Housing Strategy Comments which address issues beyond the scope of the scheme and broader

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1 Additional Licensing for HMOs in Barnet The Council s Response to Consultation Comments Table of Contents Responses to questionnaire free text and event comments and questions General comments /questions relating to the proposed licensing scheme Comments relating to evidence Comments relating to operation of the scheme Comments or questions on proposed licensing conditions Comments or questions as to the proposed type of premises to be included in the scheme Comments / questions concerning proposed fees Comments / questions relating to the extent of the proposed scheme Comments / questions relating to alternatives Comments which address issues beyond the scope of the scheme and broader Housing Strategy Comments which address issues beyond the scope of the scheme and broader Housing Strategy Written consultation responses The Additional Licensing scheme for HMOs in Barnet: a Public Health response Potential Positive Impacts of different license conditions upon residents or landlords of HMOs affected by the scheme: Potential Negative Impacts upon health of residents or landlords of HMOs affected by the scheme, and limitations National Landlords Association: Response to Barnet Council proposal for Additional Licensing, October RLA response to Borough-wide Additional Licensing proposals for Barnet (23 rd of October 2015)

2 1. Responses to questionnaire free text and event comments and questions 1.1 General comments /questions relating to the proposed licensing scheme The scheme is just more red tape for landlords The Council is currently working on guidelines and provisions to streamline the licensing application and associated processes to ensure that the scheme is as straightforward as possible The existing powers together with the mandatory licensing scheme are sufficient and/or there is no need for an Additional Licensing Scheme The primarily reactive approach we have taken up until now has meant that problems in HMOs have been dealt with on a more ad hoc basis and in this situation the Council can only deal with difficult or potentially dangerous situations or poor conditions after they have arisen. The Council is aware that the problems with HMOs in the borough are not confined to those to which the existing mandatory scheme applies and has collected evidence of poor conditions in smaller and other types of HMOs within the borough. We can more easily target rogue landlords within the proposed additional licensing framework, create and share intelligence. In this way, the scheme will enable resources to be more effectively targeted toward the improvement of the worst of them. As a more proactive and inclusive approach and through publicity for the scheme, poor conditions can be avoided and standards of management driven up The scheme will punish good landlords/barnet should target rogue landlords/ Rogue landlords will avoid licensing and conditions could worsen Being a licence holder is a signal to tenants that a potential home will meet minimum safety standards. One of the scheme s objectives is to provide a reasonable, simple and unambiguous set of basic health and safety standards and to create clear expectations of what is required between all the parties (landlords, tenants and the Council). The implementation of a rigorous enforcement policy is essential to the success of the proposed scheme along with continuous evaluation and development of the inspection programme, licensing processes and measures of the scheme s success. Rogue landlords will be more identifiable and therefore more easily targeted within this licensing framework. The Council does not intend good landlords to 2

3 be the focus of its attention Concern over the Council s resources and willingness to take action If the Council introduce Additional Licensing, it will be committed to ensuring the success of the scheme. Taking prosecutions will be more straightforward within the licensing framework supported by a rigorous enforcement approach. The scheme will be monitored to measure its impact and performance allowing operational improvements to be made as and when necessary. The identification and pursuit those evading licensing or failing to comply with conditions is an essential part of the scheme. Properties will also be risk assessed and any serious hazards referred to the enforcement team for appropriate action under Part 1 of the Housing Act 2004 (Housing Health & Safety Rating System - HHSRS) Costs may or will be passed onto tenants by way of rent increases There is no evidence from other boroughs with discretionary schemes, that this has been the case. It has been suggested in research carried out for the London Borough of Camden by the LSE that many landlords set rents with reference to the local market and not their outgoings. In our Report into the potential internal and cross boundary effects of a proposed Additional Licensing Scheme for houses in multiple occupation in Barnet, we have assessed the risk of rent increases due to the scheme as being low. This is contained in Appendix 5 to the housing committee report The scheme may or will lead to a decrease in the supply of housing in the private rented sector/hmos in the borough, as landlords withdraw from the market/ The scheme may or will lead to a risk of homelessness and this will put more pressure on the Council There is little evidence from other local authorities of any significant impact licensing has on the housing supply in the private rented sector. Barnet residents in housing need can contact Barnet Homes for help and advice. However, we do not anticipate a rise in evictions based on the licensing scheme and Barnet Homes will work hard to ensure that people stay in their homes in accord with Barnet s Housing Strategy. Any potential effects of the scheme will be monitored where possible as part of an on-going review of the scheme The issues are the Council s problem and not the landlord s responsibility to police or resolve 3

4 All landlords have a responsibility to provide decent, safe, well managed accommodation in reasonable condition. The proposed scheme represents a shift in emphasis toward landlords being aware of and fulfilling those responsibilities The scheme will not lead to improved standards but just adds to costs Whilst mandatory licensing leads to an improvement in conditions, only certain HMOs are covered by the present scheme and poor conditions exist elsewhere in the sector. Other powers are reactive in that they require a response to a complaint. A more proactive and preventative stance within a licensing framework will enable those resources to be better targeted and will focus on improving conditions in HMOs across the borough. The application of standard set of conditions to ensure the health, safety and welfare of tenants will enable landlords to know what is expected of them and this will bring a greater certainty to the process. This will be supported by a rigorous inspection and enforcement regime and the impact of the scheme will be continually monitored and evaluated Bad landlords may or will move to other boroughs Five of the seven adjacent boroughs have introduced Additional Licencing schemes, including Haringey, Islington, Camden, Harrow and Brent. In our Report into the potential internal and cross boundary effects of a proposed Additional Licensing Scheme for houses in multiple occupation in Barnet, we have assessed the risk of this as being low. This can be found in Appendix 5 to the housing committee report Barnet does not have problems with quality in the private rented sector and it is not necessary to regulate all landlords The evidence indicates problems in relation to Barnet s HMOs and the proposals are not to introduce licensing for the whole of the private rented sector. The proposals are not about penalising good landlords but providing a reasonable, basic and unambiguous set of health and safety standards in HMOs and will create clear expectations of all the parties The proposed scheme would lead to improved standards and better quality landlords in the areas outside the borough boundary The comment is noted Other boroughs will follow Barnet and introduce schemes for their area 4

5 The comment is noted although five out of the seven boroughs which border Barnet have additional licensing schemes Councils that don t implement schemes of this type will attract rogue landlords from other areas that do and this may encourage them to introduce schemes The comment is noted. Please also see our response in above The proposed scheme will lead to improved conditions and consistency of standards in HMOs / Protect tenants and the surrounding community The comments are noted The proposed scheme will lead to better regulation of rogue landlords and prevent unscrupulous practices The comment is noted The scheme will improve the quality of landlords and dissuade rogue landlords The comment is noted The proposed scheme will lead to better regulation of and will attract better tenants The comment is noted The proposed scheme will encourage landlord accreditation The comment is noted The Council will have more powers to deal with HMOs The comment is noted The shortage of accommodation in Barnet has led to deteriorated standards of housing The comment is noted The scheme will lead to better relationships with good landlords The comment is noted Licensing must be used in conjunction with its other powers to 5

6 be successful The Council agrees that not all of the issues can be tackled within the licensing framework and it will continue to use all its other powers as and where necessary. The proposed Additional Licensing Scheme, together with an Article 4 Directive withdrawing permitted development rights which allow the conversion of dwelling houses to small HMOs without planning permission are part of the Council s Housing Strategy The scheme will improve management in HMOs The comment is noted Letting agents should have more of a role to play in the licensing process Any person involved in the management of an HMO must be a fit and proper person. We have drafted a policy in relation to fit and proper persons. This draft policy considers the meaning of fit and proper person, the Council s approach to deciding whether a person is fit and proper and the kinds of factors that the Council will take into account in making such decisions. The draft policy is contained in Appendix 1 to the housing committee report The scheme will lead to more information being available about HMOs The comment is noted The proposed scheme will help to prevent destruction of parts of the borough which have begun to look like slum dwellings The comment is noted. The Article 4 Directive exerting more planning controls should also help with this There has to be some control over irresponsible landlords The comment is noted Pressure on housing has led to some abuses, higher rents and sub-standard accommodation and a spin off that tenants become more neglectful The comment is noted Concerns around robust enforcement of the scheme/ The Council needs to be more strict with bad landlords and take more prosecutions/ Landlords who fail to comply with licensing or cause problems with tenants or the neighbours and local 6

7 community should be prosecuted The implementation of a rigorous enforcement policy is essential to the success of proposed scheme along with continuous evaluation and development of the inspection programme, licensing processes and measures of the scheme s success. Rogue landlords will be more identifiable and therefore more easily targeted within this licensing framework. If introduced, we will also promote the scheme widely with the public and provide advice about how they can contact us about properties of concern to them. The resultant shift in emphasis will be towards landlords being more aware of and fulfilling their responsibilities through the operation of the scheme. At the same time, bad landlords or those who are not fit and proper persons will be forced to leave the sector Tenants should be allowed to choose poorer quality accommodation in favour of lower rents The Council believes that no-one should have their health, safety and welfare unreasonably compromised by their inability to afford decent accommodation and that licensing will help to ensure that satisfactory standards are achieved and maintained All landlords should be based in the UK /Landlords should register their UK based contact details and remain contactable/if the landlord is based outside the UK, who is responsible for compliance with licence conditions? Landlords living outside the UK will not be able to hold the licence themselves but may appoint a fit and proper person to be the licence holder. This person will be responsible for complying with the conditions Letting agents should not work for landlords who do not have a licence A person commits an offence if he is a person having control of or managing an HMO which is required to be licensed but does not have one. This could include a letting agent in the appropriate circumstances Aren t the requirements to licence HMOs under the current proposals already in place? Requirements to licence HMOs in Barnet currently only extend to those of three or more storeys, with five or more persons where some of the basic amenities such as a kitchen, toilet or bathroom are shared. Currently there are no licensing requirements for HMOs in the borough beyond this mandatory scheme. Additional Licensing would also include smaller and other types of HMOs within the 7

8 borough. The housing committee report sets out the types of HMOs that it is proposed will be covered by Additional Licensing if introduced Additional licensing will help deal with overcrowding issues as it will regulate a greater number of HMOs The comment is noted The scheme will lead to more stable occupancy, longer term tenancies and happier tenants The comment is noted The combination of Council tax rises, recent changes to income tax reliefs and the additional costs to landlords of the proposed licensing scheme, will give rogue landlords who avoid licensing a competitive advantage We will actively seek out rogue landlords who attempt to avoid licensing and have a robust enforcement policy in place to deal with those that should have a licence but do not have one Licensing may affect mortgages adversely The Council are not aware of any specific cases of this kind although it is good practice to check the terms of your mortgage to see if there are any restrictions. If in doubt, you should contact your lender for further advice Background checks should be carried out on landlords before licensing and on tenants on a pre-letting basis The Council do not consider it appropriate to require landlords to carry out background checks on their tenants as a licence condition. Landlords may wish to take out references of tenants as part of the tenant finding process. The Council are required to ensure that any prospective licence holder, manager or anyone else that might be involved with the management of the HMO, is a fit and proper person. We have drafted a policy concerning this which is contained in Appendix 1 to the housing committee report Comments relating to evidence What evidence does the Council have to support the introduction of the proposed scheme? 8

9 Evidence to support the introduction of the proposed scheme can be found in the Council s document The Case for an Additional Licensing Scheme in Barnet What evidence is there to show that the existing scheme works? /The Council have not been effective under the mandatory licensing regime/ The Council should concentrate on mandatory HMO licensing before introducing an additional licensing scheme There are currently 182 licensed HMOs under the mandatory licensing regime. Of these 81% comply with major conditions and this is considered to be an indicator of the success of the current scheme. As well as gathering the evidence for the proposed scheme, the Council have also identified HMOs that are potentially licensable under the current mandatory regime and we will be targeting these for further investigation as part of a larger HMO licensing framework if Additional Licensing is introduced How confident is the Council that they have identified HMOs in the borough and the issues associated with them? In gathering and analysing the evidence required to assess whether or not to consider an Additional Licensing Scheme, we are satisfied with the information as to the location and distribution of HMOs across the borough and as to the problems with them. More information can be found in the Council s document The Case for an Additional Licensing Scheme in Barnet How many HMO residents were contacted and interviewed as part of the Council s street survey? A street survey involving a sample of properties in 110 streets representing around 2,700 dwellings (approximately 1,930 parent buildings) in different locations across the borough was undertaken in June 2014.During the course of the street survey, 136 HMO residents were interviewed representing 40% of HMOs identified. In addition, of the 73 participants attending the 3 residents events held in the borough, 27 where tenants living in HMOs Does the data on complaints relate to the number of complaints or the number of properties about which complaints were made? The number of complaints rather than the number of HMOs but in actuality there are relatively few repeat complaints Does around 130 complaints about HMOs in 2014 indicate a 9

10 major problem?/what category of HMOs do the complaints relate to? There were 128 complaints concerning HMOs in 2014 representing 16% of housing complaints in that year. The rapid turnover and the vulnerable nature of some tenants often mean that they are less inclined to complain. The graph in question was demonstrating the general increase in the number of HMO complaints being received. The HMOs to which these complaints relate are those falling within Section 254 of the Housing Act 2004 and not those under Section 257 (converted self-contained flats falling within the definition of HMO). So effectively the number of complaints concerning HMOs is under-reported Has the Council considered for comparison how many complaints were made about properties in the social rented sector? Complaints about accommodation provided by Barnet Homes (the Councils Arm s Length Management Organisation) are considered on their merits. Barnet Homes has successfully improved tenant satisfaction by improving services and investing in Council homes. In the latest available data, 81% of tenants are satisfied with the service provided Comments relating to operation of the scheme The costs of employing further staff is too much/ Concerns over the adequacy of resources to enforce the scheme/ The Council won t necessarily be able to implement the scheme It is intended that the Additional Licensing will be cost neutral in that the scheme will be self-funded from licence fee income The Council should inspect HMOs before licensing and then at regular intervals during the licence period/ Random spot checks should be made on HMOs in co-operation with other stakeholders/partner organisations The Council aims to undertake pre-licence inspections and thereafter to ensure that licensing conditions have been satisfied. The inspection program will be kept under review and may require adjustment from time to time to reflect the flow of applications received over the life of the scheme. Where there is a need, inspections will be made with partners such as the Fire Brigade Tenants should be compensated for any costs they incur where a landlord does not meet their obligations/ There should be 10

11 some form of scheme allowing tenants to claim back a proportion of their rent from the Council where the landlord breach licence conditions An occupier (or former occupier) may be able to apply for a Rent Repayment Order (RRO) in respect of rent paid (less any housing benefit) where an HMO which should have a licence has been operating without one. This is the only compensation currently available as a result of HMO licensing under Part 2 of the Housing Act Otherwise there may be private redress as a civil matter to compensate a tenant s costs in some circumstances Landlords who breach conditions should be identified on a website or by using an online rating system There will be a public register of licensed properties. The Housing Act 2004 requires councils to establish and maintain a register of all licences granted by them. We will issue press releases in relation to convictions for breaches of licensing conditions What qualifying criteria will apply to assessing whether a proposed landlord or manager is a fit and proper person? Please see our response in A barrier to operation of the scheme might be that some landlords might not know about it/ Consequences of evading licensing should be made clear If Additional Licensing is introduced in Barnet we will promote it widely (there are statutory requirements concerning this) and will continue to promote it using a variety of methods throughout the life of the scheme. The consequences of failing to have a licence for eligible premises will be made very clear The Council should have the power to take over the management of an HMO where there is a persistent failure to meet required standards /The prospect that the Council will take over the management of non-compliant HMOs seems disproportionately draconian Under the Housing Act 2004, councils can make Management Orders in respect of HMOs and other privately rented property. In the case of a licensable property, if the Council are unable to grant a licence or the licence is revoked, they must in certain circumstances make an Interim Management Order. The Council then take over the management of the HMO and collect the rents and have responsibility for the tenancies and upkeep of the property. At the end of twelve months, if the Council are still unable to grant an HMO licence, they must make a Final Management Order, and will 11

12 continue to have the responsibility for managing the property. A Final Management Order normally lasts for five years. It is unlikely that good landlords will be subject to a Management Order which can only be made where there is no reasonable prospect of a property being licensed in the near future or to protect the health and safety of tenants in the worst of circumstances The Council should keep centralised records of services safety certificates and have mechanisms to flag certificates that are about to expire The Council currently collects and stores safety certificates required by licence conditions under the existing mandatory licensing regime. We already have systems in place to alert us when those certificates are nearing expiry and the same system will be extended to an Additional Licensing Scheme if introduced What data will be shared and for what purpose/ What data will be made publicly available/ Will this put landlords off letting their properties? It is our intention to share information with our partner agencies and between different Council departments and to gather and hold intelligence concerning HMOs. All such data will be collected and held in accord with the Data Protection Act and the Council s data privacy statement. There will be a public register of licensed properties, which makes them and the licence holder highly visible. The Housing Act 2004 requires councils to establish and maintain a register of all licences granted by them. The register must contain certain key information including; the names and address of licence holders, a summary of licence conditions, the start date and duration of the licence. The Council is not aware that landlords are dissuaded from licensing as a result of these particular requirements The Council should explore working with other enforcement agencies in order to identify and regulate HMOs We work closely with partners such as the police and fire brigade in this respect. However the comment is noted and it is our intention to continue to do so Use rent deposit scheme data to identify HMOs that may require licensing under mandatory provisions We are currently looking into this but do have access to other data sources, some of which we have used to build our estimate of HMOs in the borough. These include housing benefit, council tax and electoral registration data. 12

13 Encourage neighbours/tenants to report problems in HMOs We will have a report an HMO feature on our website The Council has no clear business/financial plan for an Additional Licensing Scheme The financial details for the scheme can be found in the housing committee report What is a unit of accommodation for the purposes of licensing/what if a bedsit is like a studio apartment with its own facilities A unit of accommodation for the purpose of licensing and the calculation of licence fees will depend upon the type of accommodation in question. For example, where facilities are shared, the unit of accommodation is typically a single sleeping/living room often referred to as a bedsit. A unit of accommodation is selfcontained, where none of the basic amenities (the kitchen, bathroom and toilet) are shared and are located within the accommodation behind its own private entrance door What are the costings and estimates of the income that the Council would receive? The financial details for the scheme can be found in the housing committee report What services will the landlords receive in return? We will aim to undertake pre-licence and conditions compliance inspections and give detailed advice and assistance to landlords in relation to the Council s adopted standards for HMOs and licence conditions as well as all other parts of the licensing process. We already provide advice to landlords in the form of a landlord s guide to fire safety in HMOs and are in the process of drafting a guide to licencing for landlords concerning a variety of licensing and other related topics Lack of clarity on the definition of an HMO and definitions differ for planning and housing law HMOs are defined slightly differently depending on the legislation concerned. We do understand that the complexity of the various definitions can be confusing. We will make certain that we are as clear about the definition that applies to licencing in our future communications about 13

14 the proposed scheme Comments or questions on proposed licensing conditions There should be rules regarding the number of people living in an HMO and /or the space requirements per tenant Barnet s Draft Standards for Houses in Multiple Occupation set out both the Council s space standards and the suitable provision of amenities for the number of occupants. These can be found in Appendix 2 to the housing committee report. The proposed licence conditions will determine the number of persons/households permitted to occupy the HMO and the required type and number of amenities with reference to the standards There should be rules concerning living arrangements e.g. tenants only be allowed to sleep in designated sleeping rooms/concerning hot-bedding for shift workers/ or on intended temporary or overnight stays which become more permanent In addition to the condition concerning compliance with the Council s space standards for HMOs, we are drafting a guide to landlords and tenants and this will contain advice concerning the way in which HMOs are occupied. Where the occupation of the premises is considered to constitute anti-social behaviour, the matter will be dealt with under that condition where applicable Tenancy agreements should be compulsory and comprehensive /Should be entered into as part of the licence application process / The Council should be responsible for providing advice and verify tenancy agreements/ Landlords and tenants should be educated on how to negotiate tenancy agreements Licence conditions will require the provision of a tenancy agreement specifying the terms of occupation. The Council is currently drafting guidance to landlords and tenants concerning the additional licensing scheme and this will include guidance about tenancy agreements and their terms and conditions There should be rent receipts for tenants It will be a licence condition that where the rent is payable weekly, payments shall be recorded in a rent book, which will be retained by the resident. Otherwise, a written receipt of each rental payment shall be issued to residents. 14

15 1.3.5 There should be adequate standards for construction, materials and internal and external fixtures, fittings, lighting, decorations etc. Where relevant, both the Council s standards and licence conditions will apply to ensure adequate standards alongside the Council s other powers under the Housing Act, which include the management regulations for HMOs. In addition to this, the Building Regulations apply to some building work to ensure that it has been undertaken satisfactorily There must be education and enforcement of standards concerning adequate amenities The Council s draft Standards for Houses in Multiple Occupation set out the standards for amenities for washing, toileting and cooking. These will be adopted as part of the new HMO licensing regime if introduced. The amenities standards will be enforced through licensing conditions There should be regulations concerning dampness, hazardous materials, gas and electrical services Certain conditions have been proposed as part of the scheme. Among other things these do include certain safety requirements concerning gas and electrical installations and services. In response to the consultation, we have strengthened our proposed conditions concerning electrical safety. The Council also has powers to deal with all kinds of hazards in the home under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) introduced under Part 1 of the Housing Act This is an assessment method for hazards that are most likely to be present in housing and include excess cold conditions, damp and mould, and hazardous materials such as asbestos. These hazards are more easily dealt within the licensing framework as they will be noted at licensing inspections rather than always in response to a complaint Landlords should be required to meet their tenants as a licence condition The Council considers that such a condition would be unreasonable and where the landlord is not based in the UK, could be regarded as too onerous a requirement. Landlords are able to appoint another person as the licence holder in the appropriate circumstances or a manager but in either case they must be fit and proper persons Conditions should be displayed in the property A proposed condition of licence is that the licence must be displayed in a prominent position within a licensable property. The conditions 15

16 will be displayed as part of the licence. HMO management regulations require that the manager s name and contact details are also clearly displayed The scheme will do nothing to address anti-social behaviour (ASB) displayed by tenants Whilst we appreciate that licensing will not necessarily make tenants better behaved, the Council regards it to be important that the landlords act reasonably to deal with any tenant anti-social behaviour within the licensing framework. The proposed condition concerning this requires no more than to investigate complaints of ASB and to take reasonable steps to resolve the problem and demonstrate that they have procedures in place to accommodate this as part of their management practice. We are drafting guidance to both landlords and tenants about what such reasonable steps might be with examples and to ensure that all parties will know what is expected of them Landlords should have to pass an aptitude test It is proposed that as a condition of the licence and at the request of the Council, the licence holder attends training courses in relation to management practice and procedures. One means of doing so would be to become accredited through the London Landlord Accreditation Scheme. The Council is drafting guidance as to how and in what sorts of circumstances such a condition will be applied Comments or questions as to the proposed type of premises to be included in the scheme All homes in the private rented sector should require a licence Currently, there is no evidence to suggest that a selective licensing scheme, which would apply to any property within the private rented sector, is justified in Barnet All HMOs should require a licence/all properties with one or more rooms being let (including lodgers, holiday lets and no contract arrangements) should require a licence The proposals to include some HMOs and not others have taken into account the risks that there may be with certain HMOs and in particular, the risks associated with fire. Factors such as the height of a building, number of units of accommodation and the number of occupiers, have been considered because they all affect the potential for the occurrence and the spread of a fire. Together with the existing 16

17 mandatory licensing scheme, the higher risk HMOs will be covered All social housing stock should be licensed The Council has no powers to licence social housing stock as this is exempted by the law All HMOs with 4 or more persons including two couples should be licensed The comment is noted and in many cases this will be the case under the proposals. Please also refer to below The scheme should cover beds-in-sheds (including garages and other external buildings used as living accommodation) The scheme itself will not to apply to beds in sheds, although it is more likely that these will be identified as a result of the proposed new licensing framework. This will enable the Council to deal with them under existing housing and planning powers Accommodation over shops and pubs should be licensed If an HMO is located over a shop or a pub and otherwise meets the criteria of the proposed Additional Licensing Scheme, it will be licensable Buildings converted from offices as permitted development Buildings converted from office to residential use (as self-contained flats) that did not meet and still do not meet at least the standards required by the Building Regulations 1991 and where less than two thirds of the flats are owner-occupied are known as section 257 HMOs. These will be covered by the scheme although there are some exceptions. Buildings converted to self-contained flats in accord with more modern Building Regulations or in which more than two thirds of the flats are owner occupied will not be included as they not HMOs under the Housing Act 2004 by definition Recently purchased houses awaiting development should be licensed The comment is noted although not qualified. We assume that it is made with reference to the possibility that such houses may be more subject to squatting. Squatting in residential buildings is now illegal and can lead to a prison sentence, or a fine or both The scheme should only apply to hostels and student accommodation 17

18 There is evidence of poor conditions in HMOs of all types and in order to be consistent in our regulatory approach, we believe that Additional Licensing should be applied across the sector whilst also taking the risks associated with fire into account. These things apart, a significant proportion of hotel and student accommodation is exempt from licensing by the Housing Act There should be an exemption for resident landlords Although the proposals will include HMOs with resident landlords, only those which are two or more storeys and occupied by an additional four or more other persons in two or more households will need a licence to reflect an increased risk from fire Lack of clarity about those HMOs to be included in the scheme The types of HMO the Council intend to include for its proposed Additional Licensing Scheme were set out in the Frequently Asked Questions to our consultation. These are also contained in the housing committee report. We will make certain that we provide the necessary information about the types of HMO covered by the scheme in our future communications about HMO licensing and encourage anyone that is uncertain about this or has a question to contact us Private nursing homes/homes for the elderly and foster homes should be licensed Properties whose occupation is regulated by other legislation e.g. care homes, children s homes and nursing homes are exempted by Schedule 14 of the Housing Act Foster children living with foster parents in their care are by definition considered to form only one household and are not therefore HMOs and cannot be licensed under HMO licensing schemes Licensing should be enforced on very wealthy homes with multiple staff accommodated in the building The definition of household for the purposes of determining an HMO is contained in The Licensing and Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation and Other Houses (Miscellaneous Provisions) (England) Regulations The effect of the regulations is that most circumstances, staff are regarded to be part of a single household with the occupier. As such the premises would not fall within definition of an HMO and cannot be licensable under an HMO licensing scheme Why is some student accommodation exempt?/ The exemptions to the Council s proposed scheme are an easy way out 18

19 Schedule 14 of the Housing Act 2004 specifies properties which are not HMOs for the purpose of the Act and the Council has no discretion in relation to this. This includes a building which is occupied solely or principally by persons who occupy it for the purpose of undertaking a full-time course of further or higher education at a specified educational establishment or at an educational establishment of a specified description, and where the person managing or having control of it is the educational establishment in question or a specified person or a person of a specified description. Accommodation shared by students (whether or not in full time education) that is not managed or under the control of the educational establishment (or other exempt body) will not be exempt. Properties that are not HMOs for the purpose of the Act also include those which are controlled or managed by a registered social landlord (RSL) Other properties not within the scheme but which are HMOs by definition have been excluded according to risk criteria Comments / questions concerning proposed fees Fees are too low /Fees are too high/are punitive/ The proposed scheme is just a revenue raising exercise for the Council/Licensing fees should be charged as a percentage of rental income/profit from rents or on the size of the HMO or number of tenants/according to the condition of the property at the time of licensing Fees cannot be used for councils to make profit, or be used towards anything other than the administration of the scheme. The fee structure is not intended to be punitive. The fee for licences granted for only one year in certain circumstances is more expensive to reflect the increased associated administrative costs. Where the number of lettings in an HMO is greater than 5, there is a further fee for each additional letting ( 24.40). In this way, the licensing fee is greater for larger HMOs. Please note that the fees proposed do not yet include the full enforcement costs. As a result of the court s ruling in Hemming, the Council s mandatory licensing fees will be reviewed and this review will also affect the proposed Additional Licensing fees should the scheme be introduced. Fees are kept under review annually Will licensing fees make the scheme self-sufficient or not and who will foot the bill if it doesn t? It is intended that the licence fee income will make the scheme selfsufficient. 19

20 1.5.3 Comments / questions relating to the extent of the proposed scheme Nowhere in Barnet or in as few areas as possible The comment is unqualified but noted Other suggestions for a limited Additional Licensing Scheme - Railway terraces in Cricklewood/Totteridge /Wood Green/Cockfosters/East Barnet/Grahame Park/ Council housing areas Whilst these suggestions were not qualified, they are noted. The Council favours a whole borough approach to ensure the consistency of regulation. Buildings which are controlled or managed by local authorities are exempt from HMO licencing and cannot be an HMO for the purposes of the Housing Act Comments / questions relating to alternatives Agree with Option 2 - the Council should expand its approach/ Additional licensing seems like the best option/is better than the alternatives The comments are unqualified but noted Agree with Option 1 -The Council should maintain its current reactive approach The comment is unqualified but noted The consultation is biased and the Council have already made up their minds/no real alternatives have been out forward The consultation put forward substantive proposals for an Additional Licensing Scheme in Barnet and the results are being conscientiously considered by the Council. Alternatives to an extended licensing scheme have been put forward but are limited to an extent by what it is possible to resource Nowhere in Barnet or in as few areas as possible The comment is unqualified but noted Agree with Option 3 - the Council should target areas with the highest concentrations of HMOs/ Where property is the cheapest/ Where the Council can demonstrate there would be most benefit to the area/ The scheme should be piloted first in 20

21 areas where there are problems or where there are higher concentrations of HMOs/poorer quality housing stock and if successful, applied to the whole borough/ Near Middlesex University/other education providers /concentrations of student accommodation/ Areas with high levels of commercial activities e.g. high street/public transport hubs Given the relatively high number of town centres in Barnet and the location of Middlesex University, HMOs are spread across the borough, although there are some areas in which they occur in higher concentrations. The Council believes that an area based scheme would cause inconsistency in regulation and confusion among landlords and tenants Bad landlords could be identified by introducing a rating system and/or by allowing anonymous complaints to be made. The Council can then investigate accordingly/properties should be inspected and rated or neighbours asked to provide feedback on an HMO We can more easily target the rogue landlords within the licensing framework, create and share intelligence. In this way, the scheme will enable resources to be more effectively targeted toward the improvement of the worst of them. As a more proactive and inclusive approach and through publicity for the scheme, poor conditions can be avoided and standards of management driven up Landlords should be rated and the ratings made publicly available and displayed at the property The Council does not have sufficient resources to run such a scheme. A scheme of this sort would also be voluntary as there is no basis in law to insist that landlords participate. It is likely that only good landlords would take part Help and advice to landlords would be better than regulation/ Voluntary accreditation is a cheaper alternative to licensing and the Council should investigate those who are not accredited The Council is currently drafting guidance about the licensing process and other useful general information for both landlords and tenants about a range of issues with a focus on HMOs. Whilst the Council appreciates the value of giving help and advice, we believe this is not a substitute for licensing and that only the better landlords will respond appropriately to ensure that their premises reach satisfactory standards. Poorer landlords will be easier to identify and target within the licensing framework. We will of course continue to give routine help and advice to landlords and tenants that come to us for assistance. The Council also supports and encourages membership of the London Landlords Accreditation Scheme (LLAS) and other 21

22 similar schemes but again, these are likely only to attract the better landlords and agents to membership. Currently, there are 522 landlords accredited with the LLAS in Barnet. Landlords accredited with the LLAS or similar acceptable scheme will benefit from a 10% discount on the licensing fee Introduce a tenant s registration scheme /fit and proper persons test for tenants Whilst the Housing Act 2004 requires that the Council must satisfy itself that licence holders and managers along with any other persons involved in the management of an HMO must be a fit and proper persons for licensing purposes, there is no such requirement for tenants nor is there a statutory requirement for tenants to be registered for the purposes of licensing. We are however drafting guidance to landlords and tenants about various issues and this will include an outline of the standards expected of each them and advice to landlords about matters such as pre-letting background checks What more can be done with existing powers and initiatives first? The Council have looked at the alternatives but these are more resource intensive or unlikely to be effective given the proactive approach that would be adopted under the licensing framework Comments which address issues beyond the scope of the scheme and broader Housing Strategy Barnet should introduce some form of rent control There are no statutory provisions available to the Council to cap rents in the PRS or to change benefits to accommodate rents rises as this is all controlled by central government Comments which address issues beyond the scope of the scheme and broader Housing Strategy Tenants are being priced out because of general market conditions The Council are also concerned about the problems with rising rents in Barnet and in particular, that as a result there are poor conditions in some HMOs, which the proposed new scheme will address through the licensing process. The Council deals with the issues of affordability as part of the their Housing Strategy which you can read at 22

23 1.7.4 The issue of licensing should be introduced as a London-wide or national scheme Five of the seven adjacent boroughs have introduced schemes, including Haringey, Islington, Camden, Harrow and Brent. Of these Camden, Harrow and Brent all have borough wide additional licensing schemes. As such large areas are now committed to an extended HMO licensing approach. The Government are also reviewing the existing mandatory HMO licensing scheme to see if it can be extended There should be mechanisms in place to protect the exploitation of tenants by their landlords and or their agents/there should be information on tenant s rights / education for tenants/there should be free legal advice to stakeholders about general management issues /There must be education and enforcement of standards concerning waste disposal, recycling, fly-tipping, cleanliness and vermin Licence conditions will help protect tenants living in HMOs by ensuring that basic health and safety measures are in place. This will be supported by the use of the Council s other powers where necessary. We are currently drafting a guide to landlords and tenants about licensing and other housing matters, which will provide further advice and information about these issues Further advice can be found at the Citizens Advice Bureau s website here There should be rules about notice for property inspections by landlord s or their agents A landlord has a right to reasonable access to carry out repairs. What reasonable access means will depend on the circumstances. Landlords have a right to enter a property to inspect the state of repair or to empty a fuel slot meter, but they should always ask for the tenant s permission and give at least 24 hours notice. In an emergency, a landlord is entitled to immediate access to carry out urgent repairs. A good tenancy agreement should set out what notice should be given for inspections and repairs and in what situations Information should be given to neighbours before properties are granted permission to become HMOs Where a planning application is received for the conversion of a house to an HMO, the immediate neighbours as a minimum will receive letters advising them of this and giving them the opportunity to object. A street notice will also be posted. 23

24 1.7.8 There should be areas designated as smoking areas where there is low risk The Council generally do not encourage smoking because of the effect on health and because smoking is a potential cause of fire in HMOs. It may be possible to designate some areas as smoking areas but only as part of the proper and professionally undertaken fire risk assessment required under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order It must also be appreciated that there are legal requirements of the Health Act 2006, which can in certain circumstances prevent smoking in the common parts of an HMO or in any shared rooms including for example, shared bathrooms and living rooms. This will apply where the HMO is either open to the public or is a workplace to more than one person. It might be possible to keep the premises smoke free by including a suitable term or condition in the tenancy agreement which prohibits smoking The proposed scheme should be incorporated into the mandatory licensing scheme Currently, the Government are consulting on an extension to mandatory HMO licensing but it is not clear what, if any HMOs might be involved in any extended provisions and whether or not this will include properties that will fall to be licensed in the Council s proposed scheme. The Council has however identified a need for the proposed scheme for Additional Licensing in Barnet and can see no reason why it should not proceed with it The real problem is the general lack of affordable housing/ There should be better strategic housing initiatives/the Council should create more affordable housing especially for working people and families The Council s Housing Strategy sets out how it will increase the housing supply including affordable housing. More information can be found here Housing and planning practices are required to influence the social and private rented sector/ Planning restrictions should apply as an alternative to licensing/planning restrictions should also apply Barnet s Housing Strategy seeks to improve the quality of housing across the borough and in particular, tackle the issue of poor quality housing in the private rented sector. The proposal to introduce Additional Licensing in Barnet and a crackdown on rogue landlords and sub-standard properties, working directly with landlords is part of the strategy. An Article 4 Directive 24