Families facing £40,000 bills for compulsory makeover of homes

Published on Wednesday 15 April 2009 22:01

HOMEOWNERS in one of Scotland's most dilapidated communities fear they could be left bankrupt and homeless as a result of a multi-million pound investment designed to improve the area.

Nearly 200 properties in Glasgow's Govanhill district are to be overhauled as part of a 3 million scheme by the city council to forcibly repair slum properties rented out by private landlords.

However, ordinary owner- occupiers "on the margins of home ownership" will be forced to pay tens of thousands of pounds under the scheme.

The initiative, funded by the Scottish Government, is designed to eradicate sub-standard living conditions in the region, where many properties are plagued by infestations of cockroaches and rats, and without central heating or water.

Glasgow City Council has served statutory notices on numerous properties, warning that unless work is completed, it will be carried out at homeowners' expense under Section 108 of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987.

Although 3 million in private sector housing grants is being available to part-finance the work, they will be capped for each property, leaving homeowners with bills in the region of 40,000 each.

The project, which will be ratified by the council tomorrow, will allocate the funds to 180 tenement flats.

Hayley MacLellan, who owns one of the properties affected, said she faces losing her retail business and home.

One of just two owner-occupiers in her close, the 26-year-old said: "This will change my entire life. It doesn't matter that half the repairs are being met by the council – where can I find tens of thousands of pounds?"

Ms MacLellan and her fiance, Stephen Farrell, have been active in attempting to improve community relations in Govanhill, home to a sizeable Slovakian community.

She believes the housing repairs scheme will do little to counter widespread antisocial behaviour and community tensions in the area.

She added: "I am so angry that all the issues I have talked about with police and the council – overcrowding, drug abuse, public urination and vandalism – won't be dealt with. It's a multimillion pound project that isn't addressing a single issue."

About a quarter of Govanhill's properties belong to private landlords. It has been estimated it would cost 187 million to improve all the area's housing.

Councillor Steven Purcell, the leader of Glasgow City Council, is said to be deeply concerned about the problems, and has been asked to approve the use of compulsory purchase orders to buy properties in dangerous condition.

Frank McAveety, the local MSP, stressed that innocent owners like Ms MacLellan must be protected.

He said: "The decay and neglect has been caused by a minority of private landlords, and decent residents must not be victimised."

Ken McDougall, Govanhill Housing Association's development manager, said the funding was a "drop in the ocean".

He said: "With the grant levels, it will be very difficult for people on the margins of home ownership to participate in this scheme on a voluntary basis."

Mike Dailly, principal solicitor for Govanhill Law Centre, said: "Many of these homeowners are trapped as they cannot sell their homes and cannot pay for repair costs."