Big council says HMOs ‘fundamentally change areas’ as it clamps down

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Councillors in Reading are set to rubber stamp plans to extend restrictions on the number of HMO conversions.

An Article 4 direction already covers parts of the town where HMOs are prevalent, in much of Park, Redlands and Katesgrove wards, as well as Jesse Terrace.

The council now wants to tighten up the existing thresholds in areas around the university and to introduce a new threshold for other parts of Reading without restrictions and where applications for house conversions to HMOs are spreading.

Proposals include clarification that the existing 25% threshold within 50 metres of a property applies to the total number of residential buildings within the Article 4 areas and a new approach to proposals for conversion to both flats and HMOs outside these areas, where the proportion of residential buildings within 50m of the site that have been converted would not be expected to exceed 50%.

Other criteria include whether the application site falls within the 30% most deprived local areas.

A recent eight-week public consultation on the planned changes to its supplementary planning document only yielded 12 written responses.

Prevalence

Micky Leng (pictured), lead councillor for planning, says it has seen that a prevalence of HMOs in parts of the town can lead to tensions in local communities.

He adds: “Examples include pressure on limited parking or multiple bin collections at HMO addresses. More fundamentally, HMOs can change the look, feel and character of a local neighbourhood, which existing residents understandably have concerns over.

“If adopted next week, these changes strengthen and update existing planning policies and will be a material consideration when deciding if an HMO conversion will be approved.”

Read: Complete guide to renting an HMO property.

View Full Article: Big council says HMOs ‘fundamentally change areas’ as it clamps down

Reading council says HMOs ‘fundamentally change areas’ as it restricts planning criteria

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Councillors in Reading are set to rubber stamp plans to extend restrictions on the number of HMO conversions.

An Article 4 direction already covers parts of the town where HMOs are prevalent, in much of Park, Redlands and Katesgrove wards, as well as Jesse Terrace.

The council now wants to tighten up the existing thresholds in areas around the university and to introduce a new threshold for other parts of Reading without restrictions and where applications for house conversions to HMOs are spreading.

Proposals include clarification that the existing 25% threshold within 50 metres of a property applies to the total number of residential buildings within the Article 4 areas and a new approach to proposals for conversion to both flats and HMOs outside these areas, where the proportion of residential buildings within 50m of the site that have been converted would not be expected to exceed 50%.

Other criteria include whether the application site falls within the 30% most deprived local areas.

A recent eight-week public consultation on the planned changes to its supplementary planning document only yielded 12 written responses.

Prevalence

Micky Leng (pictured), lead councillor for planning, says it has seen that a prevalence of HMOs in parts of the town can lead to tensions in local communities.

He adds: “Examples include pressure on limited parking or multiple bin collections at HMO addresses. More fundamentally, HMOs can change the look, feel and character of a local neighbourhood, which existing residents understandably have concerns over.

“If adopted next week, these changes strengthen and update existing planning policies and will be a material consideration when deciding if an HMO conversion will be approved.”

Read: Complete guide to renting an HMO property.

View Full Article: Reading council says HMOs ‘fundamentally change areas’ as it restricts planning criteria

Is converting commercial buildings to residential use a viable proposition?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Converting commercial buildings to residential use would seem an ideal solution to a housing shortage, especially with and a glut of underused commercial buildings, but how easy is it?

The planning regulation changes have made it easier to convert commercial buildings to residential use, but the process is not without its difficulties.

Since 2015, with the introduction of The Town and County Planning (General Permitted Development) Order, the process of changing the usage of commercial buildings to residential was simplified under the planning system, aiming to encourage the more efficient use of buildings.

Between then and now, well over 50,000 new residential buildings have been successfully converted from their previous commercial use. With the Covid pandemic and its aftermath, many more commercial buildings, mainly offices and some retail buildings, now find themselves vastly under used, representing a large pool of potential conversions.

Property investors with some development experience may see opportunities here, whether that be a closed down pub, high street shop or department store, town centre offices, former bank buildings or suburban offices, all ripe for conversions into swish modern apartments.

Its not all plain sailing

Although the opportunities have broadened with the introduction of these permitted development rights, there are complexities that would-be property developers may not be aware of. It calls for thorough research before embarking on such a project.

It’s especially important to check with the planning authorities first, to think about the requirements of building control (the physical specifications of any conversion), and to fully comply with all the legalities before committing to a purchase and embarking on such a project.

We’ve seen it all before on TV, those property auction programmes where someone buys a church building, a warehouse, an old cinema and converts them into trendy new apartments. You read newspaper and magazine articles on the trend and you get inspiration from what you see on your travels; that old majestic bank building with the agents board prominently displayed, just crying out for rejuvenation, conversion to a new life.

Testing the market

The last thing you want to do is pour your money into a folly that will never let. Market research is absolutely vital before making any investment commitment. You have gut feel and experience of course, and it may well be a common sense judgement, but it’s not enough – yes the building is in exactly with right location to attract your tenants, the dimensions look right and you could get it at a bargain price. But that’s not enough without further in-depth research.

You should not relay on your own judgement here. The people with the best feel for a local market are sales and letting agents who day-to-day deal with properties, sales and lettings locally. Of course, when you are eyeing up a prospect you are wary about alerting the competition, but better that than landing yourself with a folly.

Having establish there is a healthy market for your completed project you need to go about researching the feasibility of the conversion:

1. Does your concept come within the bounds of permitted development? There may be other complications such as a listed building or it’s within a conservation area, which may require sensitive and restricted conversion – consult your local authority first.
2. Measure the building and do some rough plans of your ideas.
3. Consult an architect or trusted experienced builder to see if your ideas will work in principle – you need to be pretty sure your plans will be approved, so consult the planners and building control at this stage.
4. Secure your purchase either through auction, private treaty or open market sale.
5. Prepare your proposed detailed designs and consult with the local building control department or a private consultant.
6. Regardless of permitted development rights there may still be a requirement to get approval either simply through a pre-application (pre-app) or a full planning application, or you may simply need a lawful development certificate.
7. Finally, what is the existing ‘use class’ of the building?

Use Classes

There may be exceptions but most conversions involving business use classes will need some sort of official approval, even with permitted development rights, but perhaps not a full planning approval.

Local authorities sort their buildings into use classes B, C, E, and F, with their sub categories:

• B covers general industrial buildings, factories, storage, warehousing and distribution centres.
• C covers residential buildings, private homes, hotels, hostels, care homes etc.
• E business services, such as shops, offices, nurseries.
• F covers local community and learning centres, museums, libraries, community halls etc.
• ‘Sui Generis’ means ‘in a class of its own’ and in this context the term refers to buildings which are in a unique class falling outside of the defined classes.

There were changes to use classes in September 2020 when several classes were revoked, including Class A, B, and D. See a full guide to use classes here.

Here is a list of buildings which typically are appropriate for conversion to residential (C3) use:

• Most Class E building, retail shops, restaurants, nurseries, and offices.
• Agricultural buildings
• Banks
• Gyms
• Dentist offices
• Medical Centres
• Hair Salons
• Betting offices
• Casinos
• Launderettes
• Pubs

Don’t “jump the gun”

Even with permitted development rights conversions will still need prior approval before work commences, even if this is just obtaining a “lawful development certificate” and building control approval.

Converting an existing building into another use often involves complex changes to make sure you stay within building regulations specifications, rooms sizes, access corridors, staircases, fire exits, building materials specifications etc. You will need professional help with all this to draw up acceptable plans, meeting these specifications.

Why convert a building?

Most commercial buildings naturally lend themselves to conversion as they are generally quite spacious and often ideally located for domestic occupation. With the change in the market, post Covid, with much more home working, these projects may be even more attractive as vacant office or industrial space, offering spacious rooms, become more common.

With reduced rental potential for commercial units, and the need to invest more money into them to meet coming energy efficiency standards, many landlords are looking to off-load them. Often this can be at very attractive prices. At the same time, increasing demand for housing means that these commercial to residential conversions are buoyed by a healthy residential rental market.

Affordable housing conversions

Responding to an All-Party Parliamentary Group inquiry about understanding the feasibility of converting empty commercial property into affordable housing, property agent’s trade body, Propertymark says it believes there is potential for commercial to residential conversions, however, it warns of several obstacles to a wide-scale programme of conversions:

“Responding to an All-Party Parliamentary Group inquiry about understanding the feasibility of converting empty commercial property into affordable housing, Propertymark believes there is potential, however, warns of several obstacles to a wide-scale programme of conversions,” says Propertymark.

The APPG for Ending Homelessness and the APPG on Housing Market and Housing Delivery inquiry sought views on the barriers and potential of utilising the growing number of empty commercial buildings. Propertymark members from their commercial division stated that “primarily, many conversions would not be financially viable or suitable for residential use even if a conversion was made.”

To achieve APPG objectives, encouraging developers to take on projects, conversions and developments would have to be financially viable, and they would need to be is suitable locations for community needs.

To to ensure projects lead to quality homes being built, Propertymark says it needs, “the establishment of a set of clear achievable but high standards that converted properties would have to meet. This will prevent poor conversions that do not provide an adequate standard of living.”

Propertymark also highlights issues with the planning system, citing instances when planning approval is granted inconsistently. “If conversions were to be feasible on a national scale, we would like to see clear guidance provided to local authorities so they can approve conversions more consistently.”

The agent’s trade body says it has “long advocated for a range of measures to improve the housing supply crisis and very much welcomes this joint inquiry to explore converting commercial property as a potential solution. There are certainly instances when conversions can be suitable, however, we have made it clear in our response that the suitability of the property for conversion must be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.”

View Full Article: Is converting commercial buildings to residential use a viable proposition?

Do EPCs save the planet or are they just another way of hammering landlords?

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This Property118 investigation looks at how much energy performance certificates (EPCs) could cost the PRS and whether EPCs save tenants money or whether they are simply a green tax.

A recent report by The Times revealed the staggering inaccuracy of the certificates used to rate the energy efficiency of homes.

View Full Article: Do EPCs save the planet or are they just another way of hammering landlords?

Social housing for a non-paying tenant after a S21?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Hello, After a S21 notice, I now have my Order for Possession from the court. Bailiffs are awaited. The tenants have now stopped paying the rent.

They got progressively worse at paying until I got a managed payment to the landlord (MPLT) for Universal Credit.

View Full Article: Social housing for a non-paying tenant after a S21?

Can my tenants choose their own housemates?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Hello, I have an HMO with some fantastic tenants (it will be a travesty if the continued anti-landlord policy campaign continues and I have to sell up and walk away, but I digress).

One is leaving and the remaining would like to choose the replacement.

View Full Article: Can my tenants choose their own housemates?

Tenants are putting ‘their lives on hold’ during rental crisis

admin    Uncategorized     agents

With rents at record highs and an ongoing cost of living crisis, renters are starting to feel the effects and are now putting their personal and professional lives on hold, research reveals.

The findings from SpareRoom highlight that with demand and rents at an all-time high

View Full Article: Tenants are putting ‘their lives on hold’ during rental crisis

Tax is triggered by the timing of events

admin    Uncategorized     agents

If you’re confused by the title of this article; “Tax is triggered by the timing of events”, I will explain with a simple example before moving on to explaining how “timing” can be used to your advantage with Landlord Tax Planning via Property118 and Cotswold Barristers.

View Full Article: Tax is triggered by the timing of events

John Lewis build-to-rent plans stall as locals oppose huge apartment ‘towers’

admin    Uncategorized     agents

John Lewis’s build-to-rent strategy appears to be stalling amid local opposition to its plans for large developments in West Ealing and Bromley.

The retailer has just announced pre-tax losses of £234 million as sales dipped 2% last year, making it even more vital to find new revenue streams.

Last year, it struck a £500m deal with the investment firm Abrdn to build 1,000 residential rental homes on three sites, however, local people and Bromley councillors are challenging the plans and its aspiration to become a huge private landlord.

John Lewis’s scheme to redevelop its Waitrose West Ealing site by 2027, which includes three blocks of apartments (main picture) up to 19 storeys high, has incurred the wrath of Ealing campaigning group, Stop The Towers.

Meanwhile, its plans for Bromley include the tallest tower block in the town – 24 storeys – and 350 flats, which will be considered by the council’s planning committee later this year. One councillor has already warned they won’t be voting to approve the development.

Warehouse

Although John Lewis has plans to replace its closed warehouse in Reading town centre with homes, no official plan has been submitted.

A spokesman told the local newspaper in West Ealing: “Our analysis supports the heights we are proposing, however these consultations are designed to give local people every opportunity to share their views to help shape our plans.” 

The retailer has vowed to “continue to assess further potential sites that would be suitable for development” in its full-year results, following its announcement that it plans to build 10,000 homes in the next 10 years.

View Full Article: John Lewis build-to-rent plans stall as locals oppose huge apartment ‘towers’

‘A budget that does nothing to help struggling renters’, says Shelter

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Shelter has slammed the Chancellor for failing to raise Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates in his spring Budget.

The homeless charity says Jeremy Hunt could have put an end to spiralling homelessness, but instead, he has stuck his head in the sand.

“Yet again we have a Budget that does nothing to help struggling renters who are drowning in debt and rapidly rising rents,” says chief executive Polly Neate (main picture).

Outrageous

“It is outrageous that the government has chosen to keep housing benefit frozen at 2020 levels when its own figures show rents have risen by more than 8% in this time.”

Housing benefits or universal credit payments are capped by LHA rates which are designed to provide people with enough support through the benefits system to afford the cheapest 30% of housing in an area.

However, with increasingly higher rents during the last two years, more than half (54%) of renters claiming housing benefits have to cover a shortfall in their payments, according to Shelter.

Neate adds: “Sleeping rough or being shunted from hostel-to-hostel ruins people’s lives and costs the economy more. This is the government’s final warning to introduce emergency measures to keep people in their homes – it must urgently unfreeze housing benefit.”

Shelter reports that the number of households living in temporary accommodation has risen by 87% in the last 10 years – from just over 50,000 to nearly 100,000 – while more than 44% of private renting adults in England – equivalent to 3.6 million people – say rising living costs are making them more worried about becoming homeless.

View Full Article: ‘A budget that does nothing to help struggling renters’, says Shelter