The act of squatting, which is currently only a civil offence, will become a criminal offence from 01 September 2012. The Landlord Syndicate, a network of companies providing a complete support centre for UK landlords, has welcomed the news; groups working on behalf of the homeless are less impressed.

It’s good news for absentee landlords and home owners with supposedly vacant or holiday home property. Theirs are the stories familiar to readers of certain parts of the Press: upstanding citizen arrives home after long absence, to find the great unwashed in residence.

But for every one of these stories there are ten thousand tales of homeless people sheltering in abandoned buildings. A vote winner, however, is a vote winner, and squatting is indeed a bugbear even for the most liberal-minded property owner.

One member of The Landlord Syndicate, Paul Shamplina, founder of Landlord Action, said: ‘Squatting cases have been on the rise for some time now, many by organised gangs whom have travelled thousands of miles to engage in squatting knowing they will be protected by the law. It was only when some high profile cases hit the headlines that people sat up and took notice of the growing injustice on home owners. Squatters will now face up to a £5,000 fine and a six month prison sentence if they take up residence in another person’s property.’

But the Landlord Syndicate are warning landlords not to be complacent. ‘Enforcing a law does not mean that the activity of squatting will be eradicated, it just means there are tougher measures to deal with it which should prevent landlords and home owners having to enter into lengthy and expensive legal battles,’ said Shamplina. ‘That means landlords still need to avoid void periods and ensure they invest in good preventative security measures.’

After 01 September, a person will be committing an offence if they enter a residential building knowingly as a trespasser, or are living in or intend to live in such a building for any period. If a person is merely ‘holding over’ – i.e. temporarily staying put after the end of a lease prior to moving to a new property – they will not be officially trespassing.

Only time and precedent will hammer out what actions constitute the offence, and indeed what cost implications the law might have on taxpayers. The new criminal offence will only apply to residential buildings: squatting in commercial buildings will not be criminalised.

The Criminal Bar Association and the Law Society both opposed the creation of a new offence for squatting.

A flagship Conservative council in London would no longer automatically guarantee social housing to homeless applicants under plans being discussed by leading councillors.

Hammersmith and Fulham Council, in west London is currently discussing new housing, tenancy, allocation and homelessness strategies. A cabinet briefing paper leaked to the Guardian newspaper reveals a number of suggestions, including changing its current policy towards homeless applications.

Currently, if the council accepts a homelessness application the applicant is awarded preferential status, effectively guaranteeing a social housing tenancy. Under the new scheme, homeless applicants would no longer automatically be awarded this status. In many cases they will be placed in the private rented sector, potentially outside the borough.

‘There will no longer be an automatic link between a homelessness application and a social housing tenancy,’ the leaked document says.

The council will instead make the offer of social housing more dependent on the applicant being in work.

‘The new system set out in this report may be perceived as affording less advantage to the making of a homelessness application and may start to exert downward pressure on the number of homelessness applications,’ the paper says.

The paper also reveals the council is considering introducing fixed-term tenancies for new tenants. These would usually be for five years, but two years in some cases.

A council spokesperson stressed the proposals are just ideas at this stage and could change. Proposals would have to be approved by cabinet members and would then subject to public consultation.

Andrew Johnson, cabinet member for housing at Hammersmith & Fulham Council, said: ‘If we are serious about building strong, mixed and sustainable communities that help drive economic growth and community cohesion, we need to prioritise people who contribute something to society when considering applications for council housing.’

Inside Housing revealed last week that Hammersmith & Fulham Council is one of 12 London councils considering moving tenants out of the borough.

(Reporting by Carl Brown, www.insidehousing.co.uk)

Last week saw the first big stories in the predicted crisis related to housing benefit reforms. Certain London Councils, notably Newham, revealed that they were considering rehousing tenants in locations as far away as Stoke-on-Trent. This was in response to the oncoming wave of homelessness created by the Government’s cap on Local Housing Allowance (LHA).

The proposed ceiling of £250 per week for 1-bed flats and £400 per week for 4-bed accommodation means that some people in London can no longer afford to live in their current rented home.

In a merciless pincer-action, terrifyingly high London rents have conspired with the cap to make accommodation in the capital unaffordable for many people on benefits. The Councils have made a robust defence – they are, after all, victims of the pincer-action just as much as the tenants. Housing Minister Grant Shapps has talked of ‘politically driven scaremongering’, but that hardly addresses the grim reality.

The National Housing Federation has a far firmer grip on reality, and on the stress and misery caused by enforced social upheaval. It says Newham’s ‘desperate move’ to rehouse up to 500 families away from the area is the tip of the iceberg. Jacqui McClusky, Director of Homeless Link, said:

“Charities warned Government that housing benefit reforms could risk increasing both evictions and homelessness in the capital – something the Department of Work and Pensions own assessment predicted. Because of LHA caps and a lack of affordable housing, homeless charities are already struggling to find clients private rental accommodation in London. Reports that councils are being left with little choice but to seek housing outside the capital only add to our concerns.”

Claims that there is affordable housing much closer than Stoke misses a crucial point. Many landlords do not accept LHA tenants, and this applies in many properties whose rent would make them affordable under the new LHA ceiling. It is not just low rents that put landlords off, it is also the fact that benefits are paid to tenants, who then pay it to the landlord of landlord’s agent. There is a lack of trust, and in the current world landlords wield the power and the veto.

The Residential Landlords Association (RLA) sums all this up as a crisis, and politicians either seethe or squirm, depending on which side of the fence they find themselves. Meanwhile, thousands of families are set to be pawns in one of the sorriest games the housing sector has seen for many decades.

Ken Livingstone has published his Manifesto for the upcoming London Mayoral election.

Of particular note, it states that:

".... As a priority, I will help reduce the price and improve standards of private rented accommodation by establishing a not-for-profit lettings agency that saves tenants and landlords money by avoiding rip-off estate agents' fees, and creating a Tenants' Charter that sets minimum standards for rented accommodation. No-one should have to spend more than a third of their earnings on rent and we will develop the case for a London Living Rent."

The document then gives further detail of Mr Livingstone's plans, pledging that he will:

"Encourage fairer rents and better tenancy agreements through a London Lettings Agency. Building on good initiatives by some London Boroughs, we will establish a London Lettings Agency. This will free good landlords from estate agents who can charge up to ten per cent of annual rental income for marketing properties, which in turn pushes up rents. Tenants will enjoy a one-stop-shop where they can go to find good quality accommodation at fair rents. The National Landlords' Association has welcomed our proposal.

Establish a Tenants' Charter. I will establish a Tenants' Charter, setting out what private tenants can expect from their landlords. This will include a series of standards including: protection for tenants' deposits; a commitment to make reasonable repairs when required; good standards of energy efficiency. I will encourage councils, housing associations and private landlords to sign up. Only landlords that do so, and abide by its terms, will be eligible to be listed via the new London Lettings Agency.

Set up a London-wide landlord registration scheme.  I will push for a mandatory landlord registration scheme similar to the model operating in Scotland. Tenants should at least be entitled to know who their landlord is and landlords should have to demonstrate that they are 'fit and proper' persons offering decent standards of accommodation.

Campaign for a 'London Living Rent'. No Londoner should have to pay more than one-third of their income on rent, so we will research and set a benchmark for assessing the reasonableness of rents being charged. The Mayor does not have powers to regulate rents, but I will campaign for legislation for a fairer system of controlling rent increases based on successful schemes in other countries.

Lobby for better regulation of the private rented sector. I will lobby government and, if necessary use the Mayor's powers to promote parliamentary legislation, to tackle rogue landlords, protect good landlords, provide increased security of tenure for tenants and raise standards across the private rented sector."

The document also sets out the Mayor's plans to help first-time buyers, improve home insulation, protect social tenants' rights and increase housing supply.