Could a landlord approval scheme curb council intolerance?

Could a landlord approval scheme curb council intolerance?

0:01 AM, 3rd September 2024, About A day ago

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Hi, it seems to me that the thing that worries lots of smaller landlords is the ever increasing/changing rules governing rental properties and the intolerance shown by many councils towards landlords who occasionally miss, or misunderstand something.

It would be reassuring if one knew they would always be given an opportunity to correct a defect or mistake before the council rushed to the “big stick” solution.

There are some rogue landlords of course and some bad agents and these should be dealt with severely, but most landlords try their best to provide good accommodation and deserve the benefit of the doubt when they occasionally slip up. If council housing officers would work supportively with the good landlords and chase the bad ones the rental sector would work much better.

We have a pretty good relationship with our local housing officers who know we try very hard to get things right and I’m sure they would cut us a little slack if we did miss something. However, reading about and listening to other landlords, this doesn’t always seem to be the case, with some receiving eye watering fines out of all proportion to the “offence”.

I would favour a “Landlord Approval Scheme” which might help to promote a more tolerant approach by the enforcement authorities and consequently, a more willing compliance by landlords, especially if the enforcers were seen to be helpful if there are difficulties.

What do Property118 readers think about a landlord approval scheme?

Thanks,

Cyril


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