After Peterborough Council announces that it will clean up about 1,800 properties into a new additional licensing scheme, it will face more red tape with agents and landowners operating HMO properties in the Big Midlands city.
The council now concludes consultations in July, and says the £1,100 fee for a five-year license is “justified.” This is the same price as the existing forced HMO scheme, but the selective licensing scheme is more than £908. 
According to the council, consultation documents estimate that there are around 2,500 HMOs in the city, up from 1,410 in 2011.
Currently, it reports 563 properties are licensed, and it further focuses on what is thought to be possible to authorize around 200 forced HMOs. It also states that there are 2,000 unlicensed HMOs, most of which will be 3-4 bedrooms.
I got in the way
The Council follows the fees for the new additional scheme, saying, “Those who feel troubled by the additional costs of adding property to standard to meet the licensing criteria should meet these criteria in any case, and thus contribute to the reasons for the introduction of additional licenses.
“The Council believes that increasing standard of living in the sectors identified by the scheme is likely to result in increased desirability of real estate in those sectors, and therefore the power of the market is likely to impact better returns on investments.”
It is known that 4% of properties identified as mandatory licenseable HMOs are at Category 1 risk.
In addition to addressing issues such as fraud and anti-social behaviour, authorities say the proposed scheme will actively promote landowners in compliance and facilitate involvement of all landlords in strategies such as crime mitigation initiatives.
Completely committed
Councillor Alison Jones (main image), a Cabinet member for Housing and Community, added:
“Our elective licensing initiative has already been successful and has helped to strengthen housing standards for the private rental sector.”
The discussions will end on July 31st.
Read more about real estate licenses.
