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Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO)

An House in Multiple Occupation is a building that is occupied, as a main residence, by more than one household. HMOs include:

Buildings that consist of bedsit rooms where at least some facilities are shared
Buildings converted into self-contained flats that don’t comply with the Building Regulations 1991 AND where less than two thirds of the flats are owner-occupied
Buildings with multiple units of accommodation that all have their own exclusive facilities but which are not self-contained
Buildings which contain a mixture of the above types of accommodation
Hostels
Shared houses

The definition of household relates to any members of a family, including aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, grandparents etc and partners living together.

HMO Licensing

The Housing Act 2004 requires Local authorities to licence prescribed HMOs.

An HMO only requires a licence if:

It comprises of 3 or more storey’s, and
It is occupied by 5 or more persons, living in 2 or more households.

The Act makes it an offence to have control of or manage an HMO which requires a licence but is not licensed. It is also an offence if a licence holder fails to comply with the conditions of a licence.

The legislation covering licensing can be found in Part 2 of the Housing Act 2004, and in associated orders and regulations.

You can find information sheets in the attached files section below.

Non licensable HMOs

HMOs which do not require a license are assessed under Part 1 of the Housing Act 2004 using the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS).

The HMO Team

The HMO Team deal with:

All aspect of the HMO licensing process
Complaints relating to three storey HMOs
Inspections of all hostels and B& B accommodation

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Contact us

You can use our online form to report a problem with a HMO.

HMO Licensing Team
Environmental Health and Housing
Strategic and Community Housing Services
639 High Road
London
N17 8BD

Tel 020 8489 5230 / 5240
Fax 020 8489 5113

You can visit in person during office hours: Monday to Friday 8.45am to 5.00pm

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Attached Files
Filename	Filetype	Size
HMO Licensing - Application Form.pdf	PDF	208K
HMO Licensing - Application Form Guidance Notes.pdf	PDF	64K
HMO Licensing - Standards for Licensable HMO's.pdf	PDF	69K
HMO Licensing - Statutory Notification of Application for Licence.pdf	PDF	31K
HMO Licensing - Space Standards for Non-Licensable HMO's.pdf	PDF	36K
HMO Licensing - General Information.pdf	PDF	45K
HMO Licensing - Licence onditions information.10 08.pdf	PDF	47K
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