x
By using this website, you agree to our use of cookies to enhance your experience.

TODAY'S OTHER NEWS

Landlord banned from listing property for short-term letting

A landlord in Oxford is no longer allowed to offer a local property for short-term lets following a lengthy planning battle with Oxford City Council. 

The property on William Street, OX3, is no longer permitted to be rented out on a short-term basis after the council issued a ban. 

Last year, Oxford City Council issued a planning enforcement notice on the owner of the property, after a local resident complained of antisocial behaviour and nuisance.

Advertisement

The owner appealed to the Planning Inspectorate, but the authority has now thrown out the appeal and instructed the landlord to stop using it as a short let from this month.

The council is now urging other landlords to apply for proper consent prior to letting out their properties as short-term lets. 

There has been a notable rise in the number of short let properties in Oxford in recent years.

Research by the council in February, prior to the lockdown, found that there were almost 1,500 homes available on short let websites in Oxford.

The council now argues that short term lets could be considered a ‘material change’, which would mean that planning permission is required. 

It would appear that the local authority ultimately wants to ban landlords from operating unauthorised short-term lets. 

Cllr Alex Hollingsworth, cabinet member for planning and housing delivery, said: “There are hundreds of short let properties in Oxford and almost none of them have planning permission. This means we have no record of which properties are short lets or any way of taking quick action against landlords.

“I first asked the government to take action on this more than two years ago. I realise there are other priorities right now but this nettle should have been grasped long before the pandemic hit.” 

He added: “Short lets in Oxford have resulted in a loss of valuable family homes. In some extreme cases, short lets have been used for regular loud parties and even as brothels. This case shows that we do take the issue seriously and we will chase landlords through the legal system if necessary.”

Want to comment on this story? If so...if any post is considered to victimise, harass, degrade or intimidate an individual or group of individuals on any basis, then the post may be deleted and the individual immediately banned from posting in future.

  • icon

    Great idea, ban all short term lets and the council end up with a huge bill to accommodate homeless families. What about the thousands of lets that are causing no problem and housing people. Do these councillors ever engage brains, or just the generous salary and expenses schemes.

    icon
    • 23 August 2020 11:14 AM

    Most short-term letting is fraudulent.

    In particular very few freeholders; leaseholders, insurers and lenders permit it.
    Then you have Councils.
    I'm afraid the Council is fully
    justified to clamp down on these LL fraudulent activities.

    Of course there is nothing wrong with short-term letting providing all those with an interest give their permission.
    I know for a fact that very few insurers or lenders would allow short-term letting.
    There are I believe specific very limited mortgages that allow short-term letting.
    But very few freeholders of blocks of flats allow it.
    Mostly the leaseholders are breaching their lease conditions.
    Block insurance DOESN'T cover short-term letting.
    It is slightly different where the host is occupying.
    This as they could be construed as lodgers there being no length of occupation that anyone can be a lodger for.

    Quite frankly any LL using AirBnB etc where they are not occupying should be required to prove to the Council that they have the relevant CTL.
    Very few could achieve this as mostly insurers and lenders DON'T allow it.

    This mass fraud by LL needs to end now.

     
  • icon

    "material change"

    whatever it takes to justify bringing in more charges/ fees to local authorities...... nothing new there

    icon
    • 23 August 2020 15:09 PM

    If local authorities put up new ways to get money from Landlords, then my rents get raised PLUS 15%.

     
  • icon

    they're actually doing him a favour !

    considering the recent news = cue the vitriol ?

icon

Please login to comment

MovePal MovePal MovePal
sign up