had ‘deviated from its own policy’ and, although it was entitled to do so, this was not ‘appropriate or reasonable’ because due process had not been followed.

Court documents show that Labinso’s offence was at the ‘mildest end of the scale’ and that no other issues in relation to the property were discovered by the council.

Therefore, the court concluded, a £5,000 fine was disproportionate, and it was overturned.

The council has been approached for confirmation about whether other fines levied by it against landlords were initiated in this manner.

Read more about licensing fines reversals.

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Should we use Allotments?

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England’s allotments could provide space for over 600,000 new homes, according to the latest research by GetAgent.co.uk. The research found that there are an estimated 4,554 allotments across the nation containing roughly 177,606 plots, each at an average size of 250 square metres.

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Student rental yields bouncing back as undergraduates have returned

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Student rental yields are rebounding strongly from the pandemic as undergraduates have both returned to campuses and begun to fight over properties for next year’s academic year, latest research shows.

This follows the announcement last week by Universities UK that its members will ‘continue prioritising the health and safety of students while preparing for a much fuller in-person experience this year, and look forward to welcoming students in the autumn’.

Lettings platform Goodlord analysed 5,000 student tenancies processed by its platform during the first half of the year and found that rents, which had been slashed or non-existent during the worst months of Covid last year.

Greater London, the North East, North West, South East, South West and the West Midlands all recorded their highest average rents for the year-to-date for tenancies commencing in July 2021.

75% increase

And for example, the North East recorded an average rental price of £1,114 for a student tenancy during July 2021, up from £636 for those which began in March 2020 – an increase of 75%.

In the North West, July saw a new annual high of £1,552 recorded, up from the region’s year to date low of £707 in March – a 120% rise.

“July was one of the busiest months we’ve seen for the lettings market in quite some time – the Goodlord platform processed more tenancies than ever before. Rents are rising and voids are dipping, for both student properties and the wider market,” says Tom Mundy, its COO (pictured).

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Propertymark call for dedicated housing court in Commission consultation

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In a consultation by the Law Commission on areas of law that it intends to review, Propertymark has called for a dedicated housing court to guarantee fair, timely redress for tenants and landlords and safeguard investment in the private rented sector.

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LATEST: Landlords slam council over ‘keeping them in the dark’ about licensing plans

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A group fighting property licensing plans in one of London’s largest boroughs have claimed that its kept many of the landlords who operate rental properties within the borough in the dark about its plans.

Member of the group also slammed the plans as being ‘cobbled together’ and lacking detail or justification.

The landlords involved met online last night to discuss tactics and submit their response to the borough’s two licensing proposals, the consultations for which closed at midnight last night (16^th August).

This includes renewing its additional licensing scheme for HMOs but enlarging it to include bigger properties, and introducing a selective licensing scheme to cover 15 of its poorest wards in order to licence all rented properties, which will have to be signed off by the Secretary of State due to its size.

The meeting, headed up by Peter Littlewood (pictured) of landlord campaigning group iHowz, heard from Ealing landlords living both inside and outside the borough, many of whom complained that that the council had not made sufficient efforts to inform them about its new licensing plans. The meeting was also attended by Conservative Ealing councillor Nigel Sumner.

Many had not heard about the plans until the last moment via word of mouth or a random council newsletter sent two weeks ago, while others pointed out that landlords who had properties within Ealing but lived outside the borough were unlikely to have seen the councils outdoor poster and bus advertising campaign, particularly during Covid.

Inadequate communication

“Communication has been less than adequate,” said landlord Mita Shrestha. “The impression is that the council has been much keener to get tenants involved, rather than the landlords who will be paying the licensing fees involved.”

And landlord Rodney Townson claimed that the council’s proposal documents, particularly the HMO scheme extension, had been poorly put together.

“They look like they’ve been knocked together on a laptop and not very comprehensive, very broad brushstroke and lack any detail or specifics to back up their claims,” he said.

The group also pointed out that Ealing has yet to publish a review of how its previous HMO licensing scheme performed, other than to say it has been ‘very successful’.

The landlord group sent its comments to Ealing property regulation chief Alison Forde before the consultation deadline expired.

Not all licensing scheme proposals get the green light – as LandlordZONE reported last year, Luton recently began a consultation on its revised selective licensing plans after a two-year campaign by local landlords that uncovered errors within the scheme.

And iHowz has in the past played a role in persuading several councils to change course, including at Stockton-on-Tees, Southampton and Margate.

Landlords are being urged to contact their MP or local councillor about the licensing scheme, and Littlewood told those at the meeting that a Judicial Review was one option – also these cost £50,000 to launch.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – LATEST: Landlords slam council over ‘keeping them in the dark’ about licensing plans | LandlordZONE.

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Tenants on benefits ‘being pushed into poverty’ by government cuts’ – claim

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Increasing numbers of tenants in receipt of benefits are being pushed into poverty, problem debt and homelessness, an alliance of landlords, tenants, letting agents and poverty charities has revealed.

It is calling for the government to publish a full assessment of its decision to freeze Local Housing Allowance and cut Universal Credit despite a 107% increase in the number of private rented households in receipt of benefits during the pandemic.

Of these, 55% have experienced a shortfall between the housing support they receive and the rent they pay.

The government has already admitted that the median shortfall is £100 a month, a considerable sum for those managing on stretched budgets.

Since April this year, Local Housing Allowance has been frozen in cash terms, and later this year, Universal Credit will be cut by £20 a week.

Reduced benefits

The figures will have a direct impact on landlords – tenants struggling on reduced benefits are more likely to be vulnerable to financial challenges and fall into rent arrears.

The alliance includes high-profile organisations including the Nationwide Building Society and its mortgage brokerage The Mortgage Works, Propertymark, Shelter, The Big Issue, Crisis as well as the National Residential Landlords Association.

A statement from the alliance says: “We believe that the UK Government should reverse its decisions to cut Universal Credit and to freeze Local Housing Allowance.

“To apply policies like these without doing any meaningful impact assessment is, we argue, lacking the necessary foresight and consideration of the impact they will have on people’s security of tenure and well-being and for many will threaten their chance of recovery.”

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Warning issued over impact of benefit cuts on tenants

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The UK Government has been told it must complete and publish a full assessment of the impact on renters of their decisions to freeze Local Housing Allowance and cut Universal Credit, which risks pushing many households into poverty, problem debt

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