Breaching a planning enforcement notice is a serious offence and landlords should take careful note of a case in which a property owner was stripped of over £500,000 in rent paid on a house which had been converted into 12 flats without planning consent. After
The freeholds of a great many blocks of flats are held by tenant-owned companies which operate on democratic principles. Such arrangements are, however, not a panacea and disagreements can arise. A guideline Supreme Court decision will, however, make it easier for tenants to know where
The COVID-19 crisis has heralded such an avalanche of emergency legislation that it cannot be passed into law quickly enough. In a unique insolvency case on point, the High Court blocked a commercial landlord from presenting a winding up petition against a high-street retailer in
It is a regrettable fact that social housing tenants, many of them vulnerable, are more exposed than many to the malign activities of nuisance neighbours. However, as one case showed, their complaints do not go unheard by judges, who have a panoply of powers to
The tough approach being taken by hard-pressed social housing providers towards those who have obtained their tenancies by deception has received the backing of the Court of Appeal. The case concerned parents of two young children who sought homelessness assistance from a local authority which
Residential landlords who fail to meet their extensive legal obligations put themselves at risk of severe financial consequences and reliance on the advice of professional letting agents is no defence. In a case on point, an otherwise responsible private landlord who let a house in
Local authorities are under a duty, so far as reasonably practicable, to accommodate homeless people in the areas where they have put down roots. The extent of that duty came under Court of Appeal analysis in an important case for social housing providers. The case
Does a social landlord’s failure to have due regard to a nuisance tenant’s disabilities necessarily preclude their eviction? In a guideline decision concerning a flat frequented by antisocial drug dealers, the Court of Appeal answered that question emphatically in the negative. The flat’s tenant was
Social housing is strictly for those in need and tenants who abuse their position by subletting their homes will be dealt with severely by the courts. In one case, the head of a local authority housing department who did just that was hit hard in
Discrimination in favour of one section of society over others can in some cases be justified as a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. In a guideline ruling, the Court of Appeal found that that exception applied to a social housing charity that preferred
