A fake landlord who made over £2,500 a month letting out a London that he didn’t own has been taken to court.

The one-bed flat in west London was actually owned by Kensington and Chelsea council and was subject to an illegal sub-let from the ‘tenant’, who was not living at the property and was claiming to be a private landlord. 

He received £850 a month from three subtenants, and was caught when applying to buy the property using Right to Buy.

Kensington and Chelsea council has now taken back the property and is using it for social housing tenants.

“With a chronic shortage of housing across London, we need to make sure it’s going to those who are genuinely eligible and in need of a home” explains Councillor Kim Taylor-Smith. 

“Our team checks all applications and acts on intelligence and when fraudulent applications are discovered, we act quickly to recover those properties and give them to individuals and families on our housing waiting list.

“I would urge anyone with information on tenancy fraud, or who suspects a property is being illegally sublet, to report what they know as soon as possible.”