A Local Government Ombudsman Report on the actions of Maidstone Borough Council towards a homeless household makes for depressing reading. Both for the actions (and inactions) of the Council and for what it lays bare about the attitude to the homeless. Mr...
An air of unreality
Whilst winding my way home this evening, I chanced across a piece from Inside Housing in which is was reported that the Secretary of State, (Sajid Javid) had suggested that private freeholders should pick up the costs associated with fire-safety works and...
Premature forfeiture
A couple of quick notes on forfeiture of leases. Cheerupmate2 Ltd v Calce (2017) UKUT 377 (TCC) Forfeiture for ground rent arrears was not valid because: a) The wrong notice under s.166 Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 had been served. The notice was...
And the first shall not be last
London Borough of Haringey v Ahmed & Anor (2017) EWCA Civ 1861 This was Haringey's appeal of a High Court decision dismissing Haringey's claim for possession against Ms Ahmed (our report here). A factual precis is that in 1988 two tenancy agreements...
Incurred and incurred again
Under section 20B(1) Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, a service charge must be demanded of the tenant within 18 months of the relevant cost having been incurred by the landlord. But what happens when there is a head landlord demanding a charge from an...
Doing the same thing all over again
Walcott v Jones & Jones. Central London County Court, 15 November 2017 (Not on Bailii. A note on Lawtel) A county court appeal, on an issue that quite a few (though mostly not practitioners) have raised with me elsewhere. Does a periodic tenancy count as...
Accelerated but longer
HMCTS have released a new N5B claim form - the claim form for accelerated possession proceedings after service of a section 21 notice. The new form (finally?!) takes into account all of the post 1 October 2015 changes to the validity of a section 21 notice....
Time to contact your MP – Homes Fit For Habitation
As I may have reminded you once or twice already (and no doubt will again), the second reading of Karen Buck MP's Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation and Liability for Housing Standards) Bill is on 19 January 2018. This is a private members bill. It is very...
Universal Credit – here comes the homelessness
[Update 22 November 2018. In the Budget, the Govt has said that: a) the 7 days without any payment after UC claim will be scrapped b) For those with existing HB/LHA claims, there will be a two week overlap of existing HB/LHA payments after the UC claim date...
Closing the Gaps – the failure of the law on health & safety at home
Three months ago we wrote about a research project and report on housing and health and safety law being carried out for Shelter by legal academics from the Universities of Kent and Bristol. Now the report has been completed. The report is here and summary...
‘I’m not racist, I just won’t let to them’. Fergus Wilson meets the Equality Act
Fergus Wilson (for it is he) has managed to cap such highlights of a landlording career as being convicted of assaulting his letting agent, and evicting tenants (including single mothers or 'battered wives') because they were on housing benefit or likely to...
Deposits, Lies and Unlawful Evictions
Zeeshan v Mahmood, County Court at Manchester, 27 October 2017. (Our grateful thanks to Amy Tagoe of Stephensons Solicitors for the following note of this unlawful eviction case) The Claimants were the tenants of a property owned by the Defendant by way of...