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Information
for landlords letting or thinking of letting a House in Multiple
Occupation (HMO) - New Rules for Landlords - Anti-Social Behaviour
Act (Scotland) 2004
See
also
How
to present your rental property for letting
How
not to present your rental property for letting
Going
Smoke Free - England July 2007
Buy
to Let Uk
Buy
to Let Europe
Condensation
Problems Click
Here
Energy
Performance Certificates for rental property Click
Here
Tenancy
Deposit Protection Scheme Click
Here
Property
News -
Click
Here
Arbitration - April 2008 -
by David Smith - Pain Smith Legal update
Click here
New
legislation changes the definition of a House in Multiple
Occupation - England and Wales
From
the 6th April 2006 more properties will fall under this definition.
It is aimed at improving standards of student houses and bedsits.
Houses with three or more storeys let to five or more unrelated
people will need to be licensed by the Local Authority. This
is to ensure that the Landlord is a "fit and proper person".
Landlords who fail to get a license by the beginning of July
2006 risk a fine of £20,000 for contravening the latest
regulations in the 2004 Housing Act governing Houses in Multiple
Occupation.
Below
is a basic check list:
What
is a House in Multiple Occupation? - It is a building
which is occupied by two or more households which share some
facilities such as kitchens, bathrooms or WC's.
What
is a household? - The new legislation states specifically
- It includes members of the same family (parent, child, grandparent,
brother, sister, aunt, nephew, niece or cousin), persons who
are married to each other or live as husband and wife (or
an equivalent same sex relationship).
What
if a group of students occupy a house? - This will be classed
as a House in Multiple Occupation as they would not members
of the same household. The legislation has made a specific
change to clarify this area. If a property is let through
a college/university College Head Tenancy Scheme the
property is still an HMO if the persons are unrelated.**
Are
there any exemptions from the definition of HMO? - Yes
- these are for buildings managed by public sector bodies
such as Registered Social Landlords, the Police, the Fire
Authority and the National Health Service. **Student
Halls of Residence managed by an Educational Establishment
are also exempt from the definition.
What
are the legal requirements regarding HMOs? - Some higher
risk HMOs which consist of three or more storeys with five
or more occupants must be licensed by a Local Authority. All
HMOs will need to meet basic standards which at April 2006
have to be finalised by the Government. It is likely that
these will relate to the numbers of facilities required such
as kitchens, baths, showers and WC's and fire prevention works.
The standard of management in the property will also be specified
to ensure the property is managed properly and maintained
in a good state of repair.
Licenses:
To grant a license, the licensing authority must be satisfied
that:
- the
proposed license holder, the landlord or managing agent,
are 'fit and proper' people
- properties
and tenancies are managed appropriately
- the
accommodation meets all minimum standards such as sufficient
number of toilets, kitchens and bathrooms for the number
of residents
Licenses
will be issued with certain conditions attached, such as the
requirement to provide gas and electrical safety certificates.
 Left:
Property that has been an HMO for over 30 years
In
Wales There are some 20,000 HMOs. Local Authorities
have significant enforcement powers to deal with problems
in the private rented sector and can also give grants to improve
the condition of properties and for the conversion of HMOs
into self-contained accommodation.
In
Scotland all residential let property with three or
more unrelated tenants has to be licensed as an HMO whereas
in England and Wales mandatory licensing in most areas will
be restricted to HMOs with three or more storeys and five
or more tenants.
To make matters more complicated a new law - Anti-Social
Behaviour Act (Scotland) 2004 states that from the 30th
April 2006, all Landlords of any private rented accommodation
will need to apply to be registered with the Local Authority
in which they let. This means that all Landlords letting out
accommodation in Scotland will now have to be licensed. The
only exceptions will be when the Landlord lives in the same
property and holiday lets.
Landlords
with HMOs will already be licensed under existing HMO licensing
rules, but for everybody else it will be an offence to continue
letting residential property in Scotland if they have not
submitted a valid application to register on the new database.
You
can be fined up to £5,000 for non registration and the
stopping of rental payments. The objective is to remove more
disreputable Landlords from the market by checking that those
on the register are "fit and proper" people to let
out property. It also aims to ensure that Landlords cooperate
with councils to try to reduce tenants' antisocial behaviour.
The
Local Authority will run checks to see if the Landlord is
a "fit and proper" person. Checks for fraud, drugs,
dishonesty, violence and unlawful discrimination or failed
to maintain a property properly.
The
minimum registration fee is £55 and a further fee of
£13.75 for each additional Local Authority area where
the Landlord lets. There is also a £11 for each property.
If a Landlord has two properties in different Local Authority
areas will pay £90.75 but there will be a 10 per cent
discount for registering on line.
The
registrations will have to be renewed every three years.
N.B.
This information should not be relied on for accuracy and
is presented here without the responsibility of jml Property
Service and the website it is being displayed at. ©jml property
Services 03-06
Housing
Act 2004 - Chapter
34 -Click Here
See
also Implementation of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety)
England & wales) Order 2005 Click
Here
and
The
Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and HMOs - Information
17 April 2007
Click
Here
See
also:
Statutory
code of Practise on racial equality in housing
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to Property Information
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