Landlord Law Newsround #331 » The Landlord Law Blog

Welcome to another Landlord Law Newsround bringing you all the latest housing news direct to your inbox.

Council to penalise bad landlords

Gloucester council is breaking new ground with an incentivising new scheme for its HMO licensing whereby good landlords will be granted the standard 5 year licence and bad landlords will only get a 12 month one. Reduced payment offers for those landlords that pay penalties on time will also be removed.

And, in addition to this, they are also introducing fines for landlords whose houses do not meet the standard efficiency standards where the EPC is a rating of below an E.

Hitting even harder, those landlords who have properties who fail the electrical standards could be fined up to £30,000.00 along with insufficient carbon monoxide and smoke alarms fines of up to £5000.00.

30% of houses in Gloucester are rented, a statement from the council says

Homes with low EPC ratings take longer to warm up and lose heat quicker, meaning energy bills can be higher and residents are exposed to cold related illnesses.

Poor housing can have a huge effect on people’s lives and can severely affect their health. While the majority of landlords maintain their properties there is a small minority who think that the rules don’t apply to them.

It will be interesting to see if more councils follow the lead of Gloucester council.

Charities call on Gove for an arrears ‘Tenancy Support Programme’

Whilst it’s true to say that many are not that impressed with this governments handling of the Renters Reform Bill now some debt advice charities have come together to put even more pressure onto the government. Not only to prioritise the RRB in this parliamentary session but also to call for a new Tenancy Support Programme.

They want to make sure that private landlords take steps ‘to support tenants in financial difficulty to sustain tenancies wherever possible, including referring them to benefits advice and seeking to agree an affordable repayment plan for arrears’.

One of the charities, Step Change’s recent research claims that private renters are twice as likely to have problems with debt than the average person, with 53% finding it hard to keep up with bills and other financial commitments since the beginning of this year. Private renters are now in ‘low financial resilience’, especially those of ill health, unable to get housing via the social sector.

They also want to go further to give judges the authority to suspend evictions where it is evident that landlords have not seeked to help their tenants with resolving their rent arrears in the first instance.

Richard Lane of StepChange Debt Charity says

While a mortgage holder or social tenant has the security of knowing that their lender or housing provider will follow a process of engagement and support if they fall into a difficult spot with their finances, private renters are not afforded the same protections.

The charities say that there is strong public demand for this where private landlords should be legally obliged to offer tenants an affordable repayment plan before eviction proceedings can be initiated.

There is help out there for landlords who find themselves in this situation with their tenants. Landlord Law has teamed up with Julie Ford’s Debt Assessment Services. If you are a member, you can find it here. Julie is a housing advisor who specialises in helping tenants who are in arears by helping them to claim benefits and locating grants to support them.

Tessa and Julie together have also created a kit, the Helping Tenants in Arrears Kit which gives landlords and agents detailed guidance on how to help tenants in arrears and source additional funding for them.

And let’s finish our Newsround this week with some good landlord news articles for a change.

Council launches grants for landord’s home improvements

Cherwell District Council has launched a new grant scheme for landlords where they can apply for up to £15,000 to carry home improvements in their rented homes. This is designed to boost the number of quality affordable rented homes. Landlords can apply for this grant to improve energy efficiency, install new bathrooms and kitchens.

Councillor Nicholas Mawer says of the scheme

It is an excellent opportunity for landlords. Not only will they be eligible for an improvement grant, but they’ll also receive peace of mind as the council will provide support with finding tenants, organising viewings for their property and a deposit bond worth 10 weeks of rent.

In addition, the grant can be used to convert a house into an HMO with continued support from the council.

Let’s hope more councils follow this Oxfordshire council.

Landlords boost local economies

37 % of Landlords contribute to local economies as they choose to use local tradespeople, shops and services. Aldermore, a specialist lender, claims in new report that landlords spend on average £6003 per year on local services.

The most common services used are electricians at 52%, plumber 50% and handymen at 34%. Landlords trust local shops and services more as they can provide the landlord with good local area knowledge and advice.

Jan Cooper, head of mortgages at Aldermore says

Landlords remain absolutely vital to addressing the UK’s housing demand. Our data shows they’re generous contributors to their local economies as well. Whilst they sometimes get a bad press, there are so many good landlords out there making a really positive difference.