Landlord and Tenent
Newham Council to rip off landlords and Tenants in new money generating scheme
All the conditions that Newham licensing plans to put under licence are already covered by the housing act / planning/ HMO’s licensing and mandatory legal requirements IE. Safety gas/electrical e.t.c. already in force
Newham’ plan will be a simple double jeopardy and is fundamentally wrong to simply apply a licence to fund a new requirement that will do no more than be a new source of income for the council, with the simplest of breaches that will require a new re-licence.
Newham plan is to enforce the statutory requirements/ regulations that they are supposed to be enforcing anyway!
Newham will be generating in excess of £17million and costing Newham’s private sector tenants twice that when the landlords apply the same fees. That’s around £1,000.00 per tenant per year.
I disagree that the private sector are the problem for "ASBO" Scum tenants, in my experience these generally live in the council/ housing association sector.
i agree that there are private landlords with scum tenants, i have had many Unfortunately they are not so easy to be rid of, eventually leaving the landlord to clear the mess up. And Under Newham’s plans this scum would again cost a re-licence at £500
i agree with licensing per say, but it should be a free service with penalties for breaches of the regulations/requirements already in place. Not a money making opportunity for the council to Rip off the private sector.
London borough of Newham’s plan is available online at http://www.newham.gov.uk/Housing/PrivateSectorHousing/HousesInMultipleOccupation/PropertyLicensingFAQs. They also have a survey at https://www.ors.org.uk/survey/newhamlicensing
But we believe the survey is just a way to give people a response portal that will play no part in anything, although we suggest you fill in the questionnaire we also ask you to complain to your own Member of Parliament and M.E.P. ASAP. Use twitter, Facebook and email or any other way you can think of.
DO NOT think that because you’re not a Newham private sector tenant or landlord this will not affect you, it will’ councils all over the United Kingdom are waiting to see what happens in Newham before they all jump and bring their own licence in.
Stop this now; complain to your member of parliament and to your member of the European union.
Copy and Pass this on to any landlords/ tenants /estate agents/and property managers .
details below
Borough-wide Property Licensing Proposal report for consultation |
Introduction
Newham has an important and growing private rented sector that provides affordable housing options for local people. We realise that the majority of landlords operate professionally, however the Council is concerned about increasing levels of anti-social behaviour associated with those rented properties that fail to meet satisfactory levels of tenancy and property management.
The London Borough of Newham wants to ensure that all private rented properties in the borough offers residents a choice of safe, quality and well managed accommodation. Our corporate vision aims to raise residents’ aspirations and provide support in the borough to achieve community resilience, deliver sustainable improvements to the local environment, and improve housing conditions and property management. We recognise to achieve this there is a need for a robust and coherent regulatory framework in which this market operates.
Newham has identified that problems in the private rented sector of poor property and tenancy management and associated anti-social behaviour are distributed across all wards in the borough and are not exclusive to a particular type of rented property. To tackle these issues we are proposing to introduce comprehensive borough wide licensing designations.
The Private Rented Sector (PRS) has had the highest level of growth over the last 5 years across all housing tenures in Newham and we have the highest proportion of housing in the PRS than any other
Whilst we have around 500 members within the voluntary London Landlord Accreditation Scheme and a small number who belong to a variety of the national landlord bodies there are estimated to be between 4,000-5000 private landlords who operate businesses in Newham. They range from accidental landlords and buy-to-let individuals with a single property to large portfolio housing management companies operating across the
Reforms and changes to the welfare system will impact significantly on the availability and quality of housing for residents in Newham. Access to the PRS is increasingly competitive as more households access the sector but demand is not adequately reflected in house-building or availability of properties for rent. The annual mainstream housing benefit subsidy to the PRS is in excess of £100 million per annum with the total PRS rental economy worth up to £400 million per annum in the borough.
There is a perception and a growing body of evidence that poorly-managed privately rented properties are having a negative effect on neighbourhoods – anti-social behaviour, nuisance neighbours and properties, and accumulations of refuse are just three issues which have been linked to the failure of private landlords to manage properties and tenancies in an effective way.
Vulnerable residents and those on low incomes have found that access to housing appropriate to their needs has been restricted by a lack of affordability. Private sector tenants tend to occupy properties for shorter periods of time than other residents, and as a consequence have less social investment in the neighbourhood they occupy. In Newham 12 month assured shorthold tenancies are the norm and 80% of PRS households have lived at their current address for less than 5 years.
High demand and affordability issues for those residing in the PRS has resulted in overcrowding, sub letting and illegal conversions with associated elevated levels of anti-social behaviour (ASB) and wider neighbourhood nuisance problems. Pilot studies in Little Ilford and else where have specifically revealed an increase in the conversion of family home into Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) and the construction and conversion of sheds and garages into residential lettings with no planning approval and with little thought and responsibility for the safety of the occupiers. To tackle this problem we have invested heavily in enforcement activity, in housing, environmental health, waste and planning. As a result we now carry out more enforcement activities than just about any other Council. However the standard enforcement regime can be complicated, time-consuming and expensive which makes it difficult for local authorities to act quickly against poorly managed and maintained private rented properties.
The Proposal
Following our consultation in 2011 the London Borough of Newham wants to implement borough wide licensing to ensure that the private rented sector provides decent quality accommodation and that anti-social behaviour is effectively managed. Evidence of poor property and tenancy management, and associated anti-social behaviour, is found in all types of private rented properties and in all wards of the borough. Therefore, Newham Council proposes to introduce a comprehensive, borough-wide licensing scheme with the clear objective to secure a consistent level of responsible property management among all private landlords. This, we believe, will address the negative issues we have identified blighting the sector and will support tenants in making positive, confident choices relating to their homes and replace negative “push” factors with the “pull” factors of choice and desirability.
To this end Newham is proposing to declare 2 licensing designations in the summer of 2012 that will become operative in January 2013 each encompassing the whole of the borough of Newham but capturing different property use types;
All private landlords that let properties within the borough which will be designated as an Additional or Selective licensing designation will require a licence from Newham for each of their rented properties. Newham will need to determine the proposed licence holder as a ‘fit and proper’ person in terms of their suitability to manage their properties before issuing a licence. The detailed fit and proper person guidance can be found in Appendix 5 of this report.
Whilst the designations are intended to last for five years, the Housing Act 2004 requires the Local Housing Authority to review the operation of the designations from time to time. Newham is proposing to review the designations at year 3 and at year 5 of their operation. If following a review, it is considered appropriate to do so, the designations may be revoked.
The full details of the legislative background for
Charges & Fees
Newham will set fees for licence applications taking into account all of their costs in administering and carrying out the licensing functions and in respect of management orders.
Newham is proposing a two-tiered fee structure which will provide a light touch for landlords who comply early by making licence applications before the licensing schemes become fully enforceable. The second fee tier is invoked after January 2013 where the Council has to follow up and chase applicants thus leading to more costly enforcement activity to ensure an application is made. In addition to the proposed fee structure it is proposed that there are additional sanctions and penalties. For instance, it is clear that someone who applies for a licence well before the commencement date of the licensing schemes, without having to be chased by the Council, minimises administration costs. Similarly, a licence holder who has passed a fit and proper person test as defined in legislation, but gives cause for concern because of previous poor management contraventions or convictions will merit closer monitoring, which increases the Council’s costs. Fees have been set to take account of this
The proposed fee and licence duration structure is set out below: | |
Applicants who apply before the commencement date of the licensing designations | £150 for a five year licence |
Applicants who apply after the commencement date of the licensing designations: | £500 for a five year licence |
Applicants who apply after the commencement date and receive two warning letters or landlords with previous management contraventions and are of concern | £500 for a one year licence |
| there is some conflicting details from £300 per 5 year licence per property to £500 per year per property + breach = renew at full charge |
Whilst this is an additional business expense for landlords it is not seen as excessive in relation to the rental market in Newham at the present time. It is anticipated that any overall effect would possibly be offset by a higher rental premiums and cost margins through improvements in management standards and lower tenant turnover rates in the medium term when the benefits of the licensing schemes are recognised.
The proposed charges and fees policy can be seen in Appendix 2 of this report.
Licence Conditions:
The Housing Act 2004 requires that every licence must include certain mandatory management conditions. Newham also has the power to include other discretionary conditions which we consider appropriate for tackling the negative issues we identify are blighting the PRS in the borough. Through these conditions Newham is able to influence a number of factors
· overcrowding or occupation of substandard living accommodation
· require landlords to take reasonable and practical steps to prevent or reduce anti-social behaviour (ASB) of the occupiers and their visitors to the property, and
· drive up the standard of property management.
The licence conditions will allow the use of early intervention both through education and enforcement to successfully manage and eradicate problems of nuisance and anti-social behaviour and poor property management in the PRS in Newham. They will ensure that tenancy management is the responsibility of the landlord but with support and advice from the licensing partnership with the Council effective interventions can then be delivered to allow low-level nuisance and ASB to be managed at early stages allowing enforcement resources to be delivered efficiently in a prioritised approach in the more severe cases.
Newham recognises that licensing conditions cannot require or intend to secure a change in the terms of the existing tenancies, or licence that a property is currently occupied under, and as such some of the conditions will only come into force at the commencement of a new tenancy after the point of an application being made.
The full list of the proposed discretionary licence conditions that Newham are considering applying to licences can be found in appendix 3 and 4 of this report.
Why
Newham considers the use of borough wide licensing due to the high proportion and increasing level of privately rented accommodation in the borough and more significantly, the degree of anti social behaviour recorded and the link between anti social behaviour and poor property management and rented accommodation. The table below shows evidence of interventions by Newham Council over the period January 2009 – January 2011 relating to ASB issues from property nuisance, statutory nuisance, illegal evictions and harassment, environmental nuisance, littering, vehicle nuisance, illegal conversions, vacant properties and property management complaints across the various tenure types in the borough. This clearly shows that the problems of ASB and poor property management in Newham has the highest levels of incidents in the PRS but the problem does exist to a lesser extent in other tenure types.
% of properties with ASB reports | |
Homes in Multiple Occupation | 54.05% |
Private rented sector | 27.50% |
LBN Properties (tenanted & leasehold) | 14.31% |
Owner Occupier Properties | 12.04% |
Registered Social Landlords | - |
In summary Newham identifies that;
The table below shows evidence of complaints reported to Newham Council over the period January 2009 – January 2011 relating to issues from property nuisance, statutory nuisance, illegal evictions and harassment, environmental nuisance, littering, vehicle nuisance, illegal conversions, vacant properties and property management complaints. This data matching exercise over the period of evidence capture shows that ASB associated to the PRS is distributed in all wards across the whole borough.
On average 27% of the Private Rented Sector in Newham has required an ASB intervention from a Council service in these two years, this represents an intervention for 1 in 4 properties. The distribution of the problem across the borough supports Newham’s approach in proposing a borough wide selective licensing designation.
Private Rented Sector (PRS) Properties & ASB: | ||||
Newham Wards & Quadrants | Total PRS properties | Number of PRS with ASB | % PRS with ASB | Quadrant proportion of PRS with ASB |
West Quadrant: | ||||
Forest Gate North | 1322 | 384 | 29.05% | 28.12% |
Forest Gate South | 1655 | 479 | 28.94% | |
1371 | 348 | 25.38% | ||
West Ham | 959 | 279 | 29.09% | |
Central Quadrant: | ||||
Boleyn | 1286 | 328 | 25.51% | 26.16% |
1297 | 343 | 26.45% | ||
1401 | 383 | 27.34% | ||
Plaistow North | 1089 | 275 | 25.25% | |
Plaistow South | 1311 | 344 | 26.24% | |
East Quadrant: | ||||
East Ham Central | 1550 | 417 | 26.90% | 28.26% |
East Ham North | 1166 | 322 | 27.62% | |
East Ham South | 1285 | 351 | 27.32% | |
Little Ilford | 1731 | 553 | 31.95% | |
1485 | 442 | 29.76% | ||
Wall End | 1446 | 376 | 26.00% | |
South Quadrant: | ||||
Beckton | 1116 | 294 | 26.34% | 26.63% |
1122 | 307 | 27.36% | ||
1143 | 312 | 27.30% | ||
Custom House | 970 | 281 | 28.97% | |
Royal Docks | 634 | 147 | 23.19% | |
[Table 1]
Table 1: Illustrates Anti-social behaviour associated with Private rented properties (PRS) data over a 2 year period (2009-2011) in Newham by quadrant and ward
Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs)
On average 55% of known HMOs in Newham has required a management or ASB intervention from a Council service over a relatively short period of time (Jan 2009 to 2011). The distribution of the problem across the borough supports Newham’s approach in proposing a borough wide additional licensing designation as although there are wards with higher levels of HMOs and associated problems the spread of evidence covers all wards in the borough to a significant level.
Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) Properties & ASB: | ||||
Newham Wards & Quadrants | Total HMO properties | Number of HMOs with ASB | % HMOs with ASB | Quadrant proportion of HMOs with ASB |
West Quadrant: | ||||
Forest Gate North | 152 | 77 | 50.66% | 49.40% |
Forest Gate South | 333 | 148 | 44.44% | |
112 | 53 | 47.32% | ||
West Ham | 58 | 32 | 55.17% | |
Central Quadrant: | ||||
Boleyn | 88 | 57 | 64.77% | 56.96% |
145 | 70 | 48.28% | ||
94 | 73 | 77.66% | ||
Plaistow North | 112 | 47 | 41.96% | |
Plaistow South | 71 | 37 | 52.11% | |
East Quadrant: | ||||
East Ham Central | 87 | 58 | 66.67% | 60.25% |
East Ham North | 94 | 65 | 69.15% | |
East Ham South | 27 | 17 | 62.96% | |
Little Ilford | 292 | 125 | 42.81% | |
110 | 70 | 63.64% | ||
Wall End | 48 | 27 | 56.25% | |
South Quadrant: | ||||
Beckton | 56 | 16 | 28.57% | 52.13% |
98 | 63 | 64.29% | ||
46 | 26 | 56.52% | ||
Custom House | 50 | 21 | 42.00% | |
Royal Docks | 35 | 16 | 45.71% | |
[Table 2]
Table 2: Illustrates Anti-social behaviour associated with Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) data over a 2 year period (2009-2011) in Newham by quadrant and ward.
Newham recognises that tackling the problems identified in areas of the PRS should not be a single sided regulatory approach but should also be supported by interventions from the sector directly. Landlords already have tools to tackle ASB in the accommodation they let and that they should be used but due to the extent of the problems we are still identifying across the borough Newham is not confident of the steps being taken by landlords to tackle problems within the sector.
The additional and selective licensing schemes are long term strategies and will not provide instant solutions but will compliment and support our vision to drive up the quality of the private rented sector in the borough. The licensing proposals will put into practice and contribute towards many elements found in the Mayors promises, the Council’s corporate strategies and Housing Strategy to deliver improvements to neighbourhoods and build on community resilience.
What are the Benefits of having a
In the Council’s view, the following benefits are expected;
How Licensing Fits with Newham’s Plans & Strategies
Corporate Plan
‘We will continue to focus on ensuring private sector housing, in particularly private rented and houses of multiple occupation are improved’.
Housing strategy
‘There will be a greater emphasis on area-based enforcement of standards in private sector housing and on environmental standards more widely.
Newham will continue to work with the private sector to meet our objective of reducing homelessness, and to enforce housing standards. It is also important that we get more value for money from public funds.
Improving the private rented sector will help create quality neighbourhoods offering an attractive housing option to prospective tenants. A good quality neighbourhood must have clean streets and environment, including tidy front gardens and sides of buildings without graffiti or dumping’.
Sustainable Communities Strategy
‘We want to improve quality across all tenures, by working with partners, landlords and other agencies to improve the existing stock in the private rented and owner-occupied sectors. Poor quality or overcrowded housing can also impact on peoples’ health and their personal development, particularly for younger people and families’.
Homelessness strategy
‘We recognise that our private rented sector has some of the worst condition stock in the country and is home to some of the most vulnerable households in the borough.
It has long been established that the bulk of homelessness approaches are generated from our private rented sector either directly or indirectly. This is generally due to poor conditions and a lack of security of tenure’ .
Summary
Newham has a range of powers and tools available to us to help tackle ASB or nuisance and poor property management caused by private tenants or their visitors and unprofessional landlords. Landlords and managing agents also have the power to manage tenants if their behaviour is anti social and it is occurring within the curtilage of the rented property.
Newham works in partnership with the police, fire service, emergency planning and the UK Border Agency on joint enforcement projects to deliver improvements in the PRS and uses intelligence led interventions to identify and tackle some of the more serious ASB and crime problems that we have in the borough. But it is clear that a pepper pot approach to tackling these wider issues only deals with a small proportion of the problems. It is not the most effective course of action as the problems associated with the PRS are dispersed across all wards in the borough and remain largely unregulated whilst still impacting on a number of services in the Council and external partners.
Newham believes that licensing will deliver a consistent and robust framework that will allow us to work with the professional landlords operating in the sector whilst ensuring that resources can be more effectively and efficiently directed at those that continue to permit ASB and allow poor tenancy and property management to blight the profession.
How to Respond to this Consultation:
Appendices
Appendix 1 - Legal context
1.1 Selective licensing
Section 80 of the Housing Act 2004 gives powers to Local Housing Authorities (LHA’s) to designate areas, or the whole of the area within their district, as subject to selective licensing in respect of privately rented accommodation, provided certain conditions are met. The power does not permit LHAs to require licensing of houses that are shared Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO’s) or are larger HMO’s that fall under the mandatory licensing requirements of section 55 of the Housing Act 2004. Further exemptions include those that have been exempted under the Selective
A selective licensing designation may be made if the area to which it relates satisfies one or both of the following conditions:
· The area is one experiencing low housing demand (or is likely to become such an area) and the LHA is satisfied that making a designation will, when combined with other measures taken by the LHA, or by the LHA in conjunction with others, would contribute to an improvement in the social or economic conditions in the area.
· The area is experiencing a significant and persistent problem caused by anti-social behaviour and that some or all private sector landlords in the area are not taking appropriate action to combat the problem that it would be appropriate for them to take; and the making of a designation, when combined with other measures taken by the LHA, or by the LHA in conjunction with others, will lead to a reduction in, or elimination of, the problem.
There is no commonly agreed definition of anti social behaviour but it can include a number of minor incidents, such as relating to pets and occasional noise, to more serious incidents of neighbour conflict, serious persistent noise and criminal activity that can affect an individual, a group of people or the wider community.
A legal definition is contained in Section1 (1) of The Crime and Disorder Act
1998 which states:
“Acting in an anti-social manner, that is to say, in a manner that caused or was likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to one or more persons not of the same household as himself”.
Anti social behaviour can cover, but is not restricted to –
· Noise
· Verbal abuse/harassment/intimidation/threatening behaviour
· Hate related incidents (based on race, sexual orientation, gender, disability, religion, age etc.
· Vandalism and damage to property
· Pets and animal nuisance
· Nuisance from vehicles
· Drugs/substance misuse/drug dealing
· Alcohol related
· Domestic violence//abuse
· Physical violence/abuse
· Litter/rubbish/fly-tipping
· Garden nuisance
· Misuse of communal areas/public spaces or loitering
· Prostitution/sexual acts/kerb crawling
· Other criminal behaviour/crime
However, as the legal provisions for Selective
Section 57 (5) defines anti social behaviour as:
“Conduct on the part of occupiers of, or visitors to, residential premises-
(a) which causes or is likely to cause a nuisance or annoyance to persons residing, visiting or otherwise engaged in lawful activities in the vicinity of such premises, or
(b) which involves or is likely to involve the use of such premises for illegal purposes .”
Section 80 (6) (a) of the Act gives Newham the power to make a Selective
Crime: tenants not respecting the property in which they live and engaging in vandalism, criminal damage, burglary, robbery/theft and car crime.
Nuisance neighbours: intimidation and harassment; noise, rowdy and nuisance behaviour; animal related problems; vehicle related nuisance. Tenants engaged in begging; anti-social drinking; street prostitution and kerb-crawling; street drugs market within the curtilage of the property.
Environmental crime: tenants engaged in graffiti and fly-posting; fly-tipping; litter and waste; nuisance vehicles; drugs paraphernalia; fireworks misuse in and around the curtilage for their property.
1.2 Additional
Section 56 (2) of the Act states that in making a designation for additional licensing Newham should be able to show that we consider a significant proportion of the HMOs in the area are being managed sufficiently ineffectively as to give rise, or to be likely to give rise, to one or more particular problems either for those occupying the HMOs or for members of the public.
Examples of properties being managed sufficiently ineffectively, and as a result having a detrimental affect on a local area, include;
· Those whose external condition and curtilage (including yards and gardens) adversely impact upon the general character and amenity of the area in which they are located.
· Those whose internal condition, such as poor amenities, overcrowding etc, adversely impact upon the health, safety and welfare of the occupiers and the landlords of these properties are failing to take appropriate steps to address the issues.
· Those where there is a significant and persistent problem of anti social behaviour affecting other residents and/or the local community and the landlords of the HMOs are not taking reasonable and lawful steps to eliminate or reduce the problems.
· Those where the lack of management or poor management skills or practices are otherwise adversely impacting upon the welfare, health or safety of residents and/or impacting upon the wider community.
The above examples are not exhaustive, nor are the categories mutually exclusive and Newham has incorporated a variety of evidence sources to investigate whether an additional licensing designation is an appropriate tool to be used in Newham. We recognise that an area may suffer from a mixture of the problems identified and individual properties may suffer from a combination of them.
Appendix 2 - Fees & Charges
2.1 These fees are applicable on first application for a rented property licence. Licences will last for 5 years unless the London Borough of Newham has concern about the management, use, condition and occupation of the property.
The proposed fee and licence duration structure is set out below: | |
Applicants who apply before the commencement date of the licensing designations | £150 for a five year licence |
Applicants who apply after the commencement date of the licensing designations: | £500 for a five year licence |
Applicants who apply after the commencement date and receive two warning letters or landlords with previous management contraventions and are of concern | £500 for a one year licence |
2.2 Where the London Borough of Newham has had to take enforcement action, the licence may be revoked or varied by LBN and require a new licence to be applied for.
Proposed Licence Variation | Variation Application Fee |
Change of address details of any existing licence holder, manager, owner, mortgagor, freeholde r, leaseholder etc | No fee |
Change of mortgagor, owner, freeholder, and leaseholder (unless they are also the licence holder or manager) | No fee |
Reduction in the number of maximum occupiers and/or households for licensing purposes | No fee |
Variation of licence instigated by the council | No fee |
Change of licence holder | New application fee |
Change of manager (unless they are also the licence holder) | No fee |
Increase in the number of maximum occupiers and/or households for licensing purposes, through increasing the number of habitable rooms, change in room sizes, and/or amenity provision | No fee |
2.3 These fees are applicable as appropriate in relation to licensing applications, or where properties are licensed.
Action | Applicable Fee |
Revocation of licence | No fee |
Application to licence following revocation of licence | Application fee |
Application refused by the council | Application fee with no refund |
Application withdrawn by the applicant | Application fee with no refund |
Application made in error | No fee, and a refund will be made |
Properties that cease to be licensable during the licensing process | Application fee with no refund |
Application received following the expiry of a Temporary Exemption Notice (TEN) made by the council | No fee |
Enforcement action under Part 1 of the Housing Act 2004 relating to a licensed property | There is a separate charge for action, currently £475 |
Appendix 3 - Conditions
3.1 Permitted Occupation
A new resident must not be permitted to occupy the house or any part of the house if that occupation:
· exceeds the maximum permitted number of persons for the house as detailed in the schedule of permitted occupation below
· exceeds the maximum permitted number of households for the house
· exceeds the maximum permitted number of persons for any letting as detailed in the schedule of permitted occupation below
A new resident means a person who was not an occupier of the house and/or the specific room at the date of the issue of the licence
Letting | Location | Area (Sq m) | Max Permitted Number per Room |
Room 1 | First Floor Front | - | - |
Room 2 | First Floor Rear | - | - |
Total Maximum Permitted Number of Person for the House | - |
Total Maximum Permitted Number of Households | - |
Comments |
Occupation is determined at point of application by room sizes, facilities and amenities |
3.2 Tenancy management
The licence holder shall supply the occupiers of the property with a written statement of the terms on which they occupy the property and details of the arrangements in place to deal with repair issues and emergency issues. Copies of the written statement of terms must be provided to the Council for inspection within 7 days upon demand.
The licence holder shall obtain references from persons who wish to occupy a letting in the property before entering into any tenancy, licence or other agreement with them to occupy the accommodation. No new occupiers shall be allowed to occupy the accommodation if they are unable to provide a reference.
The licence holder must retain all references obtained for occupiers for the duration of this license and provide copies to the council within 28 days on demand.
The licence holder shall protect any deposit taken under an assured short-hold tenancy by placing it in a statutory tenancy deposit scheme. The tenant must be given the prescribed information about the scheme being used at the time the deposit is taken. This information must be provided to the Council within 28 days on demand.
The licence holder must provide to the Council details in writing of the tenancy management arrangements that have been, or are to be, made to prevent or reduce anti-social behaviour by persons occupying or visiting the property. Copies of these must be provided to the Council within 28 days on demand.
The following arrangements shall be implemented to fulfil the requirements of this condition:
The licence holder shall ensure that inspections of the property are carried out at least every three months to identify any problems relating to the condition and management of the property. The records of such inspections shall be kept for the duration of this license. Copies of these must be provided to the Council within 28 days on demand.
The licence holder shall effectively address problems of antisocial behaviour resulting from the conduct on the part of occupiers of, or visitors to the premises by complying with the requirements of paragraphs (a) to (i) below:
(a) The Licence holder must not ignore or fail to take action, if he has received complaints of anti social behaviour (ASB) that concern the visitors to or occupiers of the premises or result from their actions.
(b) Any letters, relating to antisocial behaviour, sent or received by the licence holder, or agent of the licence holder, must be kept for 3 years by the licence holder.
(c) The licence holder must ensure that written notes are kept of any meetings or telephone conversations or investigations regarding antisocial behaviour for 3 years.
(d) If a complaint is received, or antisocial behaviour is discovered, the licence holder must contact the tenant within 14 days. The tenant must be informed of the allegations of the antisocial behaviour in writing and of the consequences of its continuation.
(e) The licence holder shall from the date of receipt of the complaint of antisocial behaviour, monitor any allegations of antisocial behaviour and whether it is continuing.
(f) Where the antisocial behaviour is continuing after 28 days from receipt of the compliant, the licence holder, or his agent must within 7 days visit the premises and the tenant with a warning letter advising them of the possibility of eviction.
(g) Where the licence holder or his agent has reason to believe that the antisocial behaviour involves criminal activity the licence holder shall ensure that the appropriate authorities are informed.
(h) If after 14 days of giving a warning letter the tenant has taken no steps to address the antisocial behaviour and the ASB is continuing the licence holder shall take formal steps under the written statement of terms for occupation, e.g. the tenancy agreement or licence and which shall include promptly taking any legal proceedings to address the anti-social behaviour
(i) Where the licence holder is specifically invited they shall attend any case conferences or multiagency meetings arranged by the Council or police.
Any correspondence, letters and records referred to in condition 2.9 above must be provided to the Council within 28 days on demand.
3.3 Property Management
The licence holder shall ensure that all gas installations and appliances are in a safe condition at all times. The licence holder have available a current valid gas safety certificate obtained within the last 12 months.. This must be provided to the Council within 28 days on demand.
The licence holder shall ensure that all electrical appliances provided in the property are in a safe condition. The licence holder must submit to the council, for their inspection, an electrical appliance test report in respect of all electrical appliances that are supplied by the landlord to the Council within 28 days on demand.
No refuse shall be kept in the front or rear garden other than in an approved storage container for that purpose.
Where the licence holder becomes aware of a pest problem or infestation at the property he shall take steps to ensure that a treatment program is carried out to eradicate the pest infestation. Records shall be kept of such treatment programs and these must be provided to the Council within 28 days on demand.
The licence holder shall install and maintain in good working order appropriate smoke alarms as approved by the fire service in the property and shall submit to the council, upon request, a declaration by him as to the condition and positioning of such alarms.
The licence holder shall ensure that any fire fighting equipment and fire alarms are maintained in good working order . The licence holder must submit to the council, for their inspection, a copy of all periodical inspection report/test certificates for any automatic fire alarm system, emergency lighting and fire fighting equipment provided in the property. These must be provided to the Council within 28 days on demand.
The licence holder shall ensure that furniture made available in the property is in a safe condition. All upholstered furniture and covers and fillings of cushions and pillows should comply with current fire safety legislation. A declaration as to the safety of such furniture must be provided to the Council within 28 days on demand. 3.4 Documents to be displayed
The licence holder shall display a copy of the licence to which these conditions apply in the common parts of the property.
The licence holder shall display a notice with the name, address and emergency contact number of the licence holder or managing agent in the common parts of the property.
The licence holder shall display a copy of the current gas safety certificate in the common parts of the property.
The licence holder shall display an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) for all accommodation for which EPCs are applicable at the end of the existing tenancy at the time the licence was dated and issued. This must be provided to the Council within 28 days on demand.
3.5 General
The licence holder must advise the Council’s Property
The licence holder must arrange for access to be granted at any reasonable time and must not obstruct council officers carrying out their statutory duties including the surveying of the property to ensure compliance with licence conditions and any relevant legislation.
The licence holder shall if required by written notice provide the council with following particulars as may be specified in the notice with respect to the occupancy of the house:
· The names and numbers of individuals/households accommodated specifying the rooms they occupy within the property.
· number of individuals in each household
The particulars shall be provided to the Council within 28 days on demand.
The licence holder shall inform the council of any change in ownership or management of the house.
The licence holder shall ensure that whilst any alteration or construction works are in progress, the work is carried out to ensure the safety to all persons occupying or visiting the premises..
The licence holder shall ensure that on completion of any works, the property shall be left in a clean tidy condition and free from builders' debris.
For planning and building regulation queries please refer to the planning pages on the Council's website telephone or contact
· Development Control, Town Hall Annexe, East Ham,
· Telephone: 020 8430 2000
Failure to comply with any licence condition may result in proceedings including fines up to £5,000 and loss of the licence.
The property licence and conditions do not imply or grant by inference or otherwise any approval or permission for any other purposes including those for Building Control, Development Control and under The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. Conversely compliance with any of those requirements does not confer or imply compliance with the requirements of the Housing Act 2004 including property licensing.
Any requirements relating to the licence and conditions are without prejudice to assessments and appropriate actions including enforcement actions under the Housing Act 2004. This includes actions to deal with category 1 and category 2 hazards as may be identified under Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) and does not preclude such action.
Appendix 4 - Accommodation Standards
4.1 Maximum number of Occupiers
Maximum number of occupiers per room based on floor space in single household dwellings | |
6.5 to 10.2 sq m (70 to 110 sq m) | 1 person (of any age) |
10.2 sq m or more (110 sq ft or more) | 2 persons* |
*(see tables above for permitt
Maximum number of occupiers per room based on floor space in Houses in Multiple Occupation with shared kitchen facilities in a separate room | |
8.5 sq m or more (6.5 sqm will be allowed as a minimum providing there is sufficient communal space available in the property)*. | 1 Person (1 household) (of any age) |
13 sq m or more (10.2 sqm will be allowed as a minimum providing there is sufficient communal space available in the property)*. | 2 Persons (1 household) |
Maximum number of occupiers per room based on floor space in Houses in Multiple Occupation with exclusive kitchen facilities within the room and self contained studio bedsits/flats with kitchen facilities within the room | |
13 sq m or more | 1 Person (1 household) (of any age) |
18 sq m or more | 2 Persons (1 household)(see tables above for permitted occupation) |
Appendix 5 - Fit & Proper
1. Why is there a test?
1.1. In deciding to grant a licence the Council must be satisfied that the proposed licence holder ‘…is a fit and proper person to be the licence holder…’ and that ‘the proposed manager of the house is a fit and proper person to be the manager of the house…’
1.2. The licence may be revoked where the Council no longer considers that the licence holder is a fit and proper person to be the licence holder… and where the Council no longer considers that the management of the house is being carried on by persons who are not in each case fit and proper persons to be involved in its management.
1.3. This requirement is to ensure that those responsible for operating the licence and managing the property are of sufficient integrity and good character to be involved in the management of the particular residential property and as such they do not pose a risk to the welfare or safety of persons occupying the property.
2. ‘Involved in the management’
2.1. Under section 66(6) of the Housing Act 2004 the Council must consider whether:
(a) A person involved in the management of the house has a sufficient level of competence,
(b) any other person involved is fit and proper, and
(c) management structures and funding arrangements are suitable.
2.2. This means the Council must consider licence holders, managers and others, including key-holders. This will not extend to, for example, all members of staff at a managing agent who have limited access to a property, but it will be necessary to find out how repairs to the property are carried out. The emphasis is on managing agents to ensure that their staff are fit and proper.
2.3. The licence holder and the manager can be two different people. Where this is the case, a decision must be made for each individual about whether they are a fit and proper person. When making this decision, the Council will take into account their fitness to hold the licence or to manage the property.
2.4. When making the decision, the Council must ask the following:
§ What are the management arrangements?
§ Who is involved in the management?
§ What precautions have been taken to ensure those involved in the management are fit and proper?
2.5. In the case of a key-holder, the Council must consider their involvement in the management of the house and whether they have a sufficient level of competence to be so involved.
3. What will the Council look at?
3.1. When considering whether a person is ‘fit and proper’ the Council must have regard (among other things) to whether the applicant has:
§ any previous convictions involving fraud or other dishonesty or violence or drugs and sexual offences,
§ practised unlawful discrimination on the grounds of sex, colour, race, ethnic or national origins or disability in, or in connection with the carrying out of any business,
§ contravened any provision of housing or landlord and tenant law,
§ acted otherwise than in accordance with an approved code of practice,
§ or to anything else which is relevant.
3.2. When deciding, the following should be considered:
§ Nature of convictions – convictions relating to fraud, running unlicensed HMOs or violence may well affect someone’s status as fit and proper. A conviction based on the existence of a category 1 hazard would give some indication of an applicant’s approach to health and safety in a property. The relevance of each conviction must be considered in relation to the management of the HMO.
§ Weight of convictions.
§ Nature of contraventions – specifically officers’ views on these. An administrative or technical breach of the Management Regulations, for example an isolated incident of not displaying the Code of Good Management Practice, may not in an officer’s opinion affect a person’s status as fit and proper.
3.3. A conviction is the verdict that results when a court of law finds a defendant guilty of a crime.
3.4. A contravention is to act contrary to a rule, order, regulation or law, or of not fulfilling an obligation, promise or agreement.
3.5. Under section 64 of the Act, both the proposed licence holder and the proposed manager must be fit and proper persons.
3.6. This policy is not intended to be exhaustive and the Council is entitled to take into account other factors in so far as they are relevant to the fitness and proprietary of the relevant person. In other words, the misconduct has to be relevant to the person’s fitness to hold a licence and/or manage the particular residential building, and in regard to criminal offences the Council must only have regard to unspent convictions.
3.7. The Council would not normally consider a landlord with a criminal record for unlawful evictions and harassment of tenants to be fit and proper person. In contrast, evidence of minor contraventions of housing or landlord and tenant law need not result in an adverse decision. Evidence of any specified misconduct does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that the person is not a fit and proper person.
3.8. Discretion may be appropriate if an offence is isolated and there are mitigating circumstances. Multiple offences or a series of offences over a period of time are likely to give greater cause for concern and may demonstrate a pattern of inappropriate behaviour which should be taken into account. A particularly serious view may be taken where the victim of any offence is vulnerable.
3.9. Each case must be considered on its own merits.
3.10. The Council will adopt a common sense approach, exercising its discretion reasonably and proportionately, taking into account relevant considerations and disregarding irrelevant considerations.
3.11. Where a potential licensee or a manager has a relevant unspent conviction or contravention, in deciding whether they are fit and proper the Council will take into account the following factors:
§ the relevance of the conviction/contravention in relation to the person’s character and integrity to manage an HMO
§ the severity of the conviction/contravention in terms of impact, upon residents and the wider community
§ whether the person is accredited or has been trained to manage an HMO
§ any other relevant matter
§ any mitigating circumstances
§ whether the proposed manager is fit and proper
§ whether the proposed licence holder fit and proper
§ whether there are satisfactory management arrangements
§ ho is involved in the management
§ what precautions have been taken to ensure those involved in the management are fit and proper
3.12. These points should form the basis of the decision made. Any review or report produced should refer to each point.
4. Consideration of ‘persons associated or formerly associated’ with the proposed licence holder or manager
4.1. If there is evidence that a person associated, or formally associated, with the person proposed to be the licence holder or manager of the property, has committed any wrongdoings, that evidence may be taken into account in determining the proposed licence holder’s or manager’s fitness (even if that person has himself or herself an unblemished record). The purpose of this requirement is to ensure that only fit and proper persons hold licences or are in any way involved in the management of licensed properties. It would not be appropriate for a licence to be granted to someone, or for someone to be the manager of a property, if that person was merely acting as a ‘front’ for someone else who, if he or she were not unfit, would be entitled to be the manager or licence holder.
4.2. Examples:
4.2.1. A husband and wife, where the husband is the landlord (or indeed both he and his partner are joint landlords), but only the wife has applied for the licence. If there is evidence that the husband has committed wrongdoings and those wrongdoings are relevant to the wife’s management of the property or licence, then the Council may refuse to grant her a licence.
4.2.2. A landlord with an unsatisfactory record has nominated a ’manager’ who has a clean record, but who has previously acted for the landlord whist wrongdoings were committed. In this case, the Council may consider the managing agent by association to be unfit too.
4.2.3. The director of company A has been prosecuted previously, and then starts to work for another managing agent B as a sole trader, employee or director. The new company could be found not to be fit and proper to manage or be a licence holder by association.
4.3. A refusal to grant a licence in these circumstances will normally only be made if:
§ there is actual evidence of misconduct by the associated person and
§ the associate’s fitness is directly relevant to the applicant or proposed licence holder’s fitness to manage the property or hold the licence.
4.4. If someone is found not to be fit and proper this will normally remain the case for 5 years. If a licence application is submitted within that period the Council will reconsider a person’s fit and proper status on the merits of that application. This policy would be used to make that decision and it would be up to the applicant to provide evidence which could demonstrate why they may be a fit and proper person at that point.
5. Offences / evidence of contraventions
5.1. The following examples afford a general guide to the action which might be taken where convictions and cautions are disclosed or where offending behaviour is proved to the satisfaction of the Council.
5.2. Have they contravened housing law or landlord and tenant law?
5.2.1. Careful consideration should be given to an application where a person making a fit and proper person declaration has contravened housing law or landlord and tenant law, for example points awarded under the HMO licensing points system (see below), evidence of poor management, previous history, prosecutions, simple cautions. In particular, consideration should be given to contraventions under:
§ The Public Health Acts of 1936 and 1961
§ The Building Act 1984
§ The Environmental Protection Act 1990
§ The Town and Country Planning Act 1990
§ The Prevention of Damage by Pests Act 1949
§ The Protection from Eviction Act 1977
§ The Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Acts of 1982 and 1976
§ The Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996
§ The Local Government and Housing Act 1989
§ The Housing Act 2004
5.2.2. Contravention of one of the above Acts could result in informal action where a person is asked to complete works, formal action where a legal notice is served, remedial action or work in default, or a prosecution. The nature of the contravention, its relevance to the management of a rented house and the potential harm caused must all be considered. Also to be considered are the circumstances of the contravention, the number of contraventions and evidence to show good character since the date of the contravention. Each case will be considered on its own merit.
5.3. Have they committed any offences involving fraud?
5.3.1. Licence holders and anyone else who is involved in the management of a licensable HMO are in a position of trust. The nature of their role means they will enter the property on occasion and will be engaged in financial dealings with their tenants, so there may be opportunities for fraud.
5.3.2. In particular an application will normally be refused where the person has a conviction for an offence where the victim has been deprived of money, property or other benefit by misrepresentation/deception on the part of the offender including:
§ Theft
§ Burglary
§ Fraud
§ Benefit fraud (particularly where tenants are on Housing Benefit)
§ Conspiracy to defraud
§ Obtaining money or property by deception
5.3.3. Weight should be given to the circumstances of the offence and any evidence showing good character since the date of conviction. Each case will be considered on its own merit.
5.4. Have they committed any offences involving violence?
5.4.1. Fit and proper person status will normally be refused where the person making a fit and proper person declaration has a conviction for the offence of:
§ Murder
§ Manslaughter
§ Arson
§ Malicious wounding or grievous bodily harm
§ Grievous bodily harm with intent
§ Actual bodily harm
§ Grievous bodily harm
§ Robbery
§ Racially aggravated criminal damage
§ Common assault
§ Common assault which is racially aggravated
§ Assault occasioning actual bodily harm
§ Possession of an offensive weapon
§ Possession of a firearm
5.2.2 Weight will be given to the circumstances of the offence and any evidence showing good character since the date of conviction. Each case will be considered on its own merit.
5.5. Have they committed any offences involving drugs?
5.5.1. Careful consideration should be given to an application where a person making a fit and proper person declaration has committed a drug related offence. Consideration should be given to the nature of the offence and what bearing it could have on the management of a licensable HMO. The nature, quantity and class of drugs will be taken into account. Each case will be considered on its own merit.
5.6. Have they committed any offences involving sexual offences?
5.6.1. As licence holders, managers and anyone else who is involved in the management of a licensable HMO will on occasion visit tenants in their homes, convictions for sexual offences will be treated particularly seriously.
5.6.2. Fit and proper person status will normally be refused where a person making a fit and proper person declaration has a current conviction for an offence contained in schedule 3 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. Each case will be considered on its own merit.
5.7. Have they practiced unlawful discrimination?
5.7.1. Careful consideration should be given to an application where a person making a fit and proper person declaration has practiced unlawful discrimination. Unlawful discrimination can include findings of an Industrial Tribunal on unlawful employment practice such as discrimination under the Disability Discrimination Act. Consideration should be given to the nature of the unlawful discrimination and what bearing it could have on the management of a licensable HMO. Each case will be considered on its own merit.
All the conditions that Newham licensing plans to put under licence are already covered by the housing act / planning/ HMO’s licensing and mandatory legal requirements IE. Safety gas/electrical e.t.c. already in force
Newham’ plan will be a simple double jeopardy and is fundamentally wrong to simply apply a licence to fund a new requirement that will do no more than be a new source of income for the council, with the simplest of breaches that will require a new re-licence.
Newham plan is to enforce the statutory requirements/ regulations that they are supposed to be enforcing anyway!
Newham will be generating in excess of £17million and costing Newham’s private sector tenants twice that when the landlords apply the same fees. That’s around £1,000.00 per tenant per year.
I disagree that the private sector are the problem for "ASBO" Scum tenants, in my experience these generally live in the council/ housing association sector.
i agree that there are private landlords with scum tenants, i have had many Unfortunately they are not so easy to be rid of, eventually leaving the landlord to clear the mess up. And Under Newham’s plans this scum would again cost a re-licence at £500
i agree with licensing per say, but it should be a free service with penalties for breaches of the regulations/requirements already in place. Not a money making opportunity for the council to Rip off the private sector.
London borough of Newham’s plan is available online at http://www.newham.gov.uk/Housing/PrivateSectorHousing/HousesInMultipleOccupation/PropertyLicensingFAQs. They also have a survey at https://www.ors.org.uk/survey/newhamlicensing
But we believe the survey is just a way to give people a response portal that will play no part in anything, although we suggest you fill in the questionnaire we also ask you to complain to your own Member of Parliament and M.E.P. ASAP. Use twitter, Facebook and email or any other way you can think of.
DO NOT think that because you’re not a Newham private sector tenant or landlord this will not affect you, it will’ councils all over the United Kingdom are waiting to see what happens in Newham before they all jump and bring their own licence in.
Stop this now; complain to your member of parliament and to your member of the European union.
Copy and Pass this on to any landlords/ tenants /estate agents/and property managers.