Families With Stable Jobs At Risk Of Homelessness In Britain

Homelessness is now a serious risk for working families with stable jobs who cannot find somewhere affordable to live after being evicted by private-sector landlords seeking higher rents, the local government ombudsman has warned. Michael King said nurses, taxi drivers, hospitality staff and council workers were among those assisted by his office after being made homeless and placed in often squalid and unsafe temporary accommodation by local authorities. King said the common perception that homelessness was about people with chaotic lives who slept rough no longer held true. Read more on the Guardian website.

Landlords Set To Raise Rents To Cover Higher Taxes

Almost all landlords are considering increasing rents to pay for the higher taxes they now face. In a survey the Residential Landlords Association found that 84% of private sector landlords are likely to consider increasing rents following the Chancellor’s recent tax assault on the buy-to-let sector. It also found that 78% of landlords felt that the changes would deter them from investing in more properties to rent, with half considering getting rid of properties. This is in the face of rising demand for rented housing with the agents, Savills, predicting that one million new homes to rent will be needed by 2021. Read more on the RLA website.

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.

Council May Buy Properties to House Homeless

Bournemouth Borough Council would set up a private sector landlord company to allow it to rent directly to people in need of emergency accommodation. It is thought the plan could cut spending on bed and breakfast accommodation. If the proposals are agreed, the authority said it expects to buy about 60 properties over three years at a cost of £10m. They would also include the purchase of further properties for its own housing stock to rent. The scheme would be funded using a combination of council funding and a loan. Read more on the BBC website.

Private Landlords Accuse DWP of Discrimination

Private sector landlords claim they are facing discrimination by the government as the roll out of universal credit continues. The Residential Landlords Association (RLA) is upset that the DWP has established a universal credit helpline exclusively for use by social landlords with tenants facing difficulties with their housing costs. The RLA says this follows on from the DWP also giving social housing landlords access to information on the claims and arrears history of tenants receiving universal credit under a data sharing agreement, which has not been extended to private sector landlords. The RLA points to figures from the English Housing Survey, which shows 26% of tenants in private rented housing are in receipt of housing benefit, a figure likely to grow as the sector increases in size. Read more on 24dash.

Landlords Greeted New Year with a Rent Hike for Tenants

Just over a quarter of private landlords gave their tenants rather less reason to welcome the new year – by hitting them with a hike in rents. The Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA) has published the first of its new monthly Private Rented Sector Reports, which track key market trends within the private rented sector. The January report, which is based on a survey of ARLA members, revealed that on average 27% of the organisation’s licensed branches saw an increase in the cost of monthly rent for tenants from December 2014 to January 2015. Read more on the Housing Excellence website.

Landlords Warn Of Rent Rise under New Scheme

Landlords in Hastings have warned they will have to put up rents if plans for a licensing scheme are introduced. Hastings Borough Council is currently consulting over the plan, which it says would reduce anti-social behaviour and encourage landlords to take more responsibility for their tenants. It wants to introduce a fee of £415 per property for the licence. Tony Richard, from the National Landlords Association, said "rents will have to rise. This new scheme would be in addition to the existing licensing scheme in Hastings, so it's another operational cost the landlords will have to foot." Read more on the BBC website.

Bill to Stop Revenge Evictions Published

A bill intended to outlaw ‘revenge evictions’ was published yesterday ahead of its second reading on Friday. The Tenancies (Reform Bill), tabled by Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Teather, is intended to stop private rented sector (PRS) landlords evicting those who complain about repairs or conditions in their homes. The proposed legislation seeks to stop revenge evictions by clarifying when a ‘no-fault section 21 possession notice’ -  an eviction notice when the tenant is not at fault – cannot be served. If a council confirms a tenant’s complaint about poor conditions is genuine or a local authority issues an improvement notice to the PRS landlord a no-fault ‘section 21’ eviction notice cannot be served for six months, the bill says. Read more on Inside Housing.

PRS Landlord Wants Section 106 Relaxed

A private rented sector landlord is calling for local authorities to adjust section 106 requirements for private rented sector landlords, as it seeks to more than double its portfolio with cash from an Abu Dhabi investor.  Fizzy Living is eyeing a 100-unit site in west London for its next development, following a £200 million cash injection from an arm of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. Harry Downes, managing director of Fizzy, said local authorities must relax section 106 requirements to allow the business to compete with traditional house builders for land. He said ‘a great many’ local authorities were considering the move - which would involve reducing or removing the need for planning gain for private rented sector developments. ‘There are a great many local authorities that absolutely support this,’ he said. Read more on Inside Housing.

Crackdown on Landlords Who Fail To Tackle Criminal Behaviour

New powers to clamp down on private rented sector landlords who do not take action against organised crime in their properties were announced in the Queen’s speech. The new offence, carrying a sentence of up to five years’ imprisonment, will apply to owners of residential properties who fail to report suspicions that premises are being used for crime. They could be prosecuted for ‘participating in an organised crime group’.  Organisations that adopt a ‘no questions asked’ approach and then claim in court they were unaware of the criminal activity will no longer be allowed to do so with impunity. The law will also apply to lawyers and other professionals. Read more on Inside Housing.

Council Turns To Private Sector Landlords to Solve Housing Crisis

A council has appealed to private rented sector landlords to offer homes for families on its waiting list. Designed to tackle the local housing crisis, South Northamptonshire Council has launched a Private Sector Leasing scheme which will pay participating landlords their rent in advance and quarterly at the Local Housing Allowance rate for up to two years. Minor repairs, plus gas and electricity safety checks, would also be carried out by the council and the property would be returned to the landlord in its original condition subject to fair wear and tear. The property will be managed by the council's housing specialists and the agreement can be extended after two years at the consent of both parties. Read more on 24dash.

Why Landlords Are Shunning Profitable Benefit Tenants

Britain’s army of 1.4million private landlords are upbeat about 2014, expecting further price rises and rent increases. But in what is a growing political controversy – and a logistical nightmare for local authorities needing to house residents – private landlords are increasingly refusing to let property to tenants on benefits. Mortgage lenders and insurers are also growing wary. According to the National Landlords’ Association (NLA), the biggest organisation representing buy-to-let investors, the proportion of landlords prepared to accept tenants receiving LHA has more than halved in three years. In mid-2010, 46pc of the NLA’s members let to tenants who received the benefit. By late last year this had dropped to 22pc, with the NLA commenting that the “decline steepened during 2013”. Read more on the Daily Telegraph website.

Cameron Branded 'Out of Touch' Over Housing Benefit Answer

David Cameron failed to tackle private sector landlords refusing tenancies to people on housing benefit during prime minister’s questions.  Diane Abbott, MP for Hackney North, asked Mr Cameron about what he would do to help families that are working but are being refused accommodation by private sector landlords because they receive housing benefit. David Cameron did not comment on private sector landlords and instead focused on the efforts the government are making to cut the housing benefit bill and increase income tax. Diane Abbott tweeted: ‘Just asked the PM about housing benefit and all I got was an out of touch, Tory Head Office brief in response. Simply not good enough.’ Read more on Inside Housing.

How Councils Can Put a Stop to Rogue Landlords

Nine million people now rent their homes from private landlords in England.

Generation Rent is here to stay, but renting isn't working. This is partly because a small but dangerous minority of rogue landlords continue to make their tenants' lives a misery. These landlords condemn their tenants to living in rundown, unsafe or overcrowded homes. They often neglect their properties and can intimidate those who speak out, threatening them with eviction or even violence. The Guardian has spoken to councils to find the most effective ways of dealing with rogue landlords.  Find their seven top tips on the Guardian website.

Support for Housing Costs in the Reformed Welfare System

The House of Commons' Work and Pensions Committee requests written evidence to inform an inquiry into providing support for housing costs in the context of the reformed welfare system.  The Committee says that it is particularly interested in hearing views on innovative responses to the changes to housing support already taking place, which could help shape future approaches, and the implications of the changes for:

*landlords (private rented sector and Registered Social Landlords)

*local authorities (including availability of Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs)

*claimants, particularly those in vulnerable groups (such as people with disabilities and families with children), and those in supported and temporary accommodation.

The Committee stresses that submissions to the inquiry do not have to cover all these points, and the deadline for sending evidence is 27 September 2013.

Find full details on the Parliament website.

Council and Police Protect Private Sector Tenants from Illegal Evictions

Nottingham City Council is stepping up its efforts to protect tenants from being illegally evicted by private sector landlords.  The council's housing aid team is contacted several times a week by tenants reporting landlords who ignore their rights, threaten or harass them into leaving their homes and block access to properties by changing locks.  An officer from the housing aid service who has previously trained the anti-social behaviour team is now engaged in training Nottinghamshire Police personnel on the correct procedure when a tenant is being illegally evicted. This is increasing the likelihood that landlords illegally evicting tenants will be visited by the Police, reminded of the procedure they need to follow, and arrested if they don't comply.  Read more on the Housing Excellence website.