An unusual sight

I cant remember this before  - 'To Let' signs still up after term has started.   Either

• landlords are  taking advantage, leaving the signs up and having some free publicity
• there are still vacant properties to let when all the students are back and hav somewhere to live.

I suspect (on no objective grounds whatsoever)  that its the latter.
The combined effects of Universities  being penalised for over-booking, the current poor employment  prospects for students and new developments at the top end of the student housing market means total numbers of students may be falling. Is this good or bad for Jesmond ?
The  wealthier students may go into the new build around the City. For the rest, if there is over-provision, then rents may fall. Some students will prefer to live more centrally saving on travel costs and time so empty rental properties may occur more peripherally in Newcastle and occupancy rates in Jesmond may remain higher than elsewhere.
If students have  less disposable income then the night-life of Osborne Road may take a hit and there will be less disturbance for residents. If the students living in Jesmond are poorer and don't have their own cars then parking may  become easier for residents.

Will an influx of poorer students be good or bad ? No idea, but at least parking will be easier.    

Pandering to vested interests

There has been a bit of email traffic recently concerning the Governments'  decision to repeal the legislation that required planning permission for converting a house to a HMO (House in Multiple Occupancy). Here is the Government Press release  .
Some interested parties have issued press releases or written to the papers. 

National HMO Lobby

News Release, 7 September 2010

 

The 'Big Society' is a Big Con

 

The coalition government is always to keen to promote 'the big society' - except when it contradicts their libertarian ideology and enthusiasm for the unrestrained market!  The last government acted to protect local communities from exploitation by the Buy-to-Let industry, supporting the Big Society.  But now, in a dictatorial exercise of Big Government, announced today, the Housing Minister has re-opened these communities to further exploitation.

 

For decades, local communities in a wide range of situations have suffered from exploitation by irresponsible landlords, responding to a range of markets, and buying up family homes, to turn them into lucrative shared houses.  Pack in the tenants, rake in the rents!  They've done it in market towns (with migrant workers), they've done it in seaside towns (with benefit claimants), they've done it in university towns (with students).  As transient tenants moved in, they forced out stable families - undermining any sort of society, big or small.

 

Organisations like the National HMO Lobby campaigned for years for action.  Last summer, a huge consultation supported new legislation.  At last, after a decade of damage, the last government changed the legislation on houses in multiple occupation (HMOs), so that local councils had some control at last over what was happening to their housing stock.  Specifically, they amended the Use Classes Order, to do so.

 

But within forty days of the General Election, the new coalition government announced it was going to overturn these measures - even though their alternative was rejected by 99% of the respondents in the consultation in 2009.  The Minister initiated a consultation by invitation.  Even then, the Core Cities, the professionals (Planning Officers, RTPI), the Coastal Communities Alliance, MPs (All-Party Group), the Councillors Campaign for Balanced Communities - not to mention representatives of local communities up and down the country - opposed the new proposals.

 

All agree they are undemocratic and unworkable.  But Big Government has bulldozed ahead, and dashed the aspirations of all those trying to preserve their communities.  The Minister has introduced measures which revoke the amendments to the Use Classes Order.

 

It's pretty clear what the 'Con' in 'Conservative' means.

 

Contact Dr Richard Tyler, C-ordinator, National HMO Lobby, 0113-275 5369

 

The Lobby's website is at http://hmolobby.org.uk/index.htm and its response to the Minister's 'consultation.

and from the National Organisation of Residents Associations

Dear Sir

On the 7^th September Grant Shapps, the Housing Minister, dealt a severe blow to the aspirations of David Cameron’s grand concept of The Big Society. He introduced planning legislation governing the change of a family dwelling to a house of multiple occupancy.(HMO).

For the past ten years resident groups and local planning authorities have fought a long and hard campaign to stem the uncontrolled growth of concentrations of HMOs in university towns and cities lacking adequate student accommodation, in coastal towns housing families on benefit and in market towns housing migrant workers.  Large areas of residential property have been blighted by this change destroying communities and making life miserable for the few residents still remaining in them.

In 2009 the last government finally launched a consultation paper on the problem.  92% of respondents supported a new planning category use of HMOs making it necessary to apply for planning consent to change the use of family homes to HMOs, whilst the option of setting up Article 4 Directions to control HMOs in specified areas, a complex and time-consuming exercise currently used to control the external appearance of valued properties, was supported by only 1% of respondents.  As a result of this overwhelming support for planning consent, on April 6 2010 legislation was implemented to the great relief of large numbers of residents.

Just before the election the Conservatives indicated that this legislation would be repealed at the request of the Landlords Association.  The plan was to replace it with the Article 4 Directions scheme, rejected by nearly all planning authorities as unworkable.  A new consultation paper was issued and again those involved rejected this solution, but to no avail.

David Cameron’s wish to empower local communities so that they decided what was best for them is a laudable concept.  His 2009 Hugo Young lecture proposed removing power from central government and giving it to local government, and for local communities to engage more effectively with local government.  He labelled the community as The Big Society and we looked forward to its coming. This move by the Housing Minister totally undermines this grand idea, by taking a central government decision against the wishes of the community.

As far as this issue of HMOs is concerned, The Big Society is dead.


Ive not  got such grand aspirations - heres my letter to the Newcastle Journal, trying to garner support for the Judicial Review proposed by Milton Keynes .

Residents groups in Newcastle, and elsewhere in the country are dismayed at the Coalition government’s decision to repeal the changes to Use Class Order legislation that gave local councils some control over what happened to housing stock in their area.

For many years local residents have suffered as the Universities have taken in more and more students with scant consideration of where they would live. Landlords bought up houses to convert into HMOs (Houses in Multiple Occupancy) and residential areas and communities increasingly suffer from the economic and social disruption caused by excess numbers of students and irresponsible landlords.

Consultations conducted by the previous Government revealed widespread support for giving local councils the powers to address the imbalances that have turned some streets in Newcastle into Student ghettos during term-time and urban deserts through the summer.

By removing from local councils the new power to limit HMOs in existing areas with an excess, it is clear that the Government is going against its own ideas of the ‘Big Society’ that empowers local communities.

Milton Keynes Council is considering applying for Judicial Review of the Housing Ministers’ recent decision. Hopefully Newcastle Council will enthusiastically support Councilors in the south as they try to redress the current unacceptable imbalance.

Student housing update - but for all ?

There has been an article in the Guardian  about private equity going into building student accommodation. There  are new student accommodation blocks going up in various parts of Newcastle. It seems to me that this sort of build is being touted as way of rejuvenating some of the more deprived and run-down areas of the City. Liberty Living have built a block in Elswick.

In the past ive been to meetings where this has been discussed  by the local Council.  The developments seem to be a mixture of University- built ( and presumably managed)  Halls and privately built and owned. I've seen a mailshot, not sent to me , I may add,  from one of the Companies putting money into this is Brandeaux . They quote a return of approximately 7%  on a minimum investment of £100,000, so there  would seem to be good money in this. The accommodation is targeted at the more expensive end of the market.  A quick internet search found  that for 2 of the new blocks in Newcastle Northumbria University and Newcastle College are in partnership with the private developers.  So the Universities and Colleges can say they are doing something about the numbers of students that they just dump on the local communities. Its not going to help the larger numbers of students looking for reasonably priced accommodation  that is an acceptable standard, so wont do anything for equitable , affordable access to higher education.

These developments have been encouraged  by the Council. Undoubtedly it is getting money into some of the more under-developed areas of Newcastle.  The Council says it will increase student choice. The landlords have been  against  the developments. What will it do for the student accommodation that blights some areas of Jesmond ( and Heaton and Gosforth) ?
Jesmond has traditionally been one of the   more expensive areas for student lets due to the size of the houses and convenience for the University, so this is potentially competition. Those that can afford it - many from overseas - may take up the new accommodation. Some of the students currently renting in Jesmond may go .
 Student numbers are unlikely to increase over the next few years, and may fall. So what will happen to properties in Jesmond ? 
Some landlords may sell off some of their portfolio. Rents may fall due to the competition. Money spent by landlords on maintenance may fall (but they spend as little as they can now, so I don't think that will happen) If rents fall students who previously could only afford Heaton may move into Jesmond . One landlord has suggested to me that we are better off 'with the devils we know' , rather than a different bunch of  students. I think he's wrong.  the new students wont have cars , so parking will be easier, and they may not have as much disposable income to go partying in Osborne Road.

So overall I think we will be better off.