Monthly Archive for March, 2010

Events, dear boy, events…

By NL on 31/03/2010. 0 Comments

A couple of bits of news.

First, John Healey, the shy and self-effacing Housing Minister, announced his intention to make unlawful sub-letting a criminal offence. That said, the DCLG press release rather jumps the gun by describing the sub-lettings as fraudulent. In the smaller print, the ‘shop a sub-let and win £500‘ campaign and the £4 million of Govt support for Councils to ‘crack down’ on sub-letting appear to be less than dramatically successful. Precisely one ‘reward’ has been handed out, in West London, although we are assured that ‘further claims are in the pipeline’. The overall crackdown has resulted in Councils and PRPSHs (nee RSLs) recovering 350 … Read the full post

Posted in Allocation, assured-tenancy, Housing law - All, Possession and secure-tenancy. Tags: , , .

Civil Procedure Rules: 51st update

By Francis Davey on 31/03/2010. 0 Comments

Spring is in the air and daffodils are blossoming which is usually a sign that an update to the civil procedure rules is in the offing. This year, we are doubly blessed. Parts of both the 51st and52nd updates will come into force over the next week. In this post I will, as usual, focus on changes that are most likely to affect housing practitioners.

Civil procedure watchers will already be aware of the 51st update, which gave brought into force provisions related to the Lugano Convention on enforcement of judgment are already in force in January this year, and February amendments to Part 52 concerning asylum appeals.

The … Read the full post

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: .

‘There were three people in this mortgage’

By NL on 29/03/2010. 0 Comments

Hewett v First Plus Financial Group Plc [2010] EWCA Civ 312

We are a little late on this one, which the family law bloggers have already noted, but it is a bit irresistible.

Mrs Hewlett was appealing a possession order obtained by First Plus against her home. First Plus had a mortgage against the property agreed by both Mr and Mrs Hewett. By the time of the possession order, the amount outstanding was £47,372.79.

Mr Hewett had played no part in proceedings. Mrs Hewett appealed the first instance Judge’s rejection of her defence that the mortgage had been procured by undue influence and misrepresentation.

Mr H had something of … Read the full post

Posted in FLW case note, Housing law - All and Mortgage possession. Tags: , .

‘Minded to’ letters and oral representations

By NL on 29/03/2010. 2 Comments

Bury Metropolitan Borough Council v Gibbons [2010] EWCA Civ 327

This was the Court of Appeal judgment on a second appeal from a s.204 Housing Act 1996 appeal in the County Court. At issue were the Circuit Judge’s findings that Bury had:
a) failed to give advice to Mr Gibbon on first application as homeless as required by para 2.12 of the Homeless Code of Guidance for Local Authorities
b) should have addressed this failure in their s.202 review, but failed to do so
c) failed to address an error in the s.184 decision as to the level of savings held by Mr Gibbon in the s.202 review
d) … Read the full post

Posted in FLW case note, Homeless and Housing law - All.

A farewell to the RSL

By NL on 26/03/2010. 6 Comments

On 17 March 2010, the ‘The Housing and Regeneration Act 2008 (Consequential Provisions) Order 2010′, SI 2010 NO. 866 was made. Also enacted on 17 March was The Housing and Regeneration Act 2008 (Commencement No. 7 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) Order 2010, SI 2010 NO. 862. Both come into force on 1 April 2010. The upshot is that the Tenant Services Authority becomes the regulator for both RSLs (as where) and Local Authority housing providers. But of course, there must be some changes of name. The TSA is, for the purposes of the Act at least, now the ‘Regulator of Social Housing’, but that is not all.

From 1 … Read the full post

Posted in Assured Shorthold tenancy, assured-tenancy, Housing law - All, Regulation and planning and secure-tenancy.

Housing Act Changes

By David Smith on 26/03/2010. 0 Comments

Yesterday (25 March) saw the publication on the OPSI website of the The Assured Tenancies (Amendment)(England) Order 2010 which amends Schedule 1 of the Housing Act 1988. Despite the long name this order performs the simple task of amending the maximum rent level permitted under the Act from £25,000 to £100,000.

Since, 1990 there had been a provision in the Housing Act 1988 stating that tenancies where the annual rent exceeds £25,000 shall not fall under the Act. This has led to some confusion and a number of iniquitous situations such as Assured tenants having their rent increased to over the threshold and immediately losing their security of tenure. … Read the full post

Posted in Assured Shorthold tenancy, assured-tenancy and FLW article. Tags: , .

Total confusion from Willesden

By Francis Davey on 26/03/2010. 3 Comments

Chasewood Park Residents Ltd v Kim [2010] EWHC 579 (Ch) is a rent/service charges case that should serve as a useful object lesson: first for parties to remind them of the importance of precise pleading and the use of evidence; and second, I hope, to first instance judges as to the perils of abandoning the normal formalities of a trial.

Mr and Mrs Kim are tenants under a long lease of Chasewood. Chasewood, a company set up by the then residents’ association of which the Kims were members, had acquired the interest of the previous landlord in 2007.

The claims

Chasewood made two claims: for arrears of ground rent (£50 … Read the full post

Posted in Uncategorized.
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