Council votes to close HMO 'loophole'

Council leader Rob Waltham says homes "must work for local people"

A council has voted to strengthen the rules on when properties can be converted into houses in multiple occupation (HMOs).

North Lincolnshire Council said it wanted to close a "loophole" that allowed landlords to convert family homes into small HMOs without what it described as "proper scrutiny".

Councillors voted to approve an Article 4 Direction, requiring all HMO conversions to have full planning permission, at a meeting on Thursday. There will now be a public consultation on confirming the change.

Rob Waltham, the Conservative leader of the council, said: "Families want safe, stable neighbourhoods – not streets hollowed out by badly run HMOs."

Thursday's vote followed a debate on the issue in March this year, when councillors passed a motion of "zero tolerance" to HMOs not following planning regulations.

The council has raised concerns about overcrowding and parking pressures linked to some HMOs, as well as a loss of family housing.

Councillor Richard Hannigan, cabinet member for adults and health, said: "We know that poor-quality HMOs can have a devastating impact – not just on tenants but on whole neighbourhoods.

"This is about raising standards, protecting vulnerable residents from exploitation".

Waltham previously said he did not want to "demonise" HMOs and accepted they were used by some young people as "a means to get out of the family home for all sorts of reasons".

But he said the change would "provide extra scrutiny".

The National Residential Landlords Association has argued Article 4 Directions "distort the market" and local authorities should "use their appropriate enforcement powers, rather than planning permissions" to address issues with the quality and condition of accommodation.

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