Gove orders councils to improve mould and damp monitoring of PRS properties

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Housing Secretary Michael Gove has ordered council bosses to prove they are assessing and improving damp and mould problems in the PRS.

Following the death of toddler Awaab Ishak as a direct result of mould in his family home, Gove says there’s an urgent need to ensure a decent standard of properties in all sectors.

He has now written to chief executives and council leaders asking them to provide an assessment of damp and mould issues affecting privately rented properties in their area, including the prevalence of category 1 and 2 damp and mould hazards, as well as an assessment of action that might need to be taken.

Authorities must provide their last three 12 monthly reporting periods, detailing how many damp and mould hazards they have sorted out compared to assessments made, how many times enforcement action was taken, how many civil penalty notices were issued, and the number of prosecutions successfully pursued.

Enforcement

“I would also like you to set out how you are prioritising enforcement of housing standards more generally in your authority, across all tenures, including what plans you have to ensure adequate enforcement capacity to drive up standards in the private rented sector,” writes Gove.

Read the letter in full.

“It is vital that we all learn from the events that led to the tragic death of Awaab, and my officials and I look forward to working collaboratively with you to improve standards for renters across the country and across all tenures,” he tells them.

The government is currently reviewing the updated housing health and safety rating system (HHSRS) – part of the Decent Homes Standard – and is reported to be considering whether councils should be formally instructed to examine residents’ behaviour when deciding whether to take action against landlords over dangerous conditions including mould and damp.

Read more about the Decent Homes Standard.

View Full Article: Gove orders councils to improve mould and damp monitoring of PRS properties

Management agents to block of flats reneged on responsibility?

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Hello, I have a one bed rental flat in a small block of flats in Reading. My tenant experienced total loss of electrical power (there is no gas) and after prolonged and in-depth diagnosis by three electricians and the utility companies

View Full Article: Management agents to block of flats reneged on responsibility?

Tenants can be cause of property problems as well as landlords, Government admits

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Landlords’ long-standing criticisms of health and safety regulation – that tenants are often the cause of problems such as mould or water leaks – look set to be addressed in new government guidance.

Councils inspecting rented properties will be formally instructed to examine residents’ behaviour when deciding whether to take action against landlords over dangerous conditions, according to leaked documents seen by the Observer over the weekend.

Under the updated housing health and safety rating system (HHSRS) – part of the Decent Homes Standard – environmental health inspectors will be told to consider detailed “behavioural factors”, such as whether residents are ensuring their home is heated and ventilated, including using heating, running extraction fans and opening windows.

They will also be required to consider whether people are exposing themselves to excessively low temperatures due to ignorance, a “stoic and often embedded attitude” to cold or desire to “reduce carbon emissions”.

Landlords and local councils have complained that the HHSRS – which hasn’t been updated since 2006 – is complicated and inefficient to use. Guidance developed for the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities is expected to take effect by April 2023.

The DLUHC says the secretary of state has been clear that landlords must be held to account if they do not provide safe and decent homes.

Enforce standards

A spokesman tells LandlordZONE: “We are reviewing the HHSRS to ensure the tool works as well as it can – that means allowing councils to enforce standards in rented homes more effectively and efficiently. This will result in fewer hazardous conditions.”

Earlier this year, landlords were asked to share their views on the proposed new Decent Homes Standard, part of the Renters’ Reform Bill.

It aims to match standards in the social rented sector and introduces a legal duty on landlords to ensure their property is free from the most serious ‘category 1’ hazards assessed using the HHSRS; failure to do so would be a criminal offence.

Read the current guidance on HHSRA for private landlords.

View Full Article: Tenants can be cause of property problems as well as landlords, Government admits

UK house prices set to fall for the next two years

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House prices in the UK are predicted to fall for the next two years before they will increase again, the government’s official forecaster says.

According to the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), it says that between now and autumn 2024

View Full Article: UK house prices set to fall for the next two years

Rogue landlord fined just £300 for ignoring safety warnings at flat

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A landlord who illegally rented out an unsafe room to a family with a baby has been fined just £300 despite ignoring a legal request to fix an unsafe property.

Yousaf Younas, of Cartier Close, Warrington, failed to comply with a Prohibition Order served after inspectors visited his property at 58 Fitzherbert Street (pictured).

It banned the use of a ground-floor bedroom next to the kitchen due to serious fire safety concerns, and told him that works needed to be carried out before it could be occupied again.

However, the bedroom was later found to be in use by a young family while Younas had failed to carry out any works to reduce the fire risk. He pleaded guilty at Warrington Magistrates’ Court and was also ordered to pay £100 costs and a £34 victim surcharge.

Cabinet member for environment, housing and public protection, councillor Hitesh Patel (pictured), says: “The successful prosecution serves as a warning to other landlords that we will not hesitate to prosecute landlords who fail to comply with legal notices and don’t take the health and safety of their tenants seriously.”

Facebook caution

Meanwhile, in Coventry, a landlord has been issued with a formal caution after he posted details of his tenant’s rent arrears on Facebook and then shared it with her friends and family in a bid to humiliate her. The landlord also shared her employment details and address, although he subsequently deleted the post.

The tenant complained to the council’s landlord and tenant liaison officer who issued the caution which can prevent a landlord from obtaining licences, including the ability to manage an HMO. She could also choose to bring a civil action.

Councillor David Welsh, cabinet member for housing and communities, says: “This sends out a clear message to landlords that Coventry City Council will do all it can to protect its residents from unlawful eviction and harassment.”

View Full Article: Rogue landlord fined just £300 for ignoring safety warnings at flat

Police damage to flat doors?

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Hello, Police smashed their way into a block of 3 flats I own to interview some suspects. There was no need to use a battering ram to gain entry when there were call buttons and all three flats were occupied.

View Full Article: Police damage to flat doors?

Propertymark says the pressure on rents is easing

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Propertymark, the body for property agents, says that the average number of new prospective tenants registered with each member branch in October fell by 42% on the month before.

This drop in demand will, they say, reduce pressure on rents

View Full Article: Propertymark says the pressure on rents is easing

Conforming with regulations?

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Hello, I have 2 questions about the practical approach to meeting regulations.

I have just requested an electrical safety check which the property has failed with a number of C2 faults. I have asked for an estimate for rectifying the faults which the electrician is preparing

View Full Article: Conforming with regulations?

Majority of property investors looking to invest next year

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More than 50% of property investors are looking to further expand their portfolio in 2023 – despite the uncertainty of the UK’s economic outlook, research reveals.

The findings from bridging finance broker Finbri of more than 1,000 property investors found that 50.45% are planning to invest

View Full Article: Majority of property investors looking to invest next year

Hunt’s CGT changes will cost average landlord up to £2,600 more per sale

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Estate agency Hamptons has warned that the Chancellor’s changes to the capital gains tax system announced in his Autumn statement last week will cost landlords up to £2,600 more each time they sell a property.

CGT bills depend on the price of the property and the tax status of the landlord involved, but all will be hit by JeremyHunt’s decision to cut the annual exempt amount for capital gains tax from £12,300 to £6,000 next year, and then halve it again to just £3,000 from April 2024.

This means landlords who report their tax via their personal tax return each year (rather than limited company structures) will pay 18% on any capital gain over these new lower threshold if they are basic rate tax payers, and 28% for those who are ‘higher rate’.

Hamptons has based its calculation on data that reveals the average ‘profit’ made by landlords on BTL home sales the year has been £98,050.

Thresholds

This means that, once the new thresholds are introduced, the CGT paid by a lower rate tax payer will increase by £1,1770 and for a higher rate one, £2,610… and then increase again in 2024.

“The new changes to capital gains tax, will add further pressure to landlords and we are likely to see more rental properties put up for sale,” says Kevin Roberts, Managing Director, Legal & General Mortgage Services.

“A greater supply of housing for buyers will definitely be welcomed by some, but this could prove a painful development for renters.

“The rental market is already suffering from a lack of stock and rising rents.”

Read more: Complete guide to landlords' tax for 2022/23.

View Full Article: Hunt’s CGT changes will cost average landlord up to £2,600 more per sale