HMO licences

HMO Licences

Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) - applies to all wards in the whole borough. Small HMOs of 3 persons or more will be subject to  Additional (HMO) Licensing and larger HMOs will be subject to  Mandatory HMO Licensing.

 

What is a household?

A household is either a single person or members of the same family who live together. A family includes people who are:

  • married or living together - including people in same-sex relationships
  • relatives or half-relatives, for example, grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings
  • step-parents and step-children
  • a foster child living with a foster parent (s) is treated as living in the same household

 

Mandatory HMO Licence

A Mandatory HMO licence is required for any house/dwelling that has been converted from a single household to a property occupied by five or more people, forming two or more unrelated households and sharing at least one facility i.e w.c, kitchen etc and which meets the standard, self-contained flat or converted building HMO test in Section 254 of the Housing Act 2004.  

Mandatory HMO licensing is borough wide and a licence is granted for a maximum of 5 years, after which time it must be renewed if the property remains occupied as a Mandatory HMO.

 

Additional HMO Licence

On 30 May 2023, Redbridge Council approved a new borough wide Additional HMO Licensing scheme.  The scheme has extended licensing to all Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs). 

View the designation map (91.5 KB) 

This means that any property which is rented to three or four occupiers forming two or more households that share (or lack) a toilet, personal washing facilities or cooking facilities needs to have an HMO Licence.  

Additional HMO Licensing also applies to certain converted blocks of flats (known as ‘Section 257’ HMOs), including blocks of self-contained flats but only where,

  • The building work undertaken with the conversion did not comply with at least the 1992 building regulations standards and still does not comply with them.
  • All accommodation units are privately rented.
  • The building and accommodation units are in the same ownership or control
  • The building has at least three or more accommodation units (self-contained flats).

This includes buildings within mixed use developments or above non-residential premises. If you are unsure if your flat or building is a ‘Section 257 HMO’ then please contact the Property Licensing Team, using the details at the bottom of this page.

The Additional HMO licensing scheme for 3 or 4 persons and ‘Section 257’ HMOs will run alongside the existing Mandatory HMO licensing scheme which covers 5 or more occupants forming 2 or more households.

The requirement to licence under the scheme will come into force on Monday 18 September 2023 and will cease to have effect on 17 September 2028 or earlier if the Council revokes the scheme under section 60 of the Act. 

View the designation notice (PDF 191 KB)  

The introduction of this new HMO licensing scheme comes after a full consultation.  Overall, it was found that there are significant issues such as poor housing conditions, ineffective management, crime, and anti-social behaviour persisting within HMOs in the borough. 

Additional HMO licences granted by the council remain in force until the expiry date printed on the licence. It is important you continue to comply with all the licence conditions. 

 

HMO fees and charges

Fees from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025

Number of households

Fee on application 

First instalment

Grant of a licence

Second instalment

Total fee

*Discounted

fee for accredited landlords

 

2

£600

£1008

£1608

£1573

3

£600

£1098

£1698

£1663

4

£600

£1200

£1800

£1765

5

£600

£1284

£1884

£1849

6

£600

£1380

£1980

£1945

7

£600

£1470

£2070

£2035

8

£600

£1560

£2160

£2125

9

£600

£1656

£2256

£2221

10+

£600

£1752

£2352

£2317

*Discounts:   Landlords who submit evidence of accreditation at the time of the application submission (and not after the submission date) will receive a £35 discount on the second instalment.  The discount is not available after the application has been submitted. 

Applications for an HMO licence may be made by submitting a paper application.  However, there is a £120 processing fee for this service.

 

How to apply for an HMO licence

Please read all of the below information before you click on the "apply for a Property Licence" button.

 

Apply for a property licence

The current processing timeframe for a property licence is 3 months.

If you have a query pre or post application submission, please email Prslicensing@redbridge.gov.uk

 

Documents required before making your application

You will need to upload copies of the following certificates:

Photos or scans of documents are acceptable, providing the relevant information is clear.

 

Guidance Notes for Renting Out A Property

Please ensure you read the Guidance Notes for Renting Out A Property before applying for a licence. 

 

Conditions

If your HMO licence is granted there will be a number of conditions attached to the licence. Some of these conditions apply to all HMO licences and some may be specific to your HMO. You are required to comply with these conditions and the Council may request evidence from you to show that you are complying with them. A compliance visit may be carried out at any time during the licence period. It is an offence to fail to comply with a licence condition without a reasonable excuse and you may receive a caution, a civil penalty or be prosecuted for the offence.

 

Mandatory HMO Licence Conditions

Additional HMO Licence Conditions 

 

Planning permission

Planning permission maybe required for HMO's.  Please visit this page for more details.

It is your responsibility to obtain all relevant permissions to use your property as an HMO.  Please contact the Council’s Planning Department for further information if in doubt.

If your property does not have the correct planning status, we will allow owners and landlords time to remedy this breach but you are still required to apply for an HMO licence, so you remain compliant with the legal requirements of Property Licensing.  We will normally issue a one-year licence. All one-year licenses will be charged at full fee.

 

What happens next?

Once you have submitted your application, uploaded all your documents and paid the licence fee, which is split in to two parts (Part A and Part B), our team will then commence processing your application.  Your licence will be processed within 3 months.

 

Compliance visit

All licensed HMO properties will be inspected within the lifetime of a licence. After submitting an application for a licence, landlords will be able to schedule a time for an officer to carry out a compliance inspection. Most visits will be made through appointment, but some may be unannounced.

The purpose of this visit is to ensure that the HMO is safe to be occupied. Specifically,

  • Is the property in good repair and there are no Category 1 hazards (HHSRS)?
  • Is the property overcrowded?
  • Are the licence conditions being adhered to?
  • Are the HMO Management Regulations being complied with? 

There will be particular attention paid to fire safety, room sizes and to check that the HMO has sufficient kitchen, bathroom and WC facilities for the number of occupiers. For more details please read the Guidance Notes for Renting Out A Property before applying for a licence and for fire safety download the LACORS Housing Fire Safety Guidance.

To help you understand what fire precaution measures that are required for your type of HMO property, please refer to the guidance contained within LACORS Housing Fire Safety guidance. If you are unsure or would like to know more about the expected standards with an HMO, please refer to Redbridge's Best Practice Guidance Notes.

Once a Compliance Visit is completed, landlords will be notified of the outcome which could be one of the following :

  • Property is Satisfactory - The licence holder will receive a ‘Satisfactory Inspection Letter’ indicating that no further action is necessary.
  • Minor defects Identified - An ‘Advisory Letter’ will be sent outlining necessary remedial repairs needed. It’s the responsibility of the licence holder to fix the issue/s, to prevent them getting worse.
  • Serious breaches of licence conditions/HMO Management regulations - The licence holder will be contacted and enforcement will take place in line with the PSH Enforcement Policy (For example, Financial Penalty Notice or Prosecution).
  • Category 1 hazards are identified- The case will be referred to our Re-active Enforcement Team who make further contact with the licence holder/owner and occupier and will conduct a full Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) inspection.

 

Advisory visit

A voluntary advisory visit can be arranged with our enforcement officers upon request for guidance on whether your property is compliant with HMO requirements or for details on how your property can be made compliant with the required minimum standards.  This is separate to any compliance visit and to assist and help Landlords who are unsure on the conditions inside their property.  There is a fee of £477 for this service. To arrange an advisory visit please email prslicensing@redbridge.gov.uk 

 

Renewals

You should renew your HMO licence if it is about to expire and you still wish to privately rent the property in the same way it was being rented before. We recommend you renew your licence 3 months before your current licence expires.

Please inform us if circumstances have changed and the property is no longer licensable, email: prslicensing@redbridge.gov.uk

 

Existing & Previous Licence Holders

If you have an HMO licence which is still in date, your licence is still active and valid.

If you have an HMO licence that has expired, you will need to apply for a property licence now.  This includes Additional HMO licence holders whose licence expired, as a new Additional scheme has come into force.

 

Exemptions

Certain HMOs are exempt. See Schedule 14 to the Housing Act 2004.

 

Refund policy

You may be entitled to a refund of the application fee in certain circumstances. For more information on refunds view the Redbridge refund policy (PDF 264KB)

 

Contact us

Telephone: 020 8708 4845

Please leave a message and we will call you back.

Email: prslicensing@redbridge.gov.uk

Property Licensing Team
2nd Floor Front
Lynton House
255-259 High Road
Ilford
IG1 1NY

 

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