Newham mayor urges government to rethink its housing strategy for the private rental sector (PRS) – Newham Council

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In its report issued on Wednesday May 24, Central London has called on the Government and the Department for Equalization, Housing and Communities to delegate to councils the powers to monitor private sector rental housing and to increase funding for its application.https://centreforlondon.org/publication/licence-to-let/).

Mayor of Newham Rokhsana Fiaz OBE He said: “We welcome this report from Central London.

“Newham is the national pioneer in Private Rental Sector (PRS) licenses and has been running ownership schemes since 2013. PRS licenses have enabled this Council to tackle the worst of ‘rogue landlords’ who exploit residents in the face of a totally broken situation. real-estate market.

“Despite its acknowledged success, since 2015 the Council has been forced to seek government approval for its plan every five years, which is a very costly and bureaucratic process, and takes funds and resources away from our ability to enforce. and improve standards.

“I support calls for PRS’s licensing powers to be returned to local authorities like Newham, who know their own property markets and how best to regulate them. There must also be a substantial increase in trained staff and funding from local authorities to enable effective implementation of the PRS.

“Any property portal for a national register of landlords, as mentioned in recent tenant reform bills, should be designed to work alongside local authority licensing schemes and not replace them.”

The housing crisis has hit Newham harder than any other London borough with the biggest rent increases in the capital in the last three years, and where a lack of social housing, skyrocketing house prices and unaffordable mortgages have pushed 54 percent of our households into the PRS. .

Newham’s latest Licensing Scheme (which expired at the end of February 2023) saw 42,000 licensed properties, of which 70 per cent were subject to officer visits or audits. Since the start of the Covid19 pandemic, an average of 800 license compliance inspections have been conducted each month to verify property condition, safety, and management.

From 2018-2022*:

• 84 property owners were prohibited from licensing properties.
• Nearly 2,000 license infringement investigations were carried out and 342 final notices of financial penalty were issued, with fines ranging from £5,000 to £30,000.
• 6,447 execution letters were sent.

The new Newham Licensing Scheme, which covers the whole borough (with the exception of Stratford Olympic Park and Royal Victoria Wards) will go live on 1 June 2023 – all private landlords in the other boroughs without a valid exemption They must apply for a new license. and more details at: www.newham.gov.uk/housing-homes-homelessness/rented-property-licensing

Cllr Carleene Lee-Phakoe Cabinet Member for Housing Needs, Homeless and Private Sector Rented He said: “The property license helps to ensure that privately rented properties are well managed. It also helps improve housing standards, address antisocial behavior, and keep our residents safe. It ensures that responsible homeowners are supported and creates a level playing field so that responsible homeowners are not undermined by unscrupulous or dishonest landlords.

“I want to remind all of our Newham homeowners to apply for their new license and encourage you to take full advantage of our early bird discount rate. £400 for the cost of a Selective License application, instead of £750.

“To qualify, you must submit your selective license application by July 14, 2023. We will also offer discounts to licensees who are certified members of homeowner accrediting organizations and have a home warmer rated EPC C or higher.