Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Landlord set to lose rents from illegal conversions
Rogue landlords continue to blight the Harringay Ladder - Haringey Council have managed to bring one to book.
A rogue landlord faces fines and having his rents confiscated after losing his appeal against conviction for two illegal house conversions.
Cllr Nilgun Canver, Cabinet Member for the Environment, said:
"Hopefully we will now see justice done. The extra rent accrued while people were living in illegally converted flats may now be confiscated. I hope this is a lesson to all landlords who try to take shortcuts or hope to dodge planning laws."
[name removed] of Southgate converted properties on Hewitt Road and Burgoyne Road N4, to four and five self-contained flats. He had no planning permission for the conversions. Consequently council planning enforcement officers issued enforcement notices requiring him to return the properties to single dwellings.
He was first prosecuted and convicted in 2010 when he failed to comply with the enforcement notice. A further prosecution in 2011 resulted in a second conviction.
Subsequent planning inspection visits found no changes to the properties and he was prosecuted and convicted for a third time in January this year. He unsuccessfully appealed the conviction at Wood Green Crown Court on March 11, arguing he had done all he could to comply with the enforcement notices. The judge dismissed this as 'far too little too late'.
Haringey Council requested that the matter be referred for confiscation proceedings under the Proceeds of Crime Act as so much time had lapsed since the enforcement notices were first in breach. He stands to potentially lose all of the calculated benefits from renting these properties as flats in breach of the enforcement notice and may be fined and asked to pay costs incurred by the council.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by 22yc9bu2wivl7 on
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he's a lawyer, well ex lawyer and threatens me with bankruptcy and making my life hell should I act upon the dissatisfaction were receiving.
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Permalink Reply by ElleCarumba on
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Well you can see the original council statement which includes the name of the landlord here
http://www.haringey.gov.uk/index/news_and_events/latest_news/landlo...
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But they've spelt it wrong on the council release. No g on the end.
Other appearances when googled he makes includes not having gas and electricity safety certificates for 12 Burgonyne Road and some shenanigans as a solictor.
http://www.haringey.gov.uk/index/news_and_events/latest_news/hmo-la...
http://www.haringeyindependent.co.uk/news/10262692.Landlord_fined_a...
http://www.solicitorstribunal.org.uk/Content/documents/9856-2007%20...
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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Thanks for these links, Elle. Now I'd like a photo or two or this notable gentleman.
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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on
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If he was a New Zealander...
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Permalink Reply by empyrean_aisles on
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Jesus. The "shenanigans as a solicitor" include this:
The Investigation Officer found a cash shortage on client account of £544,154.76. This was substantially caused by two fraudulent transfers.
and
The Investigation Officer had reviewed eleven conveyancing matters where there were significant differences between the stated price in the mortgage offer and the actual purchase price paid over to the vendor.
As if buying a property wasn't nerve-wracking enough without worrying if your solicitors were going to hand over the full amount of the loan!! I can only imagine what a nightmare this guy was as a landlord!
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Permalink Reply by Michael Anderson on
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Well done - more please
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Permalink Reply by Alison P on
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Did anyone see the episode of a BBC documentary last year which focused on Caledonian Rd? It was really interesting, not least because of a very boastful landlord who proudly claimed to "convert first and ask for permission later". He owned 40 plus properties, including a series of bedsits under the pavement.
The programme provoked a bit of a backlash against him and apparently Islington are making more of an effort to prosecute illegal conversions:
http://islingtonnow.co.uk/council-cracks-down-on-rogue-landlords/
Don't know if anyone in the same league around here but would love to see a few more prosecutions of landlords like that a clear message that it doesn't pay (in the end...).
I wonder whether Haringey will get the money they are asking for?
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Permalink Reply by pamish on
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Yes I remember the Cally Road guy. His 'conversions' were made by adding borrowed lights into shop storage basements and calling them studio flats. They were about eight feet square and six feet high. He had no trouble letting them. So classic capitalism, those with cash in the first place use it to make more cash, for ever.
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That's an interesting point Neil (about whether experience of private renting might result in a different attitude among the powers that be). I wonder whether the increase in the numbers of people staying in private renting for far longer than their parents ever did might means it gets given some more attention.
On private landlords and planning law, I find some of the legislation bizarre. So if someone converts illegally and manages to hide it for five years (I think that's right) the get away with it? That's crazy.
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Permalink Reply by Karen Alexander on
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I absolutely agree that the council is/has been nowhere aggressive enough over the years - they have used little nuggets of legislation to try and control, for example, on the Harringay Ladder, the conversion of family houses into flats but not before we have lost a great deal of our housing stock to landlords who are just interested in a quick buck and without any regard that people actually have to live in these places. One of the biggest frustrations of my councillorship has been battling to stop houses being divided up and illegal conversions and I know that frustration is shared by residents who end up having to live with the consequences.
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If the planning officers stuck to our local plan (UDP), especially re. restricted conversion areas, when making their delegated decisions we wouldn't have such a problem, but they seem to either ignore it or go out of their way to find excuses and make exceptions.
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