Since then I've been contacted quite a few times by residents interested in how the scheme is meant work, who will be affected and what it is intended to change so I've published below all available details from the council’s website, along with links to additional information that residents might find useful.
The full text is shown in this article and the link below will take you directly to the county council's website and all relevant documents:
http://www.durham.gov.uk/article/22640/Consultation-on-licensing-of-privately-rented-homes-in-some-areas-of-the-county
The full text is shown in this article and the link below will take you directly to the county council's website and all relevant documents:
http://www.durham.gov.uk/article/22640/Consultation-on-licensing-of-privately-rented-homes-in-some-areas-of-the-county
We are proposing to introduce selective licensing into the county to help to improve the standard of privately rented properties.
All our public events scheduled for May have been cancelled due to the Covid-19. We are committed to carrying out a meaningful consultation and we will provide further information on how we will do this shortly.
The closing date for comments is Sunday 2 August 2020.
Background
We have been given powers by government to bring in selective licensing schemes for areas of privately rented housing where there is one or more of the following:
- low demand for housing
- a significant and persistent problem caused by anti-social behaviour
- poor property conditions
- high levels of migration
- high levels of deprivation
- high levels of crime
We are committed to improving the quality and management of privately rented properties within the County. We believe that selective licensing will allow us to make the improvements to housing and communities, along with our Private Landlord Accreditation Scheme and homelessness and housing strategies.
Find out more about selective licensing.
What we are proposing
From the data we have collected, we are proposing to introduce a licensing scheme in a number of identified areas across the county where we believe one or more of the conditions are met. This would cover approximately 51,000 properties.
The evidence report includes detailed technical data, area profiles (why some areas are in or out of the scheme), the proposed conditions and fees.
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Selective licensing - evidence report (PDF, 2.5mb)
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How it may affect you
- landlords: will need to apply and pay for a licence of approximately £500 for each residential property they rent out in each designated area, and show they have adequate management arrangements in place, are a fit and proper person, follow the licence conditions, and help to deal with anti-social behaviour in their properties. The licence is renewable every five years, and if they don't have a licence or breach the licence conditions, they could be fined or taken to court.
- tenants: if the rental property is in one of the proposed areas, the landlord will need to apply and pay for a licence and ensure your property is well managed
- communities: well managed and maintained housing should lead to a reduction in anti-social behaviour and improvements for local communities
Licensing conditions
Every licence must contain certain mandatory conditions and we can include additional conditions. These are:
- mandatory licence conditions (eg gas safety, electrical appliances and furniture safety, smoke and carbon monoxide detection, tenancy agreements and references)
- conditions around the tenancy management (eg tenancy deposits, access to property, rent payments and documentation)
- conditions around property management (examples include ensuring the property is safe, secure and maintained, energy performance, and removal of waste)
- conditions around complaints of anti-social behaviour
Which areas are covered under the proposals
You can either use a map or a spreadsheet to look up which areas are being proposed. If you are having problems using them, please contact us for further help.
Have your say
- selective licensing consultation form
- contact us for a paper copy of the consultation pack
We are investigating extra ways of consulting, to make sure we are carrying out a meaningful consultation and we will provide further information shortly.
Next steps
We will look at the feedback and the results, and make a decision on whether to go ahead with a selective licensing scheme. If this is to happen, we need to agree the area boundaries and submit a business case to the Secretary of State for approval.