Agent and Property Manager Fined £100,000 for Overcrowded, Unsafe HMO
· Legislation · 2 min read · Letting Agent Today
A London agent and property manager were fined a combined £100,000 after Brent Council found an HMO housing double its licensed occupancy, with fire safety breaches and a cockroach infestation - the property manager is now eligible for a Banning Order.
Agent and Property Manager Fined £100,000 Combined for Overcrowded, Unsafe HMO
An agent and a property manager linked to a severely overcrowded London HMO have been fined a combined £100,000 after Brent Council uncovered fire safety breaches, a cockroach infestation, and inadequate kitchen facilities at a property housing more than double its licensed occupancy.
The penalties
Meet Valand (the owner's agent): £40,000 fine, plus a £2,000 victim surcharge and £3,183.85 in prosecution costs
Vispap Sarkari (managed the property and rent collection): £50,000 fine, plus the same £2,000 surcharge and £3,183.85 costs
What was found
Following tenant complaints, council officers found the property housed more than twice the permitted number of occupants under its HMO licence. The investigation uncovered a cockroach infestation, fire safety breaches, damaged escape routes and fire alarm equipment, a damaged porch door, cracked bathroom fixtures, and broken stoves with missing kitchen doors. The court classified the failings as Category 1 harm - the highest housing hazard level, reflecting serious risk to occupants, particularly around fire safety.
A repeat offender
Sarkari was found to have multiple aliases and associates, and had a prior housing offence conviction from March 2026. Given this repeat pattern, he's now eligible for a Banning Order.
Council's message
A Brent Council spokesperson said the convictions should serve as a warning to any landlord or property manager who puts profit before people, and stressed that property licensing remains a key enforcement tool for raising housing standards and tackling rogue operators. Following the council's intervention, the property owner made significant improvements and is continuing to work with the council toward full licence compliance.
What this means for landlords
This case shows how quickly penalties compound when overcrowding, licensing breaches, and fire safety failures stack together - and how "I use a managing agent" is no defence, echoing the compliance-liability warning covered above. For landlords using agents to manage HMOs specifically, this is a clear illustration of why direct visibility into a property's actual occupancy and safety compliance matters, not just trust that the agent is handling it.
Source: Letting Agent Today, 29 September 2026