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Critics have long been vocal about the “toothless enforcement” system in place to bring rogue landlords to heel, but recent revelations about a repayment deal agreed with Britain’s worst landlord have only added fuel to the fire.
Britain’s Worst Rogue Landlord – Meet Katia Goremsandu
Katia Goremsandu is widely regarded as Britain’s worst rogue landlord. She owns a multi-million-pound property portfolio in some of London’s most prestigious neighbourhoods and is estimated to make around £188k a year in rental income. Goremsandu has numerous convictions for providing poorly managed and maintained properties to her tenants. She has the dubious honour of being the most prosecuted landlord.
In 2016, Goremsandu was prosecuted yet again for wilfully refusing to pay any of the £100k+ fines awarded against her in the courts for a long litany of offences. Despite being banned from operating rental properties for 10 years. Goremsandu has managed to neatly side-step this little problem and continues to make money from her property portfolio. Although she can’t manage her own properties, there is nothing preventing her from using a letting agent to manage them on her behalf.
There were plans to force her to sell off some of her properties to settle her fines, but nothing happened. Instead, the courts agreed on a repayment plan with Goremsandu. She has been allowed to repay a measly £1,000 a month, despite the fact she makes more than 15 times that every month.
Westminster Council Tried to Block Investigations Into Goremsandu
Westminster Council, who was responsible for brokering the deal, tried to block attempts by the Guardian to find out the details, but a court ruling has forced them to reveal the paperwork. The paper learned that Goremsandu has a staggering 60+ convictions to her name.
Not surprisingly, housing charities are furious about the lack of protection for tenants. If rogue landlords like Katia Goremsandu are seen to get away with gaming the system, it does nothing to deter other landlords.
“The fact that Goremsandu is able to continue earning huge sums annually despite gross malpractice is a clear example of the imbalance of power in our housing system,” says one thinktank. They say better protections need to be introduced to keep tenants safe and prevent criminal landlords like Goremsandu from operating.
Is Goremsandu the Worst Landlord or Does She Have the Worst Tenants?
Naturally, Goremsandu blames her tenants for her problems and says she is the victim. She claims her tenants have vandalised her properties because they are envious of her wealth.
“Legislation has criminalised landlords if they don’t carry out repairs but the truth is the tenants break our property,” she told the Guardian newspaper. “We are the victims and we cannot take any action against the tenants.” She then told reporters her health had suffered, along with her finances.
