Council Wins Private Rented Sector Licensing Battle

An attempt to block plans by Croydon Council to license all private sector landlords in the borough has failed at the High Court. A borough-wide selective licensing scheme, under which landlords will be charged up to £750 per property, will now go ahead on 1 October. Croydon Property Forum (CPF), a group of small Croydon landlords, letting agents and developers, had requested a judicial review on the basis that the authority had not “taken reasonable steps” to consult on the scheme. CPF’s submission claimed that Croydon had only carried out a “doorstep exercise” and not taken into account the views of developers. But in his ruling at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, Sir Stephen Silber QC refused the application for judicial review. Read more on the Croydon Council website.