Council rethinks landlord licensing scheme

Croydon council has revised its proposals for a landlord licensing scheme after pressure from the National Landlords Association.

The local council claimed that some areas of Croydon had been blighted by anti-social behaviour, with landlord licensing across the borough seen by the authority as one way of tackling the problems.

However, the NLA says it has been successful at securing the council's agreement to consider limiting the licensing scheme to only those specific areas suffering anti-social behaviour.

Licensing is a powerful tool at the disposal of local authorities and should only be used where issues in specific areas are directly attributable to poor property management or standards of private rented housing, says the association, which regards the rethink as a success.

Croydon's problems are based on anti-social behaviour, something which landlords have no control over other than by eviction, which just moves the problem on. If Croydon council is serious about tackling poor property standards and anti-social behaviour, it should first look to the extensive existing legal powers it already has to deal effectively with the issues" claims NLA chief executive Richard Lambert.

Lambert says the association remains by the options the council is considering, it is at least glad that a street by street approach is to be taken, as this will target the problem directly and manage those who are not following the law.

Implementing a borough- or ward-wide scheme will only result in higher housing costs for landlords which will inevitably be passed on to the tenant says Lambert.