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Selective Licensing

Durham County Council has bought in a new scheme to regulate landlords and managing agents of private rented property in selected areas of County Durham.  The scheme covers approximately 29,000 homes which is over 40% of the properties in the county’s private rented sector.  This came into place on 1st April 2022.

The aim of the selective licencing is to:

  • ensure that private rented properties offer tenants a choice of safe and well managed accommodation and where necessary, raise standards of private rented properties.
  • improve health and wellbeing of tenants - it is recognised that poor housing standards can have a major impact on the health and wellbeing
  • provide safe and healthy homes by reducing housing hazards and disrepair
  • reduce anti-social behaviour by 10% from baseline figures
  • improve management standards increasing compliance rates

These principles are in line with ours at Ready to Let and Ready to Rent Management.  Since we set up the business 5 years ago we have been buying properties in County Durham which have been left to get run down and are in a poor condition and refurbishing them to a standard which exceeds the Durham Decent Homes Standard, improving the desirability of the properties and the neighbourhoods and homing approximately 10 families in superior homes per month.

Our management agency, Ready to Rent Management is already a member of Durham County Councils' Private Landlord Accreditation Scheme and all of our properties are refurbished to the minimum of the current selective licencing standards and Durham Decent Home Standard and we will provide you all the documents and information that you will need to apply for the selective licence.

Check that you are eligible for a Licence

You and anyone else involved in the management of the property (for example, a manager or managing agent) must show they a 'fit and proper person'. This means they will be assessed for any:

  • offences involving fraud or other dishonesty, or violence or drugs, or any offence listed in Schedule 3 to the Sexual Offenders Act 2003
  • unlawful discrimination on grounds of sex, colour, race, ethnic or national origins, or disability
  • breaches of housing or landlord and tenant law

To find out more about Selective licensing of privately rented properties in County Durham, including costs and discounts for multiple properties, please visit their  website -  https://www.durham.gov.uk/selectivelicensing

Apply for a Licence

Click on the folliwng Link - https://propertylicensing.durham.gov.uk/

Licencing Conditions

Click on the following link -  Selective Licensing Conditions

For More information please give us a call on 01483 663001