Posts with tag: HMO

HMO stock declines, as Government rule changes take effect

Published On: May 13, 2022 at 12:52 pm

HMO stock levels continue to fall, now down -2.4%

The number of HMOs in England has declined in the past year, research from specialist property lending experts Octane Capital shows.

They say this is likely caused by the Government’s regulations for Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) introduced in 2018. A licence is now required for all properties that are occupied by five or more people who are not members of one family.

Octane Capital says the number of HMOs on the market has decreased, with many landlords selling up because of legislative changes. Their market analysis shows that, on an annual basis, the number of HMOs in England fell by -3%, from 511,278 in 2019/2020 to 497,884 in 2020/21.

This overall national decline has been driven by the London market where the level of total HMOs has declined by -13%, the biggest reduction of all regions. In the capital, 11 different boroughs have reported a drop, with the biggest being in Ealing where HMOs have declined by -59%, followed closely by a -58% decline in Lambeth.

Redbridge has seen its numbers halved, and Barnet’s decline sits at -37%. The number of HMOs has also declined considerably in Greenwich (-34%), Enfield (-30%), Wandsworth (-18%), Croydon (-13%), Hillingdon (-10%), Merton (-2%), and Tower Hamlets (-1%).

CEO of Octane Capital, Jonathan Samuels, comments: “It’s only right that all efforts should be made to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the nation’s tenants and that everyone is afforded the right to a basic standard of living. The changes to HMO licensing have certainly looked to ensure this, but as a result, we have seen a decline in the level of operational HMOs across the rental market, particularly within London.

“This essentially means that those reliant on the rental sector now have even less choice when it comes to finding suitable, safe accommodation, but that’s not to say it can’t be found.

“We’ve continued to fund a high number of quality HMO deals throughout the pandemic and this sustained level of interest from professional investors is yet to show any signs of decline. This includes a large number of refurbishment transactions whereby investors are looking to drastically improve the quality of existing HMOs, so while volume has certainly fallen, we don’t believe this will be a long-term trend and should benefit the nation’s tenants in the long run.”

Rogue Landlord Fined £40k for Cramming 24 Tenants into House

Published On: August 18, 2016 at 8:36 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: fire safety,HMO,London,overcrowding,rogue landlords,Wembley

A rogue landlord in Wembley has been fined almost £40,000 for cramming 24 tenants into his House in Multiple Occupation (HMO).

Willesden Magistrates’ Court was told that Tilak Raj Sarna, of George V Avenue in Pinner, initially claimed innocence, but then admitted his guilt after two days of cross examination.

Brent Council granted Sarna a license to house seven tenants at his HMO on Bowrons Avenue, but discovered that 24 people, including seven families with ten young children, were living in the property when housing enforcement officers made an unannounced visit in January 2016.

The squalid conditions discovered at the house include:

A cockroach infestation
Rogue Landlord Fined £40k for Cramming 24 Tenants into House

Disregard of basic fire safety measures, such as missing smoke alarms, overloaded electrical sockets and inadequate fire doors
Cold and damp rooms
Overflowing bins outside the property

Six of the tenants lived in an unheated shed in the house’s back garden until it burnt down in October last year, in a fire caused by a portable heater. The sheer number of people living in the small space exacerbated the blaze, which started while a child was sleeping in the shed.

The court fined Sarna £33,000 for his overcrowding and fire safety offences. He was also ordered to pay costs of £6,420 and a £120 victim surcharge, making a total of £39,540.

Anila Patel, who collected £3,700 in rent each month from the tenants on the landlord’s behalf, was also prosecuted during the case. She was convicted of two offences, fined £1,000 and ordered to pay a £90 victim surcharge.

All of the tenants living in the property have now found alternative accommodation.

Councillor Harbi Farah, Brent Council’s Lead Member for Housing, says: “This case underlines the necessity of our commitment to ensuring private tenants in our borough have safe, high quality accommodation. In situations like this, unscrupulous landlords are not only taking financial advantage of vulnerable tenants; they’re also placing tenants’ lives in danger.

“We are improving standards in Brent’s private rented properties by working with landlords through our property licensing regime, which helps ensure that tenants do not have to live in filthy, dangerous accommodation.”

The council’s Deputy Leader, Councillor Margaret McLennan, also comments: “Where we find serious breaches of the law like this, we will always take landlords and their agents to court. Mr. Sarna had housed a family in the garden shed and had grossly overcrowded the two-storey property, leaving tenants in an unsafe, damp and cockroach-infested house, while taking £3,700 off them each month for the privilege.

“As he had been granted a license, Mr. Sarna knew exactly what was required of him, so we are very pleased that the court shared our view of the seriousness of the offences and imposed such severe penalties.”

Most private landlords in Brent are legally required to obtain a license from the council. Find out more here: www.brent.gov.uk/prslicensing

Rogue landlord fined for HMO failings

Published On: May 31, 2016 at 11:54 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: Buy-to-Let,fire safety,HMO,rogue landlord

A rogue landlord from the Midlands has become the latest to be brought to justice, after being found guilty of a number of failings relating to a HMO.

Birmingham based landlord Salih Mahfood Hassan Mohamed was told to pay £24,158 after being prosecuted at Birmingham City Council.

Fines

The fine received by Mr Mohamed was split as follows:

Failure to obtain a HMO licence-£2,000
Breaches of HMO Management Regulations-£2,000 per breach
Court costs-£2,038
Victim surcharge-£120

All charges relate to a rental property in the Sparkhill area of the city. The property had an HMO licence until May 2014, since when it has never been renewed.

Poor living conditions at the address became apparent when Midlands Fire Service referred the property to Birmingham City Council.

Multiple failings

Housing officers subsequently visited the property and found a whole host of failings. These included:

fire alarm not working
blocked fire escape
mouldy shower rooms
low windows, which weren’t fitted with safety glass
faulty fire doors
overgrown and cluttered garden
broken front door lock

Rogue landlord fined for HMO failings

Councillor Peter Griffiths, Birmingham City Council’s cabinet member for Housing and Homes, noted, ‘HMO licensing exist because tenants living in this type of accommodation are almost 17 times more likely to be killed in a fire than an adult living in a similar single-occupancy house.’[1]

‘West Midlands Fire Service raised concerns about this property and our officers found a shocking list of breaches,’ Griffiths continued.[1]

Leave of absence

Mr Griffiths also said that Mohamed left the country for a prolonged period, and instructed his friend to collect rent on his behalf during this time.

Additionally, Griffiths noted that the tenants in the property were subject to appalling conditions, putting their overall safety at risk.

‘The council has over 1,800 licensed properties. Most landlords are responsible and law abiding but the council’s HMO Licensing Team will continue to pursue and prosecute those that aren’t,’ Mr Griffiths pledged.[1]

[1] https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/5/landlord-hit-with-25k-fine-for-hmo-failings

Rogue leaseholders of HMO fined £120,000

Published On: May 20, 2016 at 1:49 pm

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: HMO,Prohibition order,rogue landlords,tenants

The leaseholders and landlords of a 10-flat property in north London have been fined £120,000 after complete disregard of their responsibilities.

Idris Raza, TISHK Limited and Hanasa Limited were found guilty at Willesden Magistrates Court of ignoring a Prohibition Order. Despite this notice, there were still tenants living in the 10 studio flats located in the Golders Green area of the capital.

Complaints

After a complaint from a tenant in one of the flats, Barnet council found the accommodation to be in an inadequate condition and poorly managed.

The magistrates said that Raza had shown reckless behaviour as an individual and as a director of both TISHK and Hanasa Ltd. It was uncovered that very serious harm would have been extremely likely should a fire have broken out in the property, with up to 20 people potentially losing their lives.

In addition, the magistrates said that the tenants’ financial situation had left them vulnerable.

Rogue leaseholders of HMO fined £120,000

Risks

Risks reported to the court included inadequate fire separation between rooms, four studios with no external windows, broken ceiling panels and faulty locks on studio doors.

Alongside failing to comply with the Prohibition Order, the leaseholders and landlords were found to have breached the Houses in Multiple Occupation Regulations 2007.

All three defendants were found guilty and fined a total of £120,000, with costs of £21,660 and a surcharge of £360.

Rogue Landlord Fined £39,000 for Breaching HMO Regulations

Published On: May 16, 2016 at 11:22 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: HMO,HMO regulations,rogue landlords

A rogue landlord in Southend has been handed a £39,000 fine for breaching House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) regulations.

Rogue Landlord Fined £39,000 for Breaching HMO Regulations

Last week, Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court ordered Robert Crow, of 19 Devereux Road, Southend, to pay £35,000 in fines and £4,000 in costs for 15 violations of the regulations that govern HMOs. Crow’s tenants were found to be living in appalling conditions.

After Crow ignored numerous prohibition orders and improvement notices from the council and refused entry to the property, an enforcement officer authorised a warrant on 20^th August 2015 to inspect the property with five police officers.

The officers found that the overcrowded property was being rented out in uninhabitable living conditions, with one tenant sleeping in a tiny bedroom with no windows and two people even found to be living in the backyard under tarpaulin.

Further breaches of HMO regulations include: an obstructed fire escape, an unclean bathroom and a category 1 hazard in the kitchen.

The court described the conditions as “appalling, deplorable and inhumane”, which have “no place in a modern Britain of today”.

The council’s Group Manager for Housing, Andrew Fiske, says: “Our enforcement officer who led the case said it was one of the worst cases they had seen in their professional career, and so this prosecution was vital and is welcomed.

“The police assistance and support was vital in this case, not only in order to gain entry to the property, but also with some of the information that they provided to help with the case, so we would like to thank them for that.”

He continues: “Mr. Crow was served numerous prohibition orders and improvement notices that were flagrantly ignored over a long period of time. Whilst we make every effort to develop good working relationships with private landlords, if rules are ignored so blatantly then we must and will take action to keep tenants safe.

“No one should have to be living in conditions like this, and this has ben recognised by the courts with a large fine that reflects the seriousness of the offences.”¹

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¹http://www.southend.gov.uk/news/article/845/criminal_landlord_gets_35k_fine