Landlord with the most convictions in England and Wales

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Permalink Reply by Florence on July 23, 2015 at 9:13

As they say the fines are just a drop in the ocean to these people who don't mind taking the money but not the responsibilities.

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Permalink Reply by Protheroe O'Shea on July 23, 2015 at 11:46

I genuinely feel that councils should be allowed to take compulsory ownership of houses belonging to slum landlords who continuously flout the health and safety of their tenants. Unfortunately with the benefits cap this will only get worse.

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Permalink Reply by Michael Anderson on July 23, 2015 at 12:15

Under certain circumstances local authorities can use compulsory purchase but if they do -

They have to compensate the owner for the value of the property - so big bucks in London
They have to bear the cost of bringing the property up to habitable or safe standards
They take on the management of the property if it is tenanted
They take on responsibility for finding occupants a new home if the property simply can't be lived in

In these circumstances a lot of local authorities only use the power as a rare, last option. They mainly try to work with the owner to bring it up to standard and if that doesn't work, take them to court. They can also carry out works in default themselves and the try to pursue the pay back of the costs. A property that has got to this stage usually has an owner who doesn't want to play ball so recovering costs proves very difficult.

There was a saga with a beautiful early Victorian house in Hampstead which was actually falling down. The council wanted to CPO it but the ownership was such a tangled web of companies and off shore businesses all they could do for a couple of decades was shore it up and put up a fence to stop in falling on passers by.

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Permalink Reply by Protheroe O'Shea on July 23, 2015 at 12:27

Good point. It would be better just to chuck the owners in prison. Preferably one that was poorly maintained and overcrowded.

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Permalink Reply by Michael Anderson on July 23, 2015 at 12:38

Yes, perhaps the experience of a "studio apartment (cell) with ensuite (slop bucket) and shared facilities (6 showers between 200 blokes)" would awaken some sense of understanding for the conditions some of their tenants live in. Could even charge them market rents. So if it was Wandsworth nick, £1,500 a month?

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