Mandatory HMO Licensing Changes Happening On 1st October

Changes to mandatory HMO licensing will come into force on the 1st October. The changes will remove the three storey rule. Currently, mandatory licensing applies to HMOs of at least three storeys and five occupants comprising of two or more-family units. The regulations also bring purpose-built flats where there are up to two flats in the block, into the scope of mandatory licensing. Properties will be subject to mandatory licensing if they meet certain criteria, such as the property is occupied by five or more persons. Read more on the NLA website.

https://landlords.org.uk/news-campaigns/news/final-countdown-mandatory-hmo-licensing-changes-happening-on-1st-october

New HMO Rules Come Into Effect In England On 1 October 2018

New regulations to bring mandatory licensing to all multi-occupied properties where there are five or more people, forming two or more separate households. The main change is:

·         Altered definition of an HMO under the Housing Act 2004: for licensing purposes, from 1/10, an HMO will be any property occupied by five or more people, forming two or more separate households.

This contrasts with the existing HMO definition which is a property occupied by 5 or more people, forming two or more separate households and comprising three or more storeys.

Read more on the RICS website.

http://www.rics.org/uk/news/news-insight/news/new-hmo-rules-come-into-effect-in-england-on-1-october-2018/

Social Rented Housing – Parliamentary Written Answer

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to publish regulations on local Tenancy Strategies in relation to the Housing and Planning Act 2016.

Dominic Raab: [Holding answer 25 June 2018]: The Housing and Planning Act 2016 introduced changes to local authority tenancies by making it mandatory for most new council tenancies to be for a fixed term. Regulations and statutory guidance are necessary to implement the fixed term tenancy provisions in the Housing and Planning Act and the next steps will be set out in due course.

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2018-06-20/155938

MPs Back Plan For Ombudsman To Resolve New Homes Disputes

The government is under pressure to set up an independent ombudsman with the power to order housebuilders to pay out up to £50,000 or even reverse a sale, following reports of new-home buyers lumbered with defective properties. A group of MPs and peers has called on the government to make it mandatory for housebuilders to belong to the proposed scheme, which would be free for consumers and offer a quick resolution to disputes. The scheme would be funded by a levy on housebuilders, with larger ones such as Berkeley Group, Persimmon, Barratt, Galliford Try, Redrow and Bovis Homes, paying more than small and medium-sized firms. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2018/jun/30/mps-call-ombudsman-scheme-resolve-issues-new-homes-buyers

Mandatory HMO Licensing Extension To Commence In October

Regulations laid in Parliament confirm that the long-awaited extension of Mandatory HMO Licensing will come into force from 1st October 2018. The regulations replace the previous prescribed description of HMO, removing the three-storey rule and bringing purpose built flats where there are up to two flats in the block into scope of mandatory licensing. From 1st October, properties that meet all of the following criteria will be subject to mandatory licensing:

·         is occupied by five or more persons;

·         is occupied by persons living in two or more separate households; and

meets—

·         the standard test under section 254(2) of the Act;

·         the self-contained flat test under section 254(3) of the Act

·         the converted building test under section 254(4) of the Act.

Read more on the NLA website.

https://www.landlords.org.uk/news-campaigns/news/mandatory-hmo-licensing-extension-commence-in-october

Government Backs One Of UK's Largest Selective Licensing Schemes

The government has given the go ahead to what will be one of the UK’s largest selective licensing scheme outside of London. Letting Agent Today has previously reported that Nottingham was getting tough with unauthorised To Let boards; now it seems the council also has the powers to introduce mandatory licenses for landlords of around 31,000 private rental units within its boundaries.  This constitutes around 90 per cent of all privately rented homes within the city. Money raised through the scheme will help to cover the cost and the council says it hopes to be able to introduce the scheme from summer this year. Read more on Letting Agent Today.

https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2018/2/government-green-light-for-biggest-selective-licensing-scheme-outside-london

New HMO Licensing Rules Expected In October

The Government is planning to introduce new rules on licensing Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) this October, the Housing Minister, Dominic Raab, has confirmed. The Government set out its proposals to extend HMO licensing last year, involving mandatory licensing for properties, regardless of height, that are occupied by five or more people from two or more households. Currently, mandatory HMO licensing only applies to properties with three or more storeys that are occupied by five or more people from two or more households. The new rules still have to be approved by Parliament. However, in response to a written question by Liberal Democrat MP Wera Hobhouse, Raab set out a timetable for their introduction. Read more on the Landlord News website.

https://landlordnews.co.uk/new-hmo-licensing-rules-october/

Private Rented Housing: Licensing – Parliamentary Written Answer

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Government plans to extend mandatory licencing schemes for landlords in the private rented sector.

Dominic Raab: [Holding answer 18 January 2018]: The Government proposes to extend the scope of mandatory houses in multiple occupation (HMO) licensing, so that a licence is required for HMOs with five or more occupiers. We published our response to our HMO reforms consultation in December 2017, and we plan to lay the necessary regulations before Parliament shortly with a view to bringing them into force (subject to approval) in October 2018.

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2018-01-15/122708

New Changes To HMO Licensing

The government is extending mandatory licensing for houses in multiple occupation so 870,000 additional private tenants have extra protection from rogue landlords, including through minimum space standards. It is also consulting on further changes to improve the level of protection they get. The announcement last week that the government is consulting on a swathe of changes to mandatory licensing is worth getting excited about. Not only do the proposals stand to give almost a million more tenants the protection of living in a licensed property, they are also likely to enhance the quality of that protection with new space standards and a raft of other proposals. Read more on the Shelter blog.

Pay (MORE) to Stay

The Observer has a piece about the government policy they call “pay to stay” which is a misnomer as tenants already pay to stay, else they will be evicted, and the policy is one of paying MORE to stay. What the article does NOT say is:

·         The policy does not apply in Scotland & Wales

·         The income threshold is household income not just wage income

·         The policy is mandatory for council landlords to impose yet is voluntary for housing association landlords.

·         Council landlords return all added rental income to central government, yet housing associations get to keep all added rent charged under the policy

What the article gets wrong is that a couple both working 40 hours per week at the £7.20 national living wage have a wage income ABOVE the £30k threshold as this is £30.034 per year. Read more on the Joe Halewood blog.

Public Support for Rent Controls, But No Political Will

Support for rent controls is gaining momentum in the UK as continuously climbing property prices are making housing unaffordable for middle class and young families. The majority of people want the government to impose legal limits on rents for privately rented housing. Nearly 59 % of people showed their support for rent controls in a survey conducted by Survation recently. Only 6.8% of respondents were opposed. The remaining 34% didn’t have an opinion on the issue. In London, the ratio of people in favour of legal rent controls was even higher. Nearly 64.5% of those polled said that they “somewhat” or “strongly” supported mandatory rent controls. Read more on the Global Property Guide website.

Mandatory Work for Benefits Claimants Could Save £3.51bn

A report has suggested Universal Credit claimants should have a mandatory 30 hour per week work or training commitment or lose their benefit, based on the US system. The Taxpayers Alliance report - Work for the Dole - suggests a return to work programme is the ‘next step’ to cut the number of unemployed people in the UK and claimants could be subject to the programme after claiming universal credit for three months. The proposed scheme could lead to annual savings of £3.51 billion and help 345,000 people off benefits over time.  It is estimated 575,000 people would be eligible for referral onto the programme.  Download a copy of the report from the Taxpayers Alliance website.