16th
Aug 2015
Harrow Council, in its infinite wisdom, is introducing a new landlord licensing scheme that could infringe upon tenants’ privacy because of one of its stipulations that landlords must obey.
Within its Selective Licensing scheme, that is due to be introduced on 1st November, there is the clause that landlords must carry out a monthly inspection of their privately rented homes.
The most disturbing part of this conditionality, is that the landlord and tenant can only have 24 hours notice from the council that they intend to enter the property to ensure that the clause has been followed.
Landlords must also maintain the property’s exterior and if there are non domestic waste or bulky items outside the home, then they must remove them.
A council spokesman said that its sole intention with the introduction of the scheme is to help reduce anti-social behavior.
A Landlords’ representative for the area states that the scheme will cause: “the harassment of tenants in their own homes’ through the council ‘putting the responsibility on to landlords.”
He added: ‘The council has displayed an incredible lack of understanding of how private housing works.”
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