Council car parking rip off for HMO – Help!
I’ve just been informed by my local council that I need on street parking permit for each tenant in my HMO at a cost of £350 per permit instead of the £5 a year the tenants could get for there own vehicle.
The tenants for my property are all contractors working in the local area with a high turn over of people. Also if a tenant leaves with a permit it wold be another £350 for a replacement this would mean asking each tenant for a £350 deposit.
The council say this is because an HMO IS A business.
How are they able to do this?
Alan
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Member Since August 2015 - Comments: 342
12:12 PM, 27th March 2017, About 9 years ago
I’ve just looked up Hartlepool’s Council website on parking and its says a business can apply for two permits at a cost of £350 each. However this begs the question if a HMO is a business. If Alan you ran this as a business then you would pay National Insurance on the income. Although renting in some instances can be a business in most cases the income is classed as investment income and therefore not a business.
http://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/national-insurance-manual/nim23800
http://www.property118.com/am-i-self-employed/94122/
In my experience a HMO is classed as residential and residents are entitled to apply for parking permits. Even if your Council were right then a HMO would require more than two permits if each tenant required one and that would be unfair on your tenants.
I’ve owned two HMO’s for nearly 40 years and I have to deal with a particularly draconian Council in an area you would almost shoot yourself in the foot to get a disability parking badge! but I’ve never had any mention of this. I think they are wrong in considering you a business and not treating your tenants as residents.
My advice is to keep on questioning them. Many many years ago my Council demanded all sorts of unnecessary works and after a long battle they backed down. They do go over the top and try things on.
Member Since March 2017 - Comments: 2
12:26 PM, 27th March 2017, About 9 years ago
Reply to the comment left by “Yvonne Francis” at “27/03/2017 – 12:12“:
Hi Yvonne
You are right about the web site statement for new charges but my HMO caters for workmen/contractors visiting the are to work and not DSS SO I HAV A HIGH TURN OVER OF PEOPLE SO EVEN AFTER 4 permits every tennents would have to pay a parking permit charge of £30 an for someone only staying for 4 /5days a £30 charge would not be acceptable so either way the council are going to damage the small businesses in the area but I will keep on fighting.
Member Since August 2015 - Comments: 342
2:28 PM, 27th March 2017, About 9 years ago
Reply to the comment left by “Alan Griffiths” at “27/03/2017 – 12:26“:
This reply is a bit different from your original post when you pointed out YOU would have to pay £350 for every tenant. It’s just a fact of life that in cities parking is expense. I imagine it would cost more than £30 to park in a car park for 4/5 days, so really this should be calculated in work peoples expenses and they should not expect special rates over what work people pay who have to park doing other jobs.
Member Since May 2016 - Comments: 143
5:48 PM, 27th March 2017, About 9 years ago
Yes they do go ott – but “they” is likely to be someone employed from the dole queue who has no experience as a landlord – and not long out of short trousers. These jobsworths wear an invisible badge and apply the rules without common sense or discretion!
My tenants are not mentally disabled – they are grown ups who will inform me if they sense a hazard in my property – and go elsewhere if I failed to fix it! They don’t need a ‘nanny’. !