An interesting side effect of Newham Borough’s buy to let licensing scheme has been a rise in the number of arrests for all kinds of criminal activity, most notably for immigration offences, assault, fraud and theft charges. Enforcing a landlord license scheme has thrown the spotlight on to people who might ordinarily have stayed in the shadows. Now, though, landlords who fail to sign up for the license scheme are investigated and if they are up to no good, they are prosecuted.
Criminal Activities in Rental Homes
The law of averages suggests that the criminal fraternity are going to be using at least some rental homes in a given area. In Newham, the percentage of rented homes used by criminals is 5%. In fact more than 110 landlords have been investigated since the scheme came into force at the beginning of the year. More than half of the investigations were as a result of landlords failing to obtain a landlord license or not managing HMOs correctly.
Warning Letters
More than two thousand properties were sent warning letters advising landlords to sign up for the licensing scheme. More than 50% of those to receive a letter were concerned enough to go off and do exactly that.
Good Landlords Welcome in Newham
Newham’s Mayor, Sir Robin Wales, is pleased with how the landlord license scheme is progressing. He feels that on the whole the scheme has been a big success and that tenants and landlords have benefited.
“This scheme shows that Newham is leading the country when it comes to tackling bad landlords who flout the law,” he said.
