Oxford leads way on licensing of homes (From Oxford Mail)
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Oxford leads way on licensing of homes
6:00pm Thursday 29th July 2010 in
OXFORD City Council is to become the first in the country to adopt new licensing powers to control houses of multiple occupation (HMOs).
The scheme, which could cost £591,931 a year to run, will apply across the city with every HMO, apart from certain self-contained flats, needing a licence.
Oxford has one of the highest number of HMOs in the country – about 5,000 – and for years east Oxford residents have complained about the conversion of family homes into flats.
Since 2006, the council has licensed large three-storey HMOs that contain five or more tenants. More than 600 licences have been issued.
In January, then housing minister John Healey announced the new powers on a visit to Oxford, and today John Denham, shadow secretary of state for communities and local government, is visiting the city to discuss the initiative with councillors.
Joe McManners, the council’s executive member for housing, said: “Residents told us that the council needed to do more to control the impact of HMOs and we’ve listened to what they’ve had to say.
“We’ve tried using all our existing powers but they haven’t been enough to make the difference that’s needed.
“We believe that additional licensing will provide us with those extra powers and that it will have a positive impact.”
Council spokesman Louisa Dean said properties where three or more unrelated people shared facilities would require licences.
Jan Bartlett, owner of Cowley Road firm Premier Letting, said the cost of running the scheme could be prohibitive if some landlords failed to pay licence fees. She urged the council to save money by using a team of letting agents to police it, instead of hiring new staff.
She added: “The scheme will be difficult to police and bad landlords just won’t sign up.”
In 2005, the House Condition Survey reported that HMOs provided the poorest homes in the city and that 70 per cent were “unsafe”.
Mr McManners said the aim was to improve the living conditions for tenants of HMOs, as they were the worst accommodation in the city.
He said: “We also want all landlords to take greater responsibility for managing their properties, and ensure that the houses they own don’t blight our neighbourhoods with rubbish and anti-social behaviour.”
He added: “Our experience with licensing the larger three-storey properties has been very positive and the council is looking forward to forging closer working relationships with good landlords, creating a level playing field for them, and improving the reputation of the private rented sector in Oxford.
“The scheme will be funded through the licence fees, so there will be no extra cost to council taxpayers.”
An annual licensing system is being adopted, with an inspection being carried out before the first licence is issued. Landlords who try to avoid licensing their houses will face fines.
The new licensing scheme was approved by the council’s executive on Thursday and will come into force on October 25, subject to approval of financial arrangements.
The initial fee for a three-storey HMO and two-storey HMOs with five occupants, is £470, plus £20 for each extra room. Thereafter, an annual fee of £172 is payable.
fore more details, see the council's website.
Comments(4)
Lord Palmerstone
says...
7:28am Fri 30 Jul 10
So it'll be passed on in higher rents, just as taxi licensing costs are passed on in higher taxi fares.
With so many youngsters coming out of "universities" with spurious "degrees" what is there for them but to be licensing officers? I don't know but maybe the penny will drop that leaving after A-level and getting proper work experience is a more sensible option. Leave uni to the 10% for whom it's necessary and who really benefit, as in the 1960's.
newcy
says...
9:27am Fri 30 Jul 10
Unfortunately those who will suffer from this new system are those struggling in low-paid jobs and living in HMOs as the landlords increase rent by a hefty chunk exceeding the cost of the licence, to compensate for the minor irritation on their back pocket that it will cause. I daren't even begin to consider how much more slack slumlords will be about property maintenance using the licence cost as an excuse - more damp, more draughts, more non-functioning plumbing, and more cracks in the walls without even half an effort from the landlord to fix things.
The private-rented sector in Oxford (and Oxfordshire) is huge, and greedy landlords and letting agents -inspired by the market - exploit it for maximum gain. Sadly the quality of the accommodation is often near condemnable. To actually rent somewhere without cracks, draughts, and significant damp costs an horrendous amount - effectively ruling out all the 'insignificant' ordinary workers in favour of the visiting businessmen and their families that Oxford wants to impress. The city that consistently s@£$s on the town to further feather the gown.
Apu Nahasapeemapetilon
says...
3:51am Sat 31 Jul 10
Lord Palmerstone wrote:Taxi fares don't mate, they come out of the drivers pockets. No fare increase since Feb 2009 (3 increases in bus fares since then) and Taxi licensing the most profitable department in the council.
“The scheme will be funded through the licence fees, so there will be no extra cost to council taxpayers.” So it'll be passed on in higher rents, just as taxi licensing costs are passed on in higher taxi fares. With so many youngsters coming out of "universities" with spurious "degrees" what is there for them but to be licensing officers? I don't know but maybe the penny will drop that leaving after A-level and getting proper work experience is a more sensible option. Leave uni to the 10% for whom it's necessary and who really benefit, as in the 1960's.
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Lord Palmerstone says...
9:53pm Thu 29 Jul 10
So it's the final spasm of the deceased Brownblair fiasco. Can we assume that sane councils will ignore it? Anything the Oxford Kremlin does can hardly be worth emulating.