Why do I need an HMO Licence?
Landlords prosecuted after flouting licensing laws in Gainsborough
Tenant dies in HMO fire – landlord gets 4 months plus fines, Fire Safety Order
Bristol landlord £5000 Rent Repayment Order
Council takes to the sky to find rogue landlords
Letting agency hit with £10,000-plus fine for smoke alarm failings
Southall landlord fined £70K for HMO regulation breaches
Liverpool tries again to implement selective licensing tax
Fine for landlord admitting failings
Brighton landlord prosecuted for unlicensed HMO
Stoke-on-Trent landlords fined almost £1,800 & more will be prosecuted
Landlord fined for failure to comply
HMO landlord fined after Barnet Council investigation
Councils using ‘Intelligence” to track down rental properties with low EPCs – £5,000 fines
Landlord fined £6,000 for not having HMO licenses
Landlord Fined £2000 for substandard property
Airbnb host fined £100,000 for letting council flat
£30,000 fine for lack of safe fire escape route – as resident hangs off guttering to save his life
New figures reveal thousands of tenants are at risk of death in their properties
Brent Council raise almost £100,000 in landlord fines in just four weeks
Now Council Licensing are doing Dawn Raids just like the Drug Squad
Ex-professional footballer scores own goal as landlord of unlicensed properties
Rogue landlord in Harrow faces jail if he doesn’t pay £1.5m fine
Enfield Council persecutes private landlords while leaving Council Tenant in “mouldy, mouse-infested” accommodation for three years
Fire risk assessor prosecuted brings serous doubt to DIY Fire Risk Assessments
Landlord punished over safety case
Court fines Landlord £26,000 for rats and cockroaches in un-declared HMO
Landlords Beware: Accidental Landlord Punished More for Harmless Error Than Criminals Are Punished For Assaulting Police Officers!
Landlord fined £29k for putting tenants’ lives ‘at risk’
Two landlords have been fined for letting out a flat that had no heating or windows.
Unlicensed landlord ordered to pay over £2,600
Rent Repayment Order £12,025 for Rent-to-Rent Flat in London SE10
Landlord without HMO licence fined £20,000
Battle of Hastings: Upper Tribunal Decision underlines end of Magic Money Tree for Rogue Tenants and their No Win/NoFee allies
Harrow rogue landlord’s nightmare flat left tenants at ‘imminent risk of death’
Landlord fined for keeping tenant’s deposit in a tin
Liverpool Council hands out 2,000 legal notices, 154 cautions, 89 civil penalty notices and 159 prosecutions
Landlord ordered to behave himself after being abusive towards tenant
Landlord who refused to pay for legal assistance gets stung for £28,000 in Rent Repayment Orders
Landlady fined £18k over unauthorised shared house
£66,000 fine for landlord letting out HMO with safety failings
BTL landlord ordered to pay more than £25k for unlicensed properties
£18,000 Civil Penalty for Landlord who didn’t comply with HHSRS
Are you running an HMO without realising it?
Landlord’s excuse for operating Unlicensed HMO not a ‘Reasonable Excuse’ finds Appeal to Upper Tribunal
Government gives Councils £3.8million to increase Enforcement against Landlords
HMO Landlords: Guilty Until Proven Innocent
Dawn raid finds 17 tenants crammed into sub-let HMO
How every Surrey council deals with complaints about about rogue landlords
Rogue landlord fined as council clamps down on ‘unacceptable living conditions’
Landlord fined for ‘extremely dangerous’ rental property
Why do I need an HMO Licence?
- Because the law says so (Housing Act 2004) and your local Council can fine you often £12,000 – £15,000 for not having one.
- The main reason HMO Licences were introduced was to make properties fire safe and healthier for the occupants. This is all stuff that decent Landlords/ property owners like you would do anyway (we hope).
- But for those Landlords who prefer to play Russian Roulette with their tenants’ lives there are massive fines available for each thing you’re supposed to do but haven’t.
- The Licence alerts the Council to the fact you’re operating an HMO and the rather exorbitant fees are intended to make you pay for them inspecting your HMO to make sure you’re doing everything properly and so they can fine you if you’re not.
- You need a Mandatory HMO Licence if you have five or more sharers in your property and one or more of them is not related to all the others by blood, sexual union or household employment.
- You MAY need an Additional HMO Licence even if you only have three sharers in your property if your local Council has enacted Additional HMO Licenensing.
How should I apply for an HMO Licence?
You can do this through most Council Websites – though only do this if you know your property is compliant or will be before it commences operating.
Alternatively, you can engage us to make sure your property is fully compliant before you let the Council tell you that you’re not.
What if I’ve just realised I should have had an HMO licence long ago and I haven’t?
STOP!! You have a potential emergency on your hands.
You have been breaking the law and you face fines of frequently £12,000 to £15,000 for not having a licence and £-many-thousands more for not complying with the HMO Management regulations and the Housing Health and Safety Rating System.
Also, your Tenants can claim back ALL the rent they have paid you by way of a Rent Repayment Order. So, you need to get this situation fixed.
And fast!
Contact us immediately and we can help you to make your HMO fully compliant on a very urgent basis before you or one of your tenants / neighbours alerts the Council to your “law breaking” and exposes you to these massive potential fines.
Success Stories