Additional regulation of Houses of Multiple Occupation could hit Selly Oak

1000 student rooms could go in Selly Oak under proposed changes to regulation of Houses of Multiple Occupation

The UK Government and Birmingham City Council have been running consultations relating to HMO (House of Multiple Occupation) regulations; both are due to end soon. The UK Government’s consultation will end today, on Tuesday 13th December. Meanwhile, the consultation being run by Birmingham City Council winds down on 31st December.

I’ve done some quick calculations. If both sets of proposed regulations are implemented then approximately 1,000 rooms which are just under the 6.52 square-metres proposed minimum size will become un-lettable and the value of those properties affected could be reduced by an estimated £30 million.

Current HMO regulations state that all properties that are on three or more floors and let to five or more individuals must be licenced by local governments and various standards adhered to by the landlords and tenants. The new regulations being suggested by the Government extend this mandatory licencing to cover all properties with five or more bedrooms, in addition to setting a nationwide minimum size for bedrooms of 6.52 square-meters.

Birmingham City Council has the authority to bring in Additional Licencing if it can show there is a need for it; their current proposal will extend existing HMO regulations to all HMO properties in the Selly Oak Ward which are let to 3 or more unrelated people.

HMO properties in the Selly Oak Ward, of which the vast majority are let to students are mostly Victorian terrace properties. About 1000 of these have four bedrooms, the fourth being on the 1st floor rear wing and due to the footprint of the original properties these rooms tend to be approximately 6 metre-square, just under the 6.52 square-meters being specified by the Government.

Currently local governments have some discretion over bedroom sizes; Birmingham City Council regulations allow one bedroom in each HMO to be 10% smaller than the standard size of 6.5m2, it’s anticipated that this allowance will also be removed, making even more bedrooms un-lettable.

For their consultation on HMOs in Selly Oak, the council are seeking feedback from agents and landlords, as well as residents. Their aim for the proposals are to reduce:

• Rubbish and waste management, in particular at the end of college terms
• Unregulated development, such as the building of extensions to increase occupancy without planning permission
• “Beds in Sheds” and the use of potentially unsuitable buildings for accommodation purposes
• Building and construction works impacting on the highway and neighbouring properties
• Fire protection and low quality repair standards, causing problems during a tenancy
• Lack of insulation and poor heating, leading to dampness and mould in properties

Purple Frog are participating in the consultation and we recommend that our clients with properties in Selly Oak also take part, too.

Other recent regulations brought in by Birmingham City Council have restricted the conversion of family homes to HMO’s under Article 4 Regulations and planning applications to extend existing HMO’s to house seven or more occupants are being rejected.

The result of all of this regulation will mean 1,000 fewer bed spaces in the city at a time when the Council is under pressure to increase housing stocks, rents for student property will increase due to the restriction of supply and many property owners will have tens of thousands of pounds wiped off of the value of their homes.

You can find more information on the Birmingham City Council Consultation, here: www.birminghambeheard.org.uk/additional-hmo-licensing-in-selly-oak-ward

Results from the consultation are expected by 1st February, with feedback 31 March 2017.

The Government consultation ends on 13th December. There’s more information about the consultation: www.gov.uk/houses-in-multiple-occupation-and-residential-property-licensing-reforms.  This consultation is seeking views about the impact of the proposed legislation on populations, such as recent immigrants, that will be affected by the change. It doesn’t cover  commercial interests, such as landlords.