Lime
Legal's
Housing Law Week
General Editor: Jan Luba QC
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15
October 2014 Update
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HOUSING LAW NEWS
New
Housing Laws
The
Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 (Commencement No. 1, Transitional and Saving
Provisions) Order 2014
Laid
on 9 October 2014. It sets dates for bringing into force parts of the 2014
Act, including the fixing of 1 August 2016 as the date on which the right
to buy will end in Scotland. For a copy of the Order, click
here.
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Housing
Laws in the Pipeline
Consumer
Rights Bill.
This
is a government bill that relates to housing by: (1) repealing and
replacing laws dealing with unfair terms in tenancy agreements and other
contracts; and (2) requiring letting agents to publish their fees. The
next stage of the bill is the Lords Committee Stage starting on 13 October
2014. For details about the bill and its progress, click
here.
Deregulation
Bill.
This is a government bill that relates to housing by: (1) reducing the qualifying
period for right to buy; (2) removing the power to require preparation of
housing strategies; and (3) amending the law on tenancy deposits. The next
stage of the bill is the Lords Committee Stage starting on 21 October
2014. For details about the bill and its progress, click
here.
Policy
Issues in Housing Law
Homelessness
Every
Health and Wellbeing Board is required to produce a Joint Strategic Needs
Assessment (JSNA), identifying health needs in its local area. A new
report from Homeless Link and St Mungo’s addresses the importance of
including the health issues of homeless people when producing a local JSNA
and contains many useful references to data on the links between
homelessness and poor health. For a copy of the report, click
here.
Right
to buy
The
Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has taken new steps
to promote the right to buy in England by the creation of a website of
resources for council and housing association tenants who may be
interested in buying their homes. The website includes a self-calculator
of the discount likely to be available. For the new website, click
here.
Tenancies
in social housing
The
Chartered Institute of Housing has published a new booklet for social
landlords: How
to create sustainable tenancies. For a copy, click
here.
‘The
Bedroom Tax’
The
House of Commons Library has published two useful briefing notes on
aspects of the so-called bedroom tax. The first reviews the available
research and data on the impact of the measure. For a copy of that, click
here.
The second contains an analysis of the voting patterns of parliamentary
parties when the measure has been discussed. For a copy of that, click
here.
On 26 September 2014 the DWP released an Urgent
Housing Benefit Bulletin HB U4/2014 about the results of a number of
bedroom tax cases that have now been heard by the Upper Tribunal in
Scotland. For a copy, click
here.
Complaints
about housing
The
latest annual report of the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman shows that
the largest category of complaint against Scottish councils (a quarter of
the total) relates to housing problems. For a copy of the report,
containing examples of such complaints, click
here.
Private renting (1)
Since
1 October 2014 letting agents and managing agents in England have been
required to belong to one of three redress schemes. DCLG has now published
guidance directed at the defaulting agents who have yet to join a scheme: Lettings
Agents and Property Managers: Which Government approved redress scheme do
you belong to? For a copy of that guidance, click
here.
Private renting (2)
From
1 December 2014, landlords in several parts of the Midlands will be
required to comply with the provisions of the Immigration Act 2014
relating to prohibited lettings to some migrants. The particular
difficulties thrown up when migrants do not carry documentation about
their status are reviewed in the new publication Housing
and Homelessness of Undocumented Migrants in Europe: Developing Strategies
and Good Practices to Ensure Access to Housing and Shelter. For a
copy, click
here.
Housing Conditions
The latest report on the standards of social housing in Wales shows that
some 12 years after the Welsh Housing Quality Standard was introduced, a
third of homes still fail it. For a copy of the report, click
here.
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NEW
HOUSING LAW CASES
Graves v Capital Home Loans Ltd
9 October 2014
Mr Graves took out a buy-to-let mortgage, He fell into arrears. The lender
appointed receivers and, later, the property was sold leaving a shortfall
outstanding. Mr Graves brought proceedings against the lender. His claim
was struck-out. A first appeal was dismissed. He brought a second appeal
contending that the lender had acted unfairly and in breach of the
‘unfair relationships’ provisions of sections 140A and 140B Consumer
Credit Act 1974. The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal holding that it
would “have to be an exceptional case for the Court to conclude that a
mortgagee whose power of sale had become exercisable due to the
non-payment of the mortgage instalments was to be treated as having acted
unfairly in deciding to realise its security”. For the full judgment, click
here.
Ajilore v Hackney LBC
8
October 2014
The appellant was a young man with a history of using illegal substances, mental health
issues, imprisonment and exclusion from the parental home. He applied as
homeless. The council decided that he was not ‘vulnerable’ because his
situation was no different from that of the average or ordinary
street-homeless person. An appeal was dismissed by the county court. A
second appeal was dismissed by the Court of Appeal. For the judgment, click
here.
R (Nicolson) v Tottenham Magistrates and Haringey LBC
7
October 2014
Following a contested hearing in the Administrative Court, the claimant
– a defaulting council tax payer – was granted permission to apply for
a judicial review of the award of £125 costs imposed when Haringey
Council issued proceedings against him. He contends that the amount
did not reflect the council’s actual costs in his case but represented a
fixed sum sought and awarded in scores of other such applications made by the same council. For a note of the judgment, click
here.
For a news story on the case, click
here.
North West Leicestershire District Council v Karen and Kenneth Riley
3
October 2014.
The defendants were among six people prosecuted by the council for having
untidy gardens. The council had exercised its powers under section 215 of
the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (to serve notice if a piece of land
has an adverse effect on the amenity of an area). Notices served were not
complied-with. Mr and Mrs Riley’s garden was found to be not only
untidy, but also home to a pig. At
Leicester Magistrates’ Court, the couple were each fined £90 and
ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £20 and the council’s costs –
making a total of £920. For details of the prosecution, click
here.
Ealing Council v Muhammad Sohaib Anwar
29
September 2014
The defendant was a private landlord. Without planning permission, he
changed the layout of an ordinary house to create a nine bedroom HMO with shared kitchen and bathroom facilities. He was
served with an enforcement notice under the Town and Country Planning Act
1990 to cease use of the property as an HMO,
remove one of the kitchens and return the property to its former state as
a single-family home. He
later pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to comply with the notice.
Isleworth Crown Court made a confiscation order of £31,969 in respect of
the benefit of his criminal conduct (the rent received), imposed a £2,500
fine and awarded £7,088.95 costs. For details of the prosecution, click
here.
Scarborough Borough Council v Edward Winter
19
September 2014
The defendant was the landlord of a licensed HMO known as “The Breece”. On 8 September
2014 there were 27 people living at the property. Following a wide range
of serious antisocial behaviour over a nine month period, the council
served a closure notice under Part1A of the Anti-social Behaviour Act
2003. 18 of the occupiers then left. Scarborough Magistrates’ Court
granted the council a three month Closure Order requiring the remaining
nine occupants to leave. For more details of the proceedings, click
here.
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HOUSING
LAW CONSULTATIONS
Renting
Homes.
The
Welsh Government proposes to implement the Law Commission’s recommendations
for simpler types of tenancy across rented housing. It is consulting on an
illustrative model contract and supporting guidance. Closing date: 14
October 2014. For a copy of the consultation paper, click
here.
Data
sharing in social housing.
The DWP is consulting about arrangements to share data with social
landlords about benefit claims by tenants. Closing date: 19
October 2014. For a copy of the consultation paper, click
here.
Right
to Move.
The DCLG is consulting about new provisions for lettings in social
housing. For example, do we need a new "reasonable preference"
category in England for those moving to take up work? Closing date: 22
October 2014. For a copy of the consultation paper, click
here.
Travellers.
The
DCLG is consulting on new planning restrictions which will affect gypsies
and travellers without authorised sites. In addition to the formal
consultation paper, there is an easy read version and an equality
assessment. Closing date: 23
November 2014. For a copy of the consultation paper, click
here.
Consultation
on a New Tenancy for the Private Sector.
The Scottish Government is consulting on new arrangements for security of
tenure and/or rent control in the private rented sector. Closing date: 28
December 2014. For a copy of the consultation paper, click
here.
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NEW
HOUSING LAW
ARTICLES & PUBLICATIONS
The
new Anti-social Behaviour Act 2014 – what it means for landlords and
tenants: Part 2 [2014]
18 Landlord & Tenant Review
165
Tenancy deposits again
[2014] 18 Landlord & Tenant
Review 191
Housing
and homelessness update
[2014]
25 September. Local Government
Lawyer. To read the article, click
here.
Ordinary Residence: homeless children
[2014]
2 October. Local Government Lawyer.
To read the article, click
here.
Regenerating Southwark: urban renewal prompts social cleansing fears.
Dave Hill [2014] 7 October. The
Guardian. To read the article, click
here.
Passport patrol for renting a home.
Dawn Foster [2014] 10 October. Inside
Housing. To read the article, click
here.
The legal year ahead (Housing law).
[2014] 10 October. Inside Housing. To read the article, click
here.
Who’s who in Housing law. [2014]
10 October. Inside Housing. To read the article, click
here.
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THE
OCTOBER HOUSING LAW DIARY
14 October
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Lime Legal’s Housing Allocations
Conference. Click here
to buy the conference notes
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14 October
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End
of ‘Renting homes’ consultation (see Consultations
above)
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15 October
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Lime Legal’s Housing & Anti-social
Behaviour Conference. Click here
to buy the conference notes
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19 October
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End
of ‘data-sharing’ consultation (see Consultations
above)
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20 October
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New tools and powers under Anti-social
Behaviour Act 2014 due to come into force in England
(see New Housing
Laws above)
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21 October
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Supreme Court to hear a case about damages for
unlawful eviction by a local authority. Click
here
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21 October
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Lords
Committee Stage starts of the Deregulation Bill (see Housing
Laws in the Pipeline above)
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22 October
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End
of ‘right to move’ consultation (see Consultations
above)
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Legal's Housing Law Week
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