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HOUSING LAW NEWS
Policy
Issues in Housing Law
Housing
& ASB injunctions
The
UK Government had intended that the injunction provisions in Part 1 of the
Anti-social Behaviour, Crime & Policing Act 2014 would be brought into
force in January 2015. It seems that the timetable may have slipped to
later this month or even March 2015. The delay is due to the need to amend
legal aid arrangements for defendants. Following a consultation exercise,
the Government has now published its proposed changes to remuneration for
legal aid services in these ASB injunction cases. For a copy, click
here
Housing claims in the courts
The UK Government has issued proposals for another significant increase in
civil court fees, including the costs of issuing possession claims and
other housing cases and making applications in such proceedings (e.g. to
suspend a warrant). For the detailed proposals, click
here
For the impact assessment on the increase to possession claim fees,
click
here (For more information see ‘Consultations’, below.)
Housing work and Legal Aid
The
Law Society of Scotland has issued a discussion papers containing
proposals to remove Housing work from the scope of civil legal aid. For a
copy of the paper, click
here
Discretionary Housing Payments
The
DWP has issued a new circular giving details of the government
contribution and overall expenditure limit for Discretionary Housing
Payments for local authorities in the financial year 2014 to 2015. For a
copy, click
here
‘Bedroom tax’
The
Chartered Institute of Housing has published a new free guide covering the
grounds on which a tenant can appeal against the bedroom tax (social
sector size criteria) and the practical implications of making such an
appeal. It will be useful both for tenants and for the social landlords
assisting them. For a copy, click
here
Homelessness in Wales
The Welsh Government remains intent on implementing the new statutory
homelessness regime in Wales in April 2015. It has now added a
consultation on the terms of a new Code of Guidance to its current
consultation on new homelessness regulations. For the details, see
‘Consultations’ below.
Shared ownership
On
31 January 2015 the UK Government launched a consultation exercise seeking
views on changes to the Homes and Communities Agency guidance on shared
ownership and on the terms of the model shared ownership leases. For more
details see ‘Consultations’ below. The Housing Minister said that
people in shared ownership homes would find it easier and quicker to move
up the property ladder under the measures proposed. For the DCLG press
statement, click
here
Right to Buy
On
22 January 2015, the Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty at the
Welsh Government agreed to an application by Carmarthenshire County
Council to suspend the right to buy in its area for an initial period of
five years. For the details, click
here
Social housing providers
The social housing regulator for England has announced changes to its
regulatory framework for the supervision of social landlords which will
take effect from 1 April 2015. For
a copy of the results of its consultation exercise, click
here
Gypsies & Travellers
The
Traveller Movement has produced a useful new briefing paper on Gypsies,
Travellers and Traveller sites. For a copy, click
here
Building for Private Rent
The UK Government has announced that its financial support designed to
fund the building of houses for private rent is now available on a rolling
programme. For the details, click
here
Landlords and DWP data-sharing
The
Social Security (Information-sharing in relation to Welfare Services etc.)
(Amendment) Regulations 2015 were laid on 23 January 2015 and come into
force on 13 February 2015. They allow the Secretary of State at the DWP to
share relevant information with social landlords. The information shared
will enable social landlords to assess and provide support to tenants who
have made Universal Credit (UC) claims or who receive UC. For the
regulations, click
here For
the consultation paper that preceded them, click
here
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Housing
Laws in the Pipeline
Private Rented Sector
(Decent Homes Standard) Bill
This new Bill would
require private landlords to ensure that any property they let meets the
requirements of the Decent Homes Standard. It is moved by Conservative MP
Laura Sandys. For the debate on its introduction, click
here For more details
of the Bill itself, click
here The Second Reading is scheduled for Friday 6 March 2015.
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. For
more details about the bill and its progress, click
here The bill has
completed its House of Lords stages and the consideration of Lords
Amendments by the House of Commons took place on 12 January 2015.
The Commons disagreed with Lords Amendment 12 and have returned
the Bill to the House of Lords. The Bill now travels back and forth
between the two Houses, until both agree on the text of the Bill. A motion
to extend the carry-over period of the bill by 67 days until 30 March 2015 was
agreed on 12 January 2015 following the consideration of Lords amendments.
The Bill will receive Royal Assent shortly. The Act is then expected to
come into force in October 2015. The UK Government is consulting on the
draft guidance it proposes to issue on the new unfair terms provisions.
For the consultation papers, 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 bill has completed its House of Lords Committee Stage and a
date for Report Stage has been fixed for
3 February 2015. For more details about the bill and its progress, click
here For the amendment
designed to insert provisions relating to retaliatory eviction into the
Bill, click here For the
Marshalled List of Amendments that were expected to be moved on Report, click
here
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NEW
HOUSING LAW CASES
London
Borough of Ealing v Notting Hill Housing Trust
29 January 2015
A housing association property was empty after a tenant moved out and it
was awaiting a re-let. The association claimed exemption from the council
tax under Class B (‘a dwelling owned by a body established for
charitable purposes only, which is unoccupied and has been so for a period
of less than 6 months and was last occupied in furtherance of the objects
of the charity’) . The High Court held that this imposed a requirement
for the association to show that the conditions for the exemption were
satisfied. There could be no presumption in its favour but “a short
written representation by the applicant (which might usefully be done on
some kind of standard form) which addresses all four conditions directly
and which states (a) that based on the material held by the applicant the
conditions are met and (b) that the statement is true to the belief of the
representor, should normally be enough.” For the judgment, click
here
Stolyarova v Russia
29
January 2015
In 2005, the applicant bought a former council flat from a private owner.
The council later discovered that a much earlier transfer of the flat –
and an earlier acquisition of private ownership – had been invalid. A
court set aside the applicant’s title to the flat and made a possession
order. The applicant remained in occupation awaiting eviction. She
complained to the European Court of Human Rights that her rights under
Article 8 (respect for a home) and Article 1 of Protocol 1(respect for
possessions) had been breached. The Court upheld her claim. The defence
that the interference with her rights was proportionate, given the demands
of those on the social housing waiting list and the applicant’s own
right to join that list, were rejected. The court ordered that her title
be reinstated and the possession order be set aside. She was also awarded
compensation. For the judgment, click
here
Alexander v West Bromwich Mortgage Company Ltd
29 January 2015
The claimant was a private landlord. He and several other landlords took
out 25 year buy-to-let tracker mortgages from the defendant lender. Later,
the lender changed the interest rate and gave one month’s notice
terminating the mortgages. The claimant sought declarations that documents
empowering the giving of notice and unilateral changes to the interest
rate were inconsistent with the mortgage offer he had accepted. The High
Court rejected the claim. The interest rate variation and notice
provisions were not inconsistent with the other terms of the loan. For the
judgment, click
here
Akhverdiyev v Azerbaijan
29 January 2015
The applicant and his family lived in a house that he owned in an area
that the local authority designated for redevelopment. Private developers,
acting with the sanction of the local authority, began decanting
occupiers. The applicant was unwilling to leave but, as his neighbours
left, their homes were demolished. His house was isolated in a demolition
site and continued occupation became impossible. He had to leave and, when
he did so, his house was demolished. He complained to the European Court
of Human Rights that his rights under Article 8 and Article 1 of Protocol
1 had been breached. The court found that the local authority had not
complied with domestic legal requirements and so the demolition of the
house had not been “according to law” and breached Article 1. It was
not necessary to separately examine the Article 8 complaint. For the
judgment, click
here
Edwards v Kumarasamy
28
January 2015
The defendant owned a flat in a block of flats. He let it to the claimant.
Later, the claimant tripped on a broken paving slab leading from the front
entrance door of the block across a courtyard to the communal rubbish
bins. The slab had been in disrepair. The Court of Appeal held that for
the purposes of section 11(1A) Landlord & Tenant Act 1985
the path across communal yard was part of the structure or exterior
of the front lobby and was therefore within the landlord’s implied
covenant to repair. That liability was triggered even if the landlord had
no notice or knowledge of the defect. For the judgment, click
here
Jenson v Fappiano
28 January 2015
The defendant was an ‘amateur’ private landlord. The claimant was his
first tenant. A deposit of £1,000 was paid. The landlord failed to
protect it or give the requisite information about deposit protection.
After the tenancy ended, the deposit was repaid. The claimant asked a
court to impose a penalty for non-protection of the deposit. The court
decided that, in all the circumstances, the landlord should pay a penalty
equal to one third of the deposit. For the judgment, click
here.
Walford v Worcesterhire CC
27
January 2015
When a council provides residential accommodation in a care home, it is
entitled to recover the costs from the resident to the extent that they
are able to pay. The Regulations provide that the authority must disregard
"the value of any premises … occupied in whole or in part as their
home" by the resident's partner or child or "other family member
or relative who is aged 60 or over or is incapacitated." The question
raised by this appeal was whether that disregard applies only where the
premises in question are so occupied at the date that the resident goes
into care or whether it can be activated at some later date. By a
majority, the Court of Appeal decided that the latest relevant date was
the date the resident moved into the care home. For the judgment, click
here
Health
and Safety Executive v Vispasp Sarkari
27 January 2015
The defendant was a private landlord who rented out five flats in a block
in London. The HSE discovered that had carried out illegal gas work at the
block on a number of occasions, despite the fact he was not Gas Safe
registered. At Southwark Crown Court, on a guilty plea to breaches of the
Gas Safety (Installation & Use) Regulations, he was sentenced to 12
months’ imprisonment (suspended for two years), 150 hours’ unpaid
community work, a fine of £10,000 and £9,978 costs. For details of the
prosecution, click
here A landlord of the
same name has faced a string of other enforcement actions. For the
details, click
here and here
Oxford City Council v Saimir Selita
23 January 2015
The defendant was a private landlord. When his tenant went abroad to visit
relatives, all the fixtures and fittings were removed from the property
including the kitchen, the bathroom, all the flooring and most of the
internal doors. The house was totally uninhabitable and all the tenant’s
personal possessions were taken from his locked room and dumped in a leaky
garden shed. Many were damaged beyond repair. At Oxford Magistrates'
Court, the landlord was fined £1,800 for harassment with costs of £1,260,
a victim surcharge of £120 and compensation of £3,070. For details of
the prosecution, click
here
Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills v Paul Davison
23
January 2015
Mr Davidson was a director of Docklands and City Lettings Limited, a
lettings and management agency based in the Docklands area of London. The
company failed to protect deposits received from tenants on behalf of
landlords in accordance with the provisions of the Housing Act 2004.
Instead, the money was used for the benefit of the company. It went into
liquidation with a deficiency of £349,519. As a result, 23 tenants and
landlords were exposed to losses of £40,456. Mr Davison gave an
undertaking to the Secretary of State which disqualifies him from managing
or in any way controlling a company or being a director until 24 June
2018. For the details, click
here
Darlington Borough Council v Kieron Munnelly
23 January 2015
The defendant was a private landlord. His tenant was a mother with three
young children. The property had broken heating, draughty windows, damaged
light switches and disrepair to the staircase guarding. The council
considered the state of the property was prejudicial to health and served
a statutory nuisance abatement notice under the Environmental Protection
Act 1990 Part 3. The defendant failed to comply. On a guilty plea he was
fined £1,000 with costs of £500.The work was done by the council in
default at the landlord’s cost. For details of the prosecution, click
here
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HOUSING
LAW CONSULTATIONS
The UK Government has issued proposals for another significant
increase in civil court fees, including the costs of issuing possession
claims. For the consultation paper, click
here For
the impact assessment on the increase to possession claim fees, click
here Responses should be made by 27 February 2015. For
details of how to respond, click
here
The Welsh Government has initiated a consultation on the future of the
Right to Buy in Wales. The consultation runs until 16 April 2015. For the consultation arrangements, click
here
For the consultation paper itself, click
here
The UK Government has launched a consultation exercise seeking views on
changes to the Homes and Communities Agency guidance on shared ownership
and on the terms of the model shared ownership leases. The options include
changes to the operation of the pre-emption right in shared ownership
standard leases and other proposals to streamline the resale of shared
ownership properties. For the consultation details, click
here Responses
should be made by 28 February 2015.
The Welsh Government has published its consultation draft of its new
statutory Code of Guidance on Homelessness & Allocations. For details
of the consultation exercise and arrangements for responses, click
here The
deadline is 23 March 2015.
The Welsh Government has initiated a consultation on the provisions of new
regulations relating to aspects of the handling of homelessness
applications made to local councils in Wales. The consultation runs until 26
February 2015. For the consultation arrangements, click
here For the consultation paper
itself, click
here
The UK Government is undertaking a consultation about its Starter Homes
proposals (designed to enable 100,000 homes to be built over the next 5
years so that more young people can buy their own home) and seeks views
about the proposed planning policy change and its implementation.
Responses are sought by 9 February
2015. For a copy of the consultation paper, click
here
The Welsh Government is undertaking a consultation exercise about: (1) the
designation of a single licensing authority for Wales to manage the
registration of private rented sector properties and the licensing of
landlords and agents under Part 1 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014; and (2)
the requirement of the designated licensing authority to stipulate the
training requirements necessary for a licence for landlords and agents
licensed under the Act and to be given the power to approve trainers and
training courses. Responses are sought by 6
February 2015. For a copy of the consultation paper, click
here
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