What do HMO landlords need to know?
The legal regulations around HMOs are more complex than for properties let to a single household
Your property is defined as a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) if both of the following apply:
At least three tenants live there, forming more than one household
Toilet, bathroom or kitchen facilities are shared
The legal regulations around HMOs are more complex than for properties let to a single household. And with the Government trying to raise standards in HMO properties, it’s increasingly likely that your HMO will need to be licensed. As it stands currently, any HMO with five or more occupants falls under mandatory national licensing requirements.
We’d suggest that if you intend to let any property as an HMO, you speak to your local authority, as they have the power to impose their own licence conditions, and these can vary from one area to another.
You can find out more about the specific rules relating to HMOs on GOV.UK and in our guide, ‘The complete guide to letting an HMO property’.
It’s particularly important when preparing an HMO property for rent that landlords are fully aware of fire legislation, which is much more stringent for HMOs
For example, it’s a legal requirement in an HMO to have:
Interconnected, mains powered smoke alarms – one on each floor and one in each individual ‘unit’ (e.g. bedroom or bedsit)
A heat alarm and fire blanket in the kitchen
At least one fire extinguisher on each floor
Fire doors to protect escape routes
The Fire Safety Advice Centre has a list of the specific fire safety requirements for HMOs, but it’s worth asking a local fire safety office to visit your property and give you bespoke advice on the measures you should be taking to make sure you comply with the law and your tenants are kept as safe as possible.
In addition to the fire safety measures above, new legislation came into force in January 2023 for all multi-occupied buildings.
That’s any property that contains two or more domestic premises, with common parts (e.g. hallway or stairwell) that residents would need to pass through to exit the building in case of an emergency – e.g. HMOs and flats in blocks.
For flats in buildings that are over 11 metres in height, the regulations are highly complex, and you should seek specialist advice. But for HMOs and flats where the building is four storeys and/or less than 11 metres, the new rules are relatively straightforward.
A ‘responsible person’ must be appointed for the building - this can be an individual or an organisation, such as the managing landlord or agent, or the residents’ management company. This person is responsible for carrying out certain duties relating to fire safety:
Displaying fire safety instructions in a conspicuous part of the building
Providing information to building residents about fire doors, particularly individual flat entrance doors
Full information on duties of the Responsible Person can be found on the government website. And to find out more about the new fire safety regulations and other changes that apply to multi-occupied properties under the Building Safety Act 2022, see our separate guide, Cladding and the Building Safety Act 2022: What do landlords need to know?
