Skip to main content

Housing and Planning Act 2016: business development briefing

2306 Hits
Housing and Planning Act 2016: business development briefing

We received the following update from John Saulet of Saulet Townshend Limited, Solicitors which includes a useful update on recovering abandoned premises.

"Landlords and property agents will be interested in the implications of the Housing and Planning Act 2016 (HPA 2016), which introduces a range of planning and housing reforms, none of which are currently in force.

Banning orders

Local housing authorities (LHAs) in England can apply to the First-tier Tribunal for banning orders against a residential landlord or property agent who has been convicted of a "banning offence". The definition of a banning offence is to be set out in regulations made by the Secretary of State. Banning orders will be used to prevent a person from:

  • Letting housing in England.
  • Engaging in English letting agency work.
  • Engaging in English property management work.

A banning order must last for at least 12 months, although a banning order may contain exceptions for some or all of the period to which it relates (for example, if there are existing tenants in a property). A breach is punishable by imprisonment or a fine of up to £30,000.

Breach of a banning order does not invalidate or affect the enforceability of any provision of a tenancy or other contract. In particular, this is to ensure that a tenancy agreement cannot be found to be invalid on the basis that it was granted when a landlord or property agent was subject to a banning order.

LHAs in England will maintain a database of persons convicted of a banning order offence and every LHA in England will have access to information in the database.

Recovering abandoned premises

Part 3 of the HPA 2016 sets out a procedure that a landlord may follow to recover possession of a property let under an assured shorthold tenancy, where it has been abandoned, without the need for a court order. It relates to properties in England only.

Section 57 of the HPA 2016 provides that a private landlord may give a tenant notice bringing the tenancy to an end on the day on which the notice is given, if all of the following apply:

  • The tenancy relates to premises in England.
  • Rent has not been paid.
  • The landlord has given a series of warning notices and no tenant, named occupier or deposit payer has responded in writing to any of those warning notices before the date specified in the warning notices. A named occupier is a person permitted under the tenancy to live at the premises. A deposit payer is a person who paid a tenancy deposit on behalf of the tenant.

The tenant can apply for their tenancy to be reinstated if they had a good reason for failing to respond to the warning notices."

Tweet
Proposal for new student hall in Isambard Brunel R...
Webinar on Evicting Tenants

About the author

Martin Silman

Martin began his landlord journey 30 years ago, while working in an international role for a global telecommunications company. Since retiring he has extended his portfolio, which he manages with his wife, but has always focussed on the ‘small student HMO’ sector preferring to offer homes in the community for small groups to the more common ‘pack them in and take the money’ mentality. He has chaired the PDPLA for the past 12 years and has overseen the Associations transition from small local self-help group to a much larger and more professional institution which is recognised and listened to nationally. Alongside his PDPLA role, he also has leadership roles in a number of other local organisations – bringing his unique perspective, driving for change and increased use of technology while respecting the history that brought us here.

Related Posts