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Leasing Standards
Summary
This page explains the standards that your property should reach before it will be accepted onto the Private Sector Leasing Scheme.
There are two different sets of standards that can be used as a guide to check whether your property reaches the required standard for it to be accepted onto the Scheme. For ease of use these standards are referred to as the ‘gold’ standard and the ‘silver’ standard.
The gold standard can be used with either the repairing lease or the non-repairing lease.
The silver standard will allow properties that are not of such high standard but do meet minimum requirements for health and safety to be brought onto the Scheme. The silver standards are only suitable for use with the non-repairing lease.
An owner can decide which set of standards he wants to use. It is worthwhile for an owner to ensure that as far as possible the property meets these standards before making an application to lease.
The condition of the property together with the other factors such as suitability and geographical area will influence the amount that can be paid to you by way of rent, under the lease.
Help is available in the form of loans and grants from some Councils to help you to comply with the standards and you should contact the Council of the area in which the property is situated for more details of what is available. You will find their contact details on the section on Loans and Grants.
The Standards can be found by clicking on the link below.
Further Information
Standards reduce the risk to health and well-being of those who occupy the properties. This is linked to the obligations of Councils to have in place a private sector renewal strategy and policy for their area.
In addition matters of quality and comfort and convenience are also considered.
The standards may change from time to time depending on the type of contract that a housing association has with a local authority, building regulations, planning law, housing and public health legislation and to ensure that the health and safety of the occupants of the property are assured.
The Government’s Housing Policy Statement ‘The Way Forward for Housing’ contained a series of key objectives aimed at offering everyone ‘the opportunity of a decent home’.
The Housing Act 2004 contains provisions that came into force on 6 April 2006, the most significant of which are:
Part 1 Housing Conditions
A new Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) replaces the former Housing Fitness Standard. The new system is applied in accordance with relevant guidance issued, and can deal with 29 hazards summarised as follows:
Part 4 – Additional Control Provisions in Relation to residential Accommodation
A Council may call upon powers in this part to deal with long term empty properties, with a view to bringing them back into occupation, particularly where there may be a need for affordable accommodation in a locality, or there are serious problems associated with a specific empty property.
The standards aim to minimise risks to health and safety.
More information is available on individual Council websites and you can click on the links below to get to the website of the Council of your choice within the Greater Haven gateway (sub-region).
By phone: 01206 244700
By fax: 01206 760403
By email: private-leasing@colnehousing.co.uk
By letter: Colne Housing Society Ltd, Digby House, Riverside Office Centre, Causton Road, Colchester, Essex, CO1 1RJ
By link to website: Colne Housing
Downloads
Click here to download the 'Gold’ Standard
Click here to download the ‘Silver’ Standard
External Links
More information is available on the Council websites as below:
Babergh District Council
Braintree District Council
Colchester Borough Council
Ipswich Borough Council
Maldon District Council
Mid Suffolk District Council
Suffolk Coastal District Council
Tendring District Council