Waging War on Slumdog HMO's
Latest landlord News by: Madalena Penny
HMO regulations have been highlighted recently by 2 cases this month that caused landlords to be convicted on different grounds.
One property was deemed ‘not fit for an animal’ and ‘absolutely appalling’ when a court was given evidence by environmental officers in Leicester. The landlord was duly fined £17,000, including £10,000 for illegally renting the house, in which he and three other tenants lived in without a HMO license.
It was initially environment health officers who responded to a complaint about the overcrowded and filthy property owned by Anthony Gordon. When letters from inspectors were ignored, officers who visited the house were denied access from Mr. Gordon’s tenants amid fears they would be evicted.
A month later, environment officers finally gained access to the property, where they found a number of problems. Failing to attend a hearing, Mr. Gordon was found guilty of failure to:
1. License a HMO;
- Ensure managers details were displayed
- Provide light bulbs in hall; 1st and 2nd landings and stairwell;
- Keep common areas clean and clear of obstruction;
- Keep garden safe & tidy;
- Maintain internal structure including windows;
- Notify the council of his interest in the land and his authority to let it;
- Produce gas and electricity safety certificates.
Under the regulations, the HMO licensing act came into force in 2006, making it a criminal offence to operate a HMO without applying for a license.
Despite obtaining a license, landlords should be aware that there is strict legislation as to the running of a HMO. Last week, landlord Balal Khan was fined £5,280 for his unsafe and badly maintained 5-bedroomed property in Slough, which accommodated 4 tenancies.
As with Mr. Gordon, Mr. Khan had failed to display his contact details prominently in the property for his tenants attention. Obstructions from kitchen to yard were also noted by officers along with a loose door handle. Problems reported about the property ranged from lack of hot water; uncovered outside drain; bad location of gas cooker; broken garden fence; overgrown garden; cracked bathroom window and broken tiles.
Some of these offences may seem trivial but added together not only do they give a bleak snapshot of a badly run HMO, and given Mr. Khan a sullied reputation as a landlord. With an increase in the numbers of HMO’s created due to the current lack of available housing, landlords providing cheaper accommodation through HMO’s need to be made aware that it’s not an excuse to provide unsafe and illegal dwelling units.
