Luton Borough Council v Altavon Luton Ltd & Ors (2019) EWHC 2415 (Admin) An appeal by way of case stated from a DJ’s decision at Luton Magistrates. The sole issue was whether the informations in the case had been laid within 6 months “from the time when the offence was committed, or the matter of complaint […]
Tag Archives: HMO
Banned leader
Look, look! A banning order! I don’t know if this is the first, it may well be. It is certainly the first decision I have seen. 43 Dudmaston, Telford, Shropshire TF3 2DF: BIR/00GF/HSH/2019/0001 This is the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) decision on applications by the Borough of Telford and Wrekin for a banning order […]
Property Guardians and HMOs – guilty
For some reason that, quite frankly, escapes me, assorted ‘powers that be’ have been non-committal on whether the Housing Act 2004 provisions on HMOs, licensing etc., and also the Part 1 enforcement of conditions and HHSRS, apply to properties occupied by property guardians. Local authorities, the London Mayor’s office and even MHCLG have all been […]
Who lives in a shared home like this?
Nottingham City Council v Parr & Anor [2018] UKSC 51 It is not every day you see the Supreme Court setting HMO licence conditions, but today is that day. This was Nottingham’s appeal from the Court of Appeal (and before that, the Upper Tribunal, and the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber)) on the issue of […]
Still more on 1 October – HMOs, storeys and rooms.
I thought we’d already covered this, but it turns out we haven’t fully. So, from 1 October 2018, the definition of a HMO subject to mandatory licensing changes, and separately there are new room size requirements. The Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (Prescribed Description)(England) Order 2018 removes the requirement that a licensable HMO must […]
Service not included.
The Queen on the application of Mr Peter Gaskin v LB Richmond Upon Thames (2018) EWHC 1996 (Admin) We didn’t report round 1 of this, probably because it was so completely inconclusive, but here is round 2 and a decision that will very significant for every Local Authority landlord/letting licensing scheme. The issue was the upfront […]
Forthcoming law (and informed consent)
The Tenant Fees Bill has had its second reading. The current Bill and its progress are here. There is a lot to digest in the Bill and I suspect there will be amendments on route. There are a whole new range of civil penalties, possible offences and restrictions on service of a section 21 forthcoming. Meanwhile, […]
Fewer floors for HMOs and minimum room sizes.
The Housing Minister, Alok Sharma, has confirmed that the Government will be going ahead with its proposals to change the conditions for a mandatory license for HMOs to any property with 5 or more occupants in 2 or more households, regardless of the layout of the property (previously the property had to be of three […]
On the naughty step – Physician heal thyself edition
If Nearly Legal has a mantra, it is this: “Everyone should have a housing lawyer with them at all times”. Or, at the bare minimum, a landlord and tenant lawyer. We had taken the reasonableness of this to be self-evident. However, it seems even this basic safety net might not be enough. Meet Lewis Perry, […]
Property Guardians & tangled webs (Camelot. Again)
There is a bit of a thing unfolding in Bristol involving property guardians, Bristol City Council and Camelot, one of the larger property guardian firms, upon whom we have had cause to remark upon several times in the past. Several former nursing homes, owned by the Council, were standing empty. The Council went with Camelot to […]
