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A landlord who converted his house into flats without planning permission has been issued record fine (3 October 2012)

Date: 03/10/2012
Duncan Lewis, Legal News Solicitors, A landlord who converted his house into flats without planning permission has been issued record fine

A property owner in North London was fined a record £1.4 million for breaching planning permissions by converting a house into 21 flats.
Salah Ali who illegally turned his property on Willesden Lane into 21 separate flats without any prior planning permission was issued with the fine.
Mr Ali was ordered to pay a total of £1.438 million within six months or face being sent to jail for 10 years, Norwich Crown Court Heard.
The London Borough of Brent have described that order, made using powers available to local authorities to recover the proceeds of crime, as potentially the highest ever confiscation order granted for a planning offence anywhere in the UK.
The fine represents the rents that Mr Ali had received from the tenants in the house ignoring planning laws since past 10 years.
The landlord was also ordered to pay a fine of £4,000 for a breach of planning regulations, as well as facing legal costs of almost £35,000, following a two-year investigation by the council.
A restraining order has also been placed on Mr Ali from alienating his assets before fulfilling his obligations to pay the £1.438 million fine levied against him.
The local authority, Brent council, will be receiving 37.5 per cent of the money once obtained, with the rest going to the Treasury and the court collection agency.
The news comes in light of the title’s report into the council’s proposed clampdown on landlords who housed tenants in illegal extensions, known as ‘Beds in Sheds’.
Chris Walker, Assistant Director of planning and major projects at Brent Council, told the Times that the landlord ignored planning rules designed to ensure that the quality of accommodation in the boroughs was maintained and that the environment for surrounding residents was protected.
He ignored the council’s notices and as a result, he profited hugely from this sub-standard accommodation.

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