A House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) is a building, or part of a building, that:
Purpose built blocks of self-contained flats are not HMOs, but houses or buildings that have been converted into a block of flats may be a HMO if:
Please be aware that there are changes to Mandatory HMO Licensing which came into effect on 1 October 2018.
All HMOs must be free from Category 1 Hazards as assessed under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS).
There are additional requirements covering adequate fire precautions, means of escape in case of fire and appropriate standards of management and amenities. Please see the Space and Amenity Standard detailed below:
Properties must be licensed by us if the property is let to five or more persons who form two or more households.
It is an offence to operate a licensable HMO without a licence. You cannot legally collect any rent on the property and you may be prosecuted. You may also have to repay any rent received over the previous 12-month period.
The HMO Licence fee is £372.00. The licence needs to be renewed every five years.
To obtain a licence, we must be satisfied that:
The following documentation must be provided:
You can pay and apply for a licence or change an existing licence online on GOV.UK:
Apply to Licence a House in Multiple Occupation Apply to change a Licence for a House in Multiple Occupation
From 1 October 2018, the scope of mandatory HMO licensing has been extended to cover certain HMOs, including flats occupied by five or more persons in two or more households, regardless of the number of storeys.
The details are contained in the order "The Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (Prescribed Description) (England) Order 2018".
If you manage a property coming under this new definition you must apply for a licence by 1 October 2018.
If you live in a HMO and feel there are any unreasonable hazards which your private landlord is not dealing with, please email us at dfg@swdevon.gov.uk
You will need to have contacted the landlord in writing first, to give them an opportunity to deal with the issue.
Wherever possible we'll work with you and your landlord to improve the property but if this fails we can use enforcement powers.
Fire safety is one of the risk categories which is included in the HHSRS assessment for all homes. This is because national statistics show that fire is a major cause of fatality and injury in residential premises. The risk of fire is assessed regardless of whether a property is in multiple occupation or occupied by a single family.
The greatest risks to occupiers are to be found in multi-occupied properties where there are three or more storeys. This may include houses that are converted into flats, hostels, managed or sheltered accommodation, purpose built multi-storey buildings and flats above shops. The risk rises with increased occupancy, multiple ignition sources (cookers, heaters, fires, smoking), vulnerable occupants, poor construction and lack of fire prevention measures.
Analysis of national fire statistics have concluded: