A rogue landlord has been fined a whopping £200,000 after it emerged he illegally converted two properties into sub-standard flats without planning permission. In addition, the landlord subsequently ignored enforcement notices requiring them to restore the properties back up to an adequate state of repair.
Mr Vijay Kara was found guilty of his offences at Harrow Crown Court by Brent Council after entering a guilty plea.
Orders
Kara was served a confiscation order totalling £187,600 for both properties, in addition to fines and costs amounting to a further £20,000. A confiscation order is intended to take the profit from any crime by making the defendant pay a fee to the Crown representing the benefits of the crime.
Councilor Margaret McLennan, lead member for housing and development at Brent Council, said that, ‘it’s staggering that Mr Kara thought that he could get away with letting out illegal sub-standard accommodation, despite a conviction for the same offence in 2009’.[1]
‘Thanks to our hard working enforcement team, he has been caught out again and landed with a hefty bill. It is so important for planning rules to be upheld, not just to protect what our streets look like, but to protect tenants from poor standard accommodation,’ she added.[1]
[1] http://www.propertyindustryeye.com/landlord-ordered-to-pay-over-200000-after-illegal-rentals/