it with you all. I applaud this initiative from Newham Council.
An Olympic borough is using legislation aimed at stripping drug dealers of
their ill-gotten gains to crack down on rogue landlords.
Newham is employing the Proceeds of Crime Act to seize money from people who
charge desperate tenants a fortune to live in sub-standard, and often unsafe,
accommodation.
In a recent case, Stamford Hill-based Sumal and Sons Properties Ltd was ordered
to pay almost £6,000 in costs and fines by Stratford magistrates for illegally
letting a freezing, damp and overcrowded house in Manor Park.
Inner London crown court then ordered the firm to repay about £6,500 in rent
money, ruling it should be counted as a proceed of crime. The Proceeds of Crime
Act enables authorities to recover cash and assets from people convicted of
offences. It is typically used to target gang bosses, drug dealers and
fraudsters.
A Newham spokesman said the council intends to target up to 40 landlords each
year. It also has Britain’s first landlord registration scheme. All those
renting properties must join or face fines of up to £20,000 or even jail. The
scheme covers about 35,000 homes.
About one in three people in Newham lives in rented properties — the highest
proportion in the capital. Meanwhile Hillingdon has set up a taskforce to
tackle the scandal of “beds in sheds”, in which outbuildings are illegally let.
It is thought more than 10,000 sheds and garages are being rented out across
London, often without running water, good sanitation, heating or windows.
The taskforce investigates cases and take them to court, with landlords facing
fines of up to £20,000. Last month Harnek Singh Brar, of Hayes, was fined
£10,000 by Hillingdon magistrates and told to pay costs of £4,000 for breaching
planning law by turning his garage into two “homes”, measuring only 22 square
metres, with basic cooking and washing facilities and no windows.
He erected a partition and rented one half to a family of four, including a
baby, and the other half to a couple with a child. Officers believe he was
demanding £550 a week from each family.
Kay Boycott, director of policy at housing charity Shelter, said: “We want to
see more councils, and government, make a concerted effort to tackle the issue
of rogue landlords.”