The Housing and Planning Bill 2015-2016 is currently being
discussed in the House of Lords and is well on its way to becoming live
legislation.
This new legislation proposes a lot of changes and is in its
final planning stages, so some of this article may become inaccurate with
further changes to the bill. It is also not in force at the time of writing.
What are the main changes it proposes?
Banning order
This bill proposes a ‘banning order’ on ‘rogue landlords and
letting agents’. The order must last for
at least 12 months and will ban a person from letting housing, engaging in
letting/agency work or property management work. A banning order can only be
made by a local housing authority.
It may grant exceptions to allow existing tenancies which
cannot be immediately ended or to allow a business to wind down. The ban may
also specify that someone with a banning order may not be a part of a company
that undertakes that work.
A banning order may be placed on a person, or on a company
and its acting officers. A breach of a banning order is an offence.
Database of
Rogue Landlords and Letting Agents
The Secretary of State will establish and operate a database
of rogue landlords and property agents – a ‘rogue’ landlord or letting agent is
one with a banning order. They must be listed on the system for the whole
duration of their banning order. Local authorities will be responsible for
maintenance, updating and editing.
Information that will be included on the database will
include person’s address and contact details, how long the entry will last,
details of property owned/managed, details of any convicted banning orders,
details of any banning orders made (whether still in force or not) and details
of fines received. If a corporate body is entered, its officers must also be
entered.
Rent
Repayment Orders
Rent repayments from landlords can be applied for by a tenant
or by a local housing authority. Rent repayments to tenants or the local
housing authority can be enforced if a landlord has committed one of the
following offences:
-
Violence for securing entry
-
Eviction or harassment
-
Non-compliance with an improvement notice
-
Non-compliance with a prohibition order
-
Control/management of an unlicensed HMO
-
Control/management of an unlicensed house
-
Breach of banning order
If a landlord is convicted and gains a banning order, the
local housing authority must consider applying for a rent repayment order.
Recovering
Abandoned Premises in England
A landlord may give three separate notices in order to
recover abandoned premises. The notices must be given in the same fashion as a
Section 21 notice would be delivered to the tenant’s premises, to their last
known address, etc.
1) The first
notice can be given before the tenant is two months in arrears (for an Assured
Shorthold Tenancy paid monthly) and can be given when the landlord believes the
property is abandoned. It must give at least a two month window in which the
tenant can respond before a landlord recovers possession of the property.
2) The second
notice can be given if the tenant is two months in arrears in paying a monthly
rent and has not responded to the first notice. It must also be given at least
two weeks after the first notice and no later than four weeks after the first
notice. If any rent payment is made, these notices are invalid.
3) The third
and final notice must be given before the five days ending with the date
specified in previous warning notices.
Notices are not valid if the tenant contacts the landlord or
makes a rent payment.
A tenant may apply to reinstate a tenancy if it is ended in
this way if they had a good reason for not responding to the notices.
A landlord may give a tenant notice to bring an assured
shorthold tenancy to an end on the day which the notice is given if the above
notices have been given correctly.
Below are links to the relevant legislation on the government
website.
Housing and Planning Bill
(HL Bill 110)
Housing and Planning Bill
2015-2016
