Government to extent compulsory licensing of rented properties

Law will require compulsory licences and minimum room sizes

The government has announced new measures to regulate the private rental sector in England, including changes to licensing for Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO).

These proposed new powers would give councils authority to do way with the storey rule to extend HMO licensing to include flats and 1-2 storey properties occupied by five or more people, from two or more households. Current licensing only applies to five people or over, in properties with three or more storeys. Around 160,000 houses will be affected by the plans, which will still need to gain parliamentary approval.

Accompanying this widening of HMO licensing, there will be restrictions on the minimum size for rooms used for sleeping. These are:

• For one adult: 6.51 square metres
• two adults: 10.22 square metres
• children of 10 years and younger: 4.64 square metres

Housing Minister Alok Sharma, used the announcement to call time on rogue landlords, telling them to “Shape up or ship out of the rental business”.

Cynics in the national press have seen this announcement as an attempt to coax ‘generation rent’ out of its love affair with Labour. The Times reported that in the 2017 general election, Labour support outstripped that of the Conservatives by 23%, amongst private renters (www.thetimes.co.uk/tories-woo-generation-rent-with-crackdown-on-rogue-landlords).

However, regular readers of this blog will remember that we first covered these changes to HMO licences in October 2016, when the proposals went to public consultation (www.purplefrogproperty.com/government-launches-new-consultation-houses-in-multiple-occupation/).

Further changes will see people with criminal convictions for offences such a burglary and stalking being barred from being landlords. They will also be added to a database of rogue landlords and letting agents, which will go live in April 2018. In the same month, banning orders for serious and prolific offenders will come into effect.

The consultation received 223 responses, with an overwhelming majority in favour of extending banning orders:

• 90% favour banning orders to be imposed for those guilty under schedule 15 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, such as violent and sexual offences
• 89% agreed that banning orders should be imposed for any offence under the 2006 Fraud Act
• 87% urged banning orders for those found guilty of the production, possession or supply of illegal drugs or poisons
• 84% backed banning orders for landlords and agents who were guilty of housing offences
• 63% supported banning orders for anyone guilty of immigration offences

(Source: www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/government-claims-huge-support-for-lettings-sector-banning-orders)

These supplement measures brought into law by the Housing and Planning Act 2016, which saw civil penalties of up to £30,000 and extensions of Rent Repayment Orders (RPOs) come into force in 2017. For more information on RPOs, see: www.purplefrogproperty.com/nottingham-city-council-enforces-civil-penalties/).

Further reading: www.gov.uk/rogue-landlords-put-on-notice-as-government-announces-tough-new-powers