Barnet Council, in partnership with Re, will receive £93,000 to develop state-of-the-art, sector-leading technology to combat rogue landlords after a successful funding bid to the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government.
image of a woman using a handheld device
The money will be put into new digital systems to help landlords stay on top of their responsibilities, while improving the lives of renters across the borough.
Councillor Gabriel Rozenberg, Chairman of the Barnet Council Housing Committee, said: “This is a chance for Barnet to pioneer cutting edge technology that will help landlords stay compliant with the law. We also plan to share it with other councils, so this is fantastic news for everybody.”
A new app will be developed to help landlords comply with their licence conditions to ensure that properties are appropriately managed
There will also be a new IT system to help the council’s enforcement officers identify unlicensed Houses of Multiple Occupancy (HMOs) so that they can take action against the owners. Another app will be developed to make it easier for enforcement officers to carry out their enforcement inspections.
The £93,000 awarded to Barnet Council is part of a wider package of funding by the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government to help councils combat rogue landlords.
Barnet Council has a strong record of prosecuting rogue landlords. A Hendon estate agent was ordered to pay £7,150 in September after failing to register a house as a HMO.
Two months later, a property owner and his letting agent were fined £21,168.40 including costs after renting a house to 13 tenants in seven lettings – without a HMO licence. Their house lacked satisfactory means of fire escape and fire detection.