The Housing Act 2004 introduced “property licensing” from 2006 to ensure private rented homes are well managed. A named “licence holder” is required for each property.
Failing to apply for an HMO licence is an offence under the Housing Act 2004 s72(1) and liable to a civil penalty of up to £30,000 or an unlimited fine on summary conviction in court. In addition, tenants can apply for a rent repayment order, and if successful this could mean that they can claim back rent paid whilst the HMO operated without a licence.
Mandatory Licensing for HMOs
- All houses that have five (5) or more occupants from two or more households who share facilities
- Houses that meet the “buildings converted partly into self-contained flats” that have five (5) or more occupants
- Flats that have five (5) or more occupants from two or more households who share facilities but is not a purpose-built flat situated in a block comprising three or more self-contained flats.
Additional Licensing for HMOs
Oxford City Council decided on 10 March 2021 to introduce a new designation for Additional Licensing to cover the whole City. This scheme started on 10th June 2021. This means all HMOs in Oxford will require an HMO licence from 10th June 2021.
- Additional Licensing for Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO)
- Property licensing consultation 2020
- Impact of HMOs and aims of licensing
HMO licence conditions
All HMO licences are issued with the same standard conditions. We inspect all HMOs before they are first licensed to ensure the HMO meets minimum requirements. If they do not, we will add conditions to the licence to require landlords to undertake works within a set time frame.
Planning Permission
In Oxford, all HMOs must have the relevant planning permission – either C4 use (small HMO 3 to 6 people) or sui generis use (large HMO - 7 plus people). This is a separate legal requirement to a licence.
