Council must also conduct a Housing Health and Safety Assessment System (HHSRS) risk assessment assessment for an HMO within five years of receiving a permit application. If the inspector detects unacceptable risks during the assessment, the landlord will be responsible for carrying out work to eliminate them. The landlord must also notify the board if they plan to change an HMO (structural or decorative), if tenants make changes to the property, or if the tenants` circumstances change (p.B. if they have a child). For example, the cost of an HMO license in Westminster, London, is £975 and is £1,240 for self-contained apartments. Meanwhile, the cost of HMO licenses in Newcastle and Bournemouth starts at £750 and £695 respectively. There are often discounts for accredited owners and renewals. If you are not sure if it should be allowed, contact the local council in question – often their website contains the relevant information. If the board is unable to license an HMO, it must assume administrative responsibility for the property until circumstances change and it can then be authorized.
There are special rules that apply when a board takes over the management of an HMO. If you authorize an HMO, you must still comply with all your legal obligations as an owner, such as. B deposit protection and compliance with energy efficiency regulations. The cost of an HMO license is determined by each board. It is usually charged as a fee for the application and is non-refundable regardless of whether the license is granted or not. If the property is a large HMO, the owner must obtain a license from the local council. A large HMO is one that meets the above requirements. Is there discretion to extend licences to small types of multi-occupancy homes (HMOS)? Local authorities have the right to introduce such systems subject to on-the-spot consultation. To introduce additional HMO licensing systems, local authorities must consult with residents, landlords and tenants for at least ten weeks. You will then need to provide proof of the introduction of a system, e.B.
prove that there are significant administrative issues or the condition of the property that need to be dealt with in a particular area. Once a designation has been confirmed, landlords operating in that area must apply for an HMO licence for each of their properties in the area. Owners with a large HMO must obtain a license from the local authority in order to be able to make an HMO rental in accordance with the law. Some local councils also require owners of small HMOs to also get a license (called an additional license), so you`ll need to check with the property-by-property authorities – there are hefty fines for those who don`t follow the rules. London Residential can help homeowners apply for a large or additional HMO license, eliminating the administrative burden. There are also fines for renting out more than the number of tenants allowed on the license, or for violating other license terms. These fines are set by your local council and range from £5,000 to £20,000. That you are « fit and able » to possess a licence (i.e., no criminal conviction for fraud or theft). Small HMOs may still need a license, depending on the area where the property is located. Even if a property is smaller and rented to fewer people, it may require a license depending on the region.
This can be verified with the municipal administration of the property. Another risk for the unsuspecting landlord is that it violates the terms of their purchase-for-rent mortgage or that their tenant has created an HMO (multi-occupancy house) by subletting rooms individually under a licensing agreement that may require the landlord to obtain an HMO license. Without it, the owner can be punished. Before issuing a licence, the local authority must be satisfied that the owner and any administrative agent of the property are fit and proper to hold a licence and that the property meets the required physical standards. HMO licenses typically have a term of five years. At least once during this period, the Council will inspect the property to ensure that it does not pose a risk to health and safety. Under a business lease agreement, all tenants must be registered entities, such as . B a limited liability company or a limited liability company. A rental property may still be subject to additional licensing requirements, even if it is not an HMO. Under the Housing Act 2004, local authorities have the power to introduce selective licensing for privately rented housing in order to solve problems in their area caused by low demand for housing and/or antisocial behavior. You should check with the relevant local authority whether a rental property should be authorised.
You must have a license if you rent a large HMO in England or Wales. Your property is set as a large HMO if all of the following apply: Local authorities also have a number of other enforcement options, including the power to change the terms of an HMO license granted or revoke an HMO license. In 2018, the government introduced minimum bedroom sizes for HMO properties that require a license. The landlord must inform a number of different parties when applying for a permit, and you must also share the details of these people with the board. They are: it is a criminal offence to operate an HMO that should be allowed but is not, and if convicted, the fines for non-compliance are unlimited. If you breach the terms of your licence, you can be fined up to £5,000. If you breach the conditions by renting to more than the number of tenants allowed on the licence, you can be fined up to £20,000. In order to obtain the property if it is a common law tenancy, it is not necessary to serve a notice under section 21 or section 8. This is a fixed-term rental, which then automatically continues as a monthly rental, termination must be given in order to end the rental.
Even if you don`t have a large HMO, some tips require that HMO properties have a license. Each license specifies the maximum number of people who can occupy the property and its validity period. At the Sheriff`s Office, we have carried out a number of evictions of corporate apartment rentals covered by a business lease agreement. If you are an owner and want to know if your HMO requires a license, you should check with your local authority for their guidelines for HMOs, as non-compliance will result in hefty fines. This is a situation where a business leases a property under a business lease agreement and then sublets it to tenants. The tenancy resulting from this Agreement is not a guaranteed tenancy and is not subject to the Housing Act. Not all deposits need to be protected under an approved government regime. No. Landlords are not allowed to evict existing tenants to avoid licensing. Any attempt to remove a tenant from a property that should be allowed but is not can be considered a crime under the Eviction Protection Act 1977, and the landlord or other party can be prosecuted. The Deregulation Act 2015 also amended the law so that a valid notice cannot be served to terminate a tenancy if the property is to be licensed but is not currently licensed. In Scotland, owners must have a licence for all HMOs.
If you rent an HMO property without a licence, you can be fined up to £50,000. The city council issues HMO licenses and will conduct a number of pre-examinations, including: All major HMOs must be licensed. So, if your property is rented to five or more independent tenants and has shared tenants, you will need to apply for an HMO license. To obtain the property, the High Court Enforcement Agents (HCO) may be heard by the owner or the « intermediary » who entered into the business lease agreement with the owner. If an owner or manager allows an HMO to be occupied by more people/households than it is allowed, unless there is a reasonable excuse that they are committing a crime and the fines are unlimited. .