Planning permission and Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO)
What is a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO)?
A House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) is a property occupied by three or more unrelated people.
If a property is occupied by between three and six unrelated people who live together as a household, with shared facilities such as a bathroom and kitchen, it would have what is called a C4 planning use. Planning permission is not required to change the use of a dwellinghouse (Class C3) to an HMO (Class C4) and vice versa, unless the property is located in an Article 4 area in the city – see below for further information.
If seven or more unrelated people are living in a household with shared facilities, this would have what is called a ‘sui generis’ planning use. Planning permission is always required to change the use of a dwellinghouse to an HMO with seven or more unrelated occupants and vice versa. A dwellinghouse (Class C3) is a property normally occupied by people forming a single household, such as a family, but can also be occupied by two unrelated people.
Licencing of Houses in Multiple Occupation
Obtaining planning permission for an HMO and obtaining a Licence for an HMO are separate matters. Obtaining an HMO Licence does not mean that you have automatic planning permission for the HMO. Equally, having planning permission for an HMO does not guarantee that an HMO Licence will be granted.
Please see HMO Licencing for further information about licensing requirements.
Change of use to Houses in Multiple Occupation
The General Permitted Development Order allows certain types of building alterations or changes of use to go ahead without having to make a planning application. This is known as ‘permitted development’.
However, it is possible for councils to remove certain permitted development rights where it is considered expedient to do so in their areas through what are known as "Article 4 Directions".
In Exeter, we have removed the permitted development right that allows the change of use of dwellinghouses to HMOs in a specific area of the city near the university, due to the high number of HMOs already in this area. This means you'll need to apply for planning permission if you want to change a house (Class C3) to an HMO (Class C4) in the Article 4 area. This does not affect houses that were already being used as an HMO before the Article 4 Direction came into force in 2011. See our Article 4 Direction map.
You'll also still need to apply for planning permission if you want to change the use of an HMO with more than six unrelated individuals or to separate flats or bedsits, but it's possible to change a C4 use back to a C3 use without having to apply for planning permission.
The criteria we use to assess planning applications for new Class C4 HMOs can be found in HMO Supplementary Planning Document.
Certificate of Lawfulness of Existing Use
Where an HMO has been in use for more than ten years, you can submit an application for a certificate of lawfulness of existing use. These might be required when selling or mortgaging a property.
Evidence will be required of continual occupation for the last ten years as an HMO. Evidence can include:
- signed tenancy agreements,
- details of tenants and deposits such as the tenant deposit scheme,
- bank statements showing rent payments if they clearly identify the property the payment relates to,
- sworn statements from the owner, or anyone with knowledge of the property, such as a managing agent.
A floor plan of the property showing room uses should also be submitted. Applications take up to 8 weeks to determine provided sufficient information is submitted.