Landlords in a big Midlands city have been warned that they must apply for a licence for their properties by April 9th or face an additional £200 hike in the £1,090 cost of each three-year licence.

Leicester City Council has issued the alert, saying that non-compliant landlords face fines of up to £30,000, highlighting how landlords in the city have had 18 months to comply.

The council says it has already received applications for thousands of properties within the main ‘cluster’ areas that the new licencing scheme covers.

One comprises parts of Westcotes (main picture), Fosse, Braunstone Park and Rowley Fields wards, while another includes Stoneygate, and a third includes part of the Saffron ward.

The Leicester selective scheme is an example of how such initiatives are not just form-filling exercises, but require landlords to improve properties before a licence can be issued.

Leicester council says two thirds of the 3,900 applications made so far have seen improvements required.

This includes gas and electrical safety, installation of smoke, fire and carbon monoxide alarms along with matters such as repairs and maintenance and tenancy.

Discounts

Despite the high cost, the council says a range of 10% discounts are available if a licence is applied for prior to April 9th including properties with an EPC of A to C; multiple properties; applications by charities and for landlords who are members of an accredited landlord association such as the NRLA.

Deputy city mayor Cllr Elly Cutkelvin, who leads on housing and neighbourhoods, said: “Selective licensing is a vital tool in raising standards in the private rented sector for all.

“The scheme has now been running for almost 18 months. In that time, we’ve already addressed a range of safety issues which landlords needed to sort out to ensure their properties meet a suitably high standard.”