As of the start of the new tax year on 6 April, certain regulations relating to providers of social housing changed, including that a private registered provider will no longer be required to certify their status.
As of 6 April, the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008 has been amended, meaning that when a private registered provider make a disposal, they will no longer need to comply with certain restriction in the register when it is lodged for registration.
Previously in England, private registered providers who applied to be registered as a proprietor of a registered estate or charge had to provide the Land Registry with a certificate confirming their status.
This was to assist the Registry in making sure that the appropriate form of restriction was entered into the register. However, the Regulator of Social Housing’s disposal consent regime, which related to private registered providers, has now been repealed, so this will no longer be required.
Other regulations that came into force on 6 April include the Rent Repayment Orders and Financial Penalties (Amounts Recovered) (England) Regulations 2017. These make provision for how a local housing authority in England must deal with any amount recovered under a rent repayment order.
Any such amount may be used to meet an authority’s costs and expenses incurred in carrying out its functions, as long as they are connected with the private rented sector or connected with the enforcement of legal requirements relating to the private rented sector.
If the amount is not used for that purpose, the Local Housing Authority must pay it in to the Consolidated Fund. The 2017 Regulations also make provision in relation to rent repayment orders made under the Housing and Planning Act 2016.