City licensers have refused to renew HMO status for a West End flat after tenants terrorised neighbours for years.
The move will ring alarm bells for landlords, who face losing tens of thousands of pounds in rent annually if they lose their licence.
Police had to attend the flat on Seafield Road 14 times over the last year, as raucous students threw wild parties, urinated on neighbours’ doors and threw crockery and glasses out of windows.
Solicitor John Muir, who represented resident Mark Ianarelli, told the city’s licensing committee that his client was at his wits’ end.
“Anti-social behaviour at this address has continued unabated,” he said. “It is no wonder. These students are young and are handed alcohol all evening at £1 a drink.
“It is mayhem on the streets when they come home in the early hours. How many members of the committee would like to live with their families next to such scenes?”
Easylets Ltd, who manage 2/2, 58 Seafield, were represented at the meeting by licensing expert Ken Glass.
He suggested that a series of soundproofing measures, particularly around the kitchen area, would help reduce the noise affecting Mr Ianarelli.
The solicitor also suggested that the letting agent would organise the installation of a new door entry system and CCTV for the common areas of the close.
But Mr Muir was left unconvinced, arguing that the only solution was to remove the House of Multiple Occupancy licence.
He said: “My client bought a flat in the West End of Dundee, not the Bronx. He should not have to install double security doors or CCTV in the common close.
“He doesn’t want that. He wants to live in peace.”
Licensing board members eventually agreed with Mr Muir’s arguments, and voted not to renew the licence by a majority of three.
The move is the second such ruling by the committee, who are becoming tougher on landlords who rent to rowdy tenants.
Labour member Tom Ferguson suggested the committee members should go out and inspect occupied HMOs on a regular basis a proposal he said he would take to colleagues soon.
In June The Courier revealed how another Seafield Road resident Stephen Macdougall succeeded in having the HMOs for the two flats above him removed after the residents there “plagued and ruined” his life for three years.
Those tenants were the subject of at least 40 police call-outs in the last three years and were responsible for flooding Mr MacDougall’s flat three times, causing him thousands of pounds worth of damage.
The anti-social “plague” also damaged his performance at work and his health, forcing him to take medication to help him sleep through the noise.
However, members did choose to renew an HMO on Union Place, despite objections from a resident.
In that case, Mr Glass, who represented Stirling International Ltd, effectively argued that the post-graduate tenants, coupled with a proper maintenance programme, would limit friction between residents.