New rating system to name and shame bad landlords in Sandwell

Private landlords will be given a rating of between zero and five - with known offenders to be given the lowest score in a warning to prospective tenants.

It comes amid rising concerns about the conditions poorer families, including those arriving from abroad, are being forced to live in.

Housing chiefs are keen to ensure landlords are doing all they can to ensure homes they provide are at a suitable standard and have said those who score a rating of three or more will be promoted on a council-managed website.

A landlord who is given a zero-star rating will be someone who has not 'met statutory standards or is owned by a landlord who has been convicted of housing-related offences'.

Crackdown

Councillor Kerrie Carmichael, housing boss at Sandwell Council, said: “The scheme is one of a number of measures being developed by the council to drive up standards in the private rented sector and crack down on rogue landlords.

“We want to encourage and support those good landlords currently providing a high standard of accommodation.

“We already work with a number of accredited landlords who provide accommodation in the private rented sector but there is no centralised record system.

“Prospective tenants often find accommodation by word of mouth recommendations or from advertisements in shops or on mobile phone apps.

“They may have little understanding of their rights when taking on a tenancy and a limited knowledge of what checks to make on a property relying on their own judgement as there is no simple way of assessing the competence of landlords or managing agents.

“The scheme will provide a transparent and robust accredited star rating for property and management standards in the private rented sector in Sandwell."

It was announced in November that 500 rented properties in the borough would be inspected by a new taskforce in a bid to clamp down on the issue.

The quality of housing migrants are living in has become a particular concern, with fears many are taking what they can get as refugees are not eligible for council housing.

Around 80 people, including families with children who were mostly Romanian, were evacuated from the Metro Court office block in West Bromwich town centre last year due to fears over fire safety.