Landlord fined £25,000 for unlicensed properties

A buy-to-let landlord in Nottingham was convicted of nine offences of failing to license properties under the Selective Licensing scheme at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court.

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Dexter Blackstock was fined £24,000 handed £1,100 in costs as well as a victim surcharge of £170 after being convicted of licencing offences relating to various properties in Nottingham.

On top of the nine failings to license his properties under the Selective Licensing Scheme, the landlord also failed to license two properties under the additional licensing scheme, and for one other offence under mandatory licensing.

Paul James who managed the properties in Nottingham, also faces ten charges – seven for Selective Licensing breaches, two for Additional Licensing and one for Mandatory Licensing.

Nottingham Magistrates’ Court heard that the total rental income for the 12 properties was just over £10,500 a month. It would have cost £12,180 to licence them for a period of five years.

Enforcement officers visited several of Blackstock’s properties and found disrepair and in some cases discovered smoke alarms that were not working. 

This is another good result for the council, and I’d like to pay tribute to the hard work of the Safer Housing team.

Properties have to be licensed for a good reason – to provide higher standards, regular maintenance and, most importantly, to make sure that tenants across the city are safe and living in acceptable conditions.

Mr Blackstock has continually placed his profits over ensuring that these homes were appropriately licensed.  

The purpose of the licensing regime is to guarantee the house is suitable for the number of people occupying it, and that the licence holder is fit-and-proper person to hold a licence as well as additional controls over anti-social behaviour.

Taking action like this is always a last resort when a landlord or agent refuses to engage with us, we want to work constructively with landlords to improve the standards of rented properties, but we make no apology for bringing people before the courts and we hope this sends out a strong message.

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Cllr Linda Woodings Portfolio holder for planning, housing and heritage | Nottingham City Council