Eyesore Black Country house owner forced to pay £6k court bill

The property in Oldbury was left in such a run-down state that water began to leak to the house next door while neighbours were greeted by overgrowing garden when looking out their windows.

Complaints were made about the state of the house on 27 Dudley Road West, forcing the council to intervene.

Christopher Perry was taken to court over his lack of action and admitted to failing to comply with an improvement notice and an abatement notice served by council bosses at Sandwell Magistrates Court.

He had failed to co-operate with Sandwell Council's housing team as the house in Dudley Road West fell further into disrepair.

Magistrates were told that Perry had ignored all efforts made by the council to make the house and unkempt garden more presentable.

Perry, of Cecil Drive, Tividale, was fined £4,000 for failing to comply with the council's demands. He was also made to pay £1,836 in court costs as well as a £200 victim surcharge.

Councillor Paul Moore, Sandwell Council's cabinet member for regeneration, said

: "Empty homes are a wasted resource at a time of high housing demand.

"Houses left to decay and cause nuisance in our communities will not be tolerated."

Photographs of the house taken by council officers showed rotting window frames and wallpaper hanging from walls. Weeds were also left to grow wildly out of control in the garden.

Oldbury councillor Mahboob Hussain welcomed the action against the homeowner and said there were many more decaying properties in the area which had been left empty by their owners.

He said: "There are a number of empty houses around Dudley Road West that have been empty for a long time so I am pleased they have taken this action. It is such a long process but the local authority is now able to charge rates on empty properties so that gives us another option."