1 June 2019 is quite a big day for the PRS. The Tenant Fees Act 2019 is now in force. The MHCLG Guidance for tenants, landlord and agents is here. Along with this, there is a new Form 6A, the mandatory form of section 21 notice, which must be used for all...
Possession and the PSED (again)
London and Quadrant HR v Patrick [2019] EWHC 1263 (QB) follows hard on the footsteps of Powell v Dacorum BC [2019] EWCA Civ 29 and Forward v Aldwyck Housing Group Ltd [2019] EWHC 24 (QB) (our note here), with Turner J making some fairly caustic observations...
Troubles with TLAs – HMOs and EPCs
Home Group Ltd v Henry. County Court at Newcastle. 21 May 2018 For post October 2015 assured shorthold tenancies section 21A means that no s.21 notice may be served when the landlord is in breach of a prescribed requirement. One of those prescribed...
Deposits – Better to give than to receive
Sebastiampillai v Parr. Central London County Court, 11 April 2019 (Our thanks to William Ford of Osbornes for note of this case) Does a change of landlord require provision of fresh prescribed information? How does this operate in view of section 215B...
Sectoral Regulation Without Section 21
One of the interesting potential side effects of removing section 21 from the Private Rented Sector is the damage it might do to landlord regulation. Over time s21 has become a backdoor regulatory tool to help ensure landlord compliance. If the notice is...
When an ‘or’ is an ‘and’ in Wales
Evans v Fleri (2019) EW Misc 12 (CC) A lesson in drafting from Wales. The Housing (Wales) Act 2014 provides at Section 7(1) The landlord of a dwelling subject to a domestic tenancy must not do any of the things described in subsection (2) in respect of the...
Prohibition Orders and ending tenancies
T v W. County Court at Central London. 16 April 2019 (Unreported) T was the owner of a property. The property was subject to a prohibition order served by LB Croydon. Nonetheless, T let a dwelling in the property to W. (T denied knowledge of the prohibition...
When is a licence a secure tenancy?
Mohamed v London Borough of Barnet (2019) EWHC 1012 (QB) Ms M was placed in temporary accommodation by LB Barnet following a homeless application. Barnet found her to be intentionally homeless but continued to provide accommodation under Children Act 1989....
The End of Section 21
I'd suggest sitting down before you read this. The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, James Brokenshire, has announced/is to announce depending on when you read this, that the Government is to abolish section 21. Honest....
Second possession orders and estoppel
Salix Homes v Mantato (2019) EWCA Civ 445 A court of appeal decision on a first instance application, where the main issue was whether, given an historic possession order, the landlord could bring fresh possession proceedings. Mr Mantato was Salix Homes...
Game of forfeits
Golding v Martin (2019) EWCA Civ 446 It seems to be a bit of a thing, buying a leasehold flat, then leaving it unoccupied, moving abroad and forgetting about rent and service charges. Semi-fortunately for the leaseholder in this second appeal, the outcome...
Forthcoming…
In case you needed reminding (and don't worry, there will be another reminder), the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 comes into force for new tenancies this coming Wednesday, 20 March. Our thumbnail guide is here and some thoughts on 'fitness'...