Planners force landlord to return £42,637 in rent after ‘illegal gains’

admin    Uncategorized     agents

A rogue landlord who created three tiny flats in the basement of one of his properties has been ordered to pay back more than £42,000 in illegal gains.

Mawan Musa, 63, of Maude Road, Camberwell, admitted breaching planning rules at two properties in the same road at the Inner London Crown Court. He was sentenced to pay £42,637 in illegal gains and a further £10,000 in fines and costs.

Southwark Council discovered Musa had created flats in the basement of his property (pictured) to collect rent from three households, instead of one. He had also added a haphazard and sub-standard rear window extension on the roof of another property – neither of which had planning permission.

Prosecution

When the developments weren’t removed, Southwark’s planning enforcement team launched the prosecution.

After reviewing financial investigations carried out by the council’s trading standards team, the court agreed that Musa had illegally gained £42,637 in rent. It heard that both property developments now have planning permission.

Councillor James McAsh (pictured), cabinet member for climate emergency and sustainable development, says this was a shameless attempt to shoehorn three tiny flats into one basement, along with an illegal roof extension.

“This outcome serves as a warning that we will not tolerate planning breaches. It also supports us in cracking down on those who try to benefit from renting illegal and sub-standard properties in Southwark,” says McAsh.

“Everyone deserves a good quality place to live. Planning rules and space standards make sure that new developments are good quality and a decent size.”

Pic credit: Google Streetview

View Full Article: Planners force landlord to return £42,637 in rent after ‘illegal gains’

BREAKING: Evidence heard in final day of landmark rent-to-rent court case

admin    Uncategorized     agents

The Supreme Court is debating a key legal case around rent-to-rent operators today to decide if the superior landlord, or any landlord in the chain, should be responsible for a rent repayment order.

Judges are hearing interventions in the Rakusen v Jepsen case including from the NRLA, represented by property lawyer David Smith (pictured), concerning landlord Martin Rakusen who agreed to let his flat on Finchley Road, London, to a rent-to-rent company in May 2016.

However, by November 2018, the flat had become an HMO but a licence wasn’t applied for, and the former tenants sought a RRO against him – as the superior landlord – instead of the rent-to-rent company.

The Upper Tribunal ruled that the order could be applied for against the superior landlord, however the Court of Appeal subsequently found in the landlord’s favour.

As the final day of hearings draw to a close, David Smith adds that he won’t get to speak to the court and will have to wait several months for a decision. “It is frustrating to watch and wait with nothing more that can be done,” he told BBC News.

“But it is also an important case which will affect landlords and tenants and illustrates the importance of Parliament getting this stuff right first time around.”

Going wrong

NRLA chief executive Ben Beadle (pictured) says both tenant and landlord are the victims when it comes to dodgy rent to rent operators going wrong.

“We want to see absolute clarity,” he says. “You’ve got arrangements where the landlord has made an agreement with a provider who collects the rent and executes the repairs, and then situations which the landlord might not be aware of – in this case they get clobbered through no fault of their own.”

If the Supreme Court was to change the position adopted by the Court of Appeal, then authorised rent-to-rent arrangements will likely become less common, leading to a lower availability of budget accommodation to rent on a room-by-room basis, says the NRLA.

But critics of the rent-to-rent model of letting point out that for too long both landlords and many tenants have been ripped off by dodgy operators within this market, as the many articles LandlordZONE has published on this topic highlight. Also, last year Beadle told an audience at a landlord show that the ‘bad eggs’ in the rent-to-rent sector urgently needed kicking out.

View Full Article: BREAKING: Evidence heard in final day of landmark rent-to-rent court case

Scottish government urged to declare a ‘national housing crisis’

admin    Uncategorized     agents

A Conservative MSP is calling on the Scottish Government to declare a ‘national housing crisis’ after it was revealed that 47,000 people are homeless in the country.

The data from the Scottish government also reveals that 30,000 people are stuck on social housing waiting lists.

View Full Article: Scottish government urged to declare a ‘national housing crisis’

Barclays to stop telling tenants credit card debt ‘helps them pass referencing’

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Barclays has been rapped on the knuckles for a radio advert that urged tenants to rack up credit card debt and increase their credit score to help them rent a flat.

The advert’s voiceover explained: “Using my Barclaycard Forward credit card to pay for the stuff I need now could help build up my credit score for the day I need something bigger. So buying a set of headphones…could help in the future when I want to rent my first flat share.”

Responding to complaints, Barclays said the ad was intended to show that you could improve your credit score by using a credit card responsibly, purchasing goods and paying it off in time.

It explained that many third parties and credit reference agencies recommend using a credit card in that way to build a credit score, which was important for letting agents when letting a property.

Credit score

It added that landlords used many factors when considering a credit score, including salary, but it was down to the individual landlord to decide which factors to pick.

It explained that private landlords and letting agents with more than 100 properties were able to use credit data when making credit and affordability decisions. However, Barclays could not confirm that every landlord would use credit reference agency checks, or if they did, that the credit data they could access was suitably detailed. It agreed to withdraw the advert.

The ASA ruled: “We considered that a significant section of the rental market was made up of private landlords with less than 100 properties. Because there was no guarantee that these individuals would carry out or would have access to detailed credit reference checks, we concluded that the ad exaggerated the impact of retail purchases on a person’s credit score, in relation to renting a property, and therefore the ad was misleading.”

Read more: Credit scores explained.

View Full Article: Barclays to stop telling tenants credit card debt ‘helps them pass referencing’

Accelerated Process – solicitor says no!?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Hello, a S21 was issued to a tenant with expiry in mid Dec. I then contacted my insurance to progress the accelerated process. They contacted the legal company that I have cover with as part of my policy.

They have come back to me stating S21 is deemed invalid and that they will not progress for the following reasons:

1. The tenancy deduction clause has not been included in the prescribed information
2. I cannot see that a hard copy of the DPS T&C’s has been provided to the tenant
3. The most recent How to Rent Guide was not served on the tenant at the point when the tenancy went periodic.

View Full Article: Accelerated Process – solicitor says no!?

Plans for rental reform will ’cause chaos for students’

admin    Uncategorized     agents

‘The future vitality of the education sector is uncertain.’

That’s the warning from several organisations after plans by the government to reform the PRS run the risk of making it more challenging for poorer students to enter higher education.

View Full Article: Plans for rental reform will ’cause chaos for students’