Landlords win concessions on licensing fees but costs will still hit renters

A landlord organisation has welcomed a council’s decision to reduce a selective licensing fee and scale back inspections, but warns the move will ultimately increase costs for tenants.

The Eastern Landlords Association (ELA) had opposed Great Yarmouth Borough Council’s selective licensing scheme, which was set to cover 5,000 properties at an original cost of £784 per licence.

Following the ELA’s challenge, the licence fee has now been reduced to £694, and property inspections will take place twice a year instead of the four initially proposed.

The organisation is also running a campaign to highlight the issues selective licensing causes and what landlords should do now to prepare for the scheme.

Selective licensing is a blunt instrument

Despite the council’s claim that selective licensing will improve housing standards and tackle health hazards and overcrowding, the ELA warns the scheme will reduce supply and drive up rents.

The ELA from the very start has opposed the scheme and fought for concessions for landlords.

The organisation claims selective licensing will divert resources away from targeted enforcement that genuinely improves standards.

James Crickmore, general manager and director of the Eastern Landlords Association, told Property118: “While Great Yarmouth’s concessions are a step in the right direction, selective licensing is still a blunt instrument. It risks increasing costs that end up affecting tenants without reliably raising standards.

“We’ll keep working constructively with the council, but we will also continue to oppose the scheme and push for smarter, targeted enforcement that protects tenants.”

The ELA has also launched a call to action campaign to support landlords when the scheme is launched next year.

The scheme is set to be introduced in April next year and will cover Nelson Ward, Central and Northgate Ward, Southtown and Cobholm Ward, and eight streets in Yarmouth’s North Ward.

The news comes as landlords have also hit out at a selective licensing scheme in Stockton, branding it “a total waste of time and a joke.”