Unfair leasehold practices (including ground rents)
On 25 July 2017 the DCLG announced proposals to cut out unfair abuses of leasehold and to establish a fairer, more transparent system for homebuyers. This is the Government’s response to developers – particularly in the north west – increasingly selling houses which require the lessees to pay escalating ground rents. Communities Secretary Sajid Javid has set out plans to ban new build houses being sold as leasehold. Other measures, which are now subject to an 8-week consultation (as to which see
Housing Law Consultations), include: setting ground rents to zero levels – in recent years these have increased significantly, in some cases doubling every 10 years; closing legal loopholes to protect consumers – such as leaving some leaseholders vulnerable to possession orders; and changing the rules on Help to Buy equity loans so that the scheme can be used only to support new build houses on acceptable terms. For the announcement,
click here
Homelessness
On 18 July 2017 the All-Party Parliamentary Group to End Homelessness (APPGEH) published a report –
Homelessness prevention for care leavers, prison leavers and survivors of domestic violence – which finds that it is ‘inexcusable’ that so many of those people already on the radar of police, local authorities, prisons and social services should continue to fall through the net of homelessness prevention. It states that: one-third of care leavers become homeless in the first two years immediately after they leave care and 25 per cent of all homeless people have been in care at some point in their lives; in 2016, 90 per cent of women in refuges were reported to have housing needs and in 2015/16, 6,550 people became homeless because of a violent relationship breakdown, accounting for 11 per cent of all homeless acceptances; in 2015, 35 per cent of female rough sleepers left their homes due to domestic violence; and in 2014, 20 per cent of prisoners said they had no accommodation to go to on release and there are many barriers which can make finding accommodation on release difficult. For the report,
click here For the response of Crisis, which supports the APPGEH,
click here For the response of the Local Government Association,
click here
Temporary accommodation
On 22 July 2017 the Local Government Association published a report –
Housing our Homeless Households – which said that councils are currently providing temporary housing for 120,540 children with their families, which is a net increase of 32,650 (37 per cent) since the second quarter of 2014, an average of 906 extra children every month. The LGA says that this is unsustainable and that councils need to be able to build more genuinely affordable homes and provide the support that reduces the risk of homelessness in the first place. This means councils being able to borrow to build and to keep all the receipts of any home they sell to reinvest in new and existing housing. For the report,
click here For the associated press release,
click here
Grenfell Tower – update on re-housing former residents
On 21 July 2017 the DCLG confirmed that some permanent housing is now available for former residents of Grenfell Tower. The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea has published details of how it will work with families to allocate permanent homes. The information for residents also includes a summary of commitments to residents from the council and government, including: residents will be offered permanent furnished social housing within 12 months and all moving costs will be covered; when residents move out of hotels or emergency accommodation (whether to temporary accommodation or a permanent home) they will not have to pay rent, service charges or core utility bills (gas, water and electricity) during this period; after this 12 month period residents who had held a council tenancy at Grenfell Tower or Grenfell Walk will pay no more in rent and service charges for their permanent social housing than they were paying before; those who did not hold a council tenancy for a flat in Grenfell Tower or Grenfell Walk will be charged at a social rent level. For the announcement,
click here For the RBKC information document,
click here
Grenfell Tower – statement to Parliament
On 20 July 2017 the Communities Secretary, Sajid Javid, made an oral statement to the House of Commons in order to update it on the Government response to the Grenfell Tower tragedy. For the
Hansard record of that statement and responses of other Members of Parliament,
click here
Grenfell Tower inquiry – extension of consultation on terms of reference
On 19 July 2017 Sir Martin Moore-Bick, the chairman of the public inquiry, decided, following feedback from local residents and survivors, to extend the consultation period on the terms of reference of the inquiry, by a further week to 4 August 2017. For details of the consultation,
click here
Large scale cladding systems testing
On 20 July 2017 the DCLG published a note explaining the large scale testing of cladding systems the government is undertaking, to understand better how different types of ACM panels behave with different types of insulation in a fire (these tests can be used to show compliance with the building regulations guidance). These tests are intended to help building owners make decisions about any further action they need to take to make buildings safe, and/or assure themselves that existing cladding systems are already safe. For the explanatory note,
click here
Evictions
On 23 July 2017 the Joseph Rowntree Foundation published a report –
Poverty, evictions and forced moves – which explores the rapid increase in evictions over the last 12 years, and the impact these have had on the lives of tenants who lose their homes. The report shows that: the rented sector has grown in the past 12 years by nearly a half, and the number of tenants being evicted from their homes has grown by a third – 10,000 more tenants lost their homes in 2015 than in 2003; the number of tenants evicted by private landlords exceeded the number evicted by social landlords for the first time in 2014; the increase in repossessions in recent years has been almost entirely due to the increasing use of ‘no fault’ evictions, using section 21 of the Housing Act 1988; and the use of s 21 is highly concentrated geographically – four out of every five repossessions using s 21 are in London, the East and the South East, and nearly two-thirds are in London alone. JRF is calling for the Government to end the freeze on support for housing costs, and uprate Housing Benefit in line with local rents. To download the report and/or its findings,
click here For the wording of s 21 of the Housing Act 1988,
click here
Forces Help to Buy Scheme
On 20 July 2017 the Ministry of Defence published latest statistics for the Forces Help to Buy scheme for June 2017. 633 First Stage applications (ie those which pass initial eligibility checks) were received; 388 Second Stage applications (ie those which pass detailed eligibility checks) were received; 370 payments were made to Service personnel. Since the Scheme began in April 2014: 23,921 First Stage applications have been received; 14,221 of these applications have proceeded to the Second Stage; payment has been made to around 11,500 applicants, totalling just under £174 million, an average of approximately £15,100 per claim. For the full statistics,
click here
Housing Advisers Programme
On 18 July 2017 the Local Government Association unveiled the Housing Advisers Programme – a new scheme to help councils tackle local housing challenges. The Programme, which funds the provision of an independent expert for up to 20 days, is available to local authorities undertaking a specific project that delivers and plans for new homes, reduces homelessness, or helps councils generate savings or revenues. For more details,
click here
Private rented sector policies compared in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
On 21 July 2017 the House of Commons Library published a research briefing which provides a summary of the different approaches adopted by the governments in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in regard to some key areas of private rented sector policy. To read the briefing,
click here
Funding for local authorities from Controlling Migration Fund
On 19 July 2017 the Communities Secretary Sajid Javid announced grants from the Controlling Migration Fund totalling £15 million to local councils to help ease the pressures on local services such as housing, as well as schooling and health services, resulting from recent migration. The fund allows local authorities in England to bid for funding totalling £100 million over four years from 2016/17 to 2019/20. For more details of the announcement,
click here For details of the Controlling Migration Fund,
click here
Landlords licensing scheme – Nottingham
On 18 July 2017 Nottingham City Council announced that a new licensing scheme for Nottingham’s private rented sector has been approved by the Council’s Executive Board. The revised selective licensing scheme includes some changes to the original proposal following an extensive 11-week consultation earlier this year which sought the views of tenants, landlords, letting agents and local people generally. The scheme will now be submitted to the Secretary of State for approval with the aim of introducing it from April 2018. The Council says that the scheme will be self-funding with the cost – £20.96 million over five years – covered by income from licence fees. For the Council’s announcement,
click here
