Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs)

Houses in Multiple Occupation, or HMOs, are properties that may be divided between a number of tenants. Landlords may be eligible for housing assistance if their property is in need of updating. Tenants who are having problems with their landlord or with fellow tenants can contact Dudley Borough Direct on 01384 818283 for help and advice or go to our supporting web pages.

As of April 2006 the Housing Act 2004 came into operation. The new act has an impact on HMOs. The Act has replaced the Housing Fitness Standard with the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS ). It also introduces a new mandatory licensing scheme for HMOs.

In relation to Houses in Multiple Occupation the act introduces measures to further regulate this sector, including:

A new definition of what constitutes a house in multiple occupation. A HMO comprises of 2 or more households.

Local Authorities have a requirement to issue a license to landlords who rent out houses in multiple occupation comprising of three storeys or more and that have five or more occupants will require a licence.

If you are the owner of a licensable HMO, it your respsonsibility to contact the Council on 01384 815112, 812633 or 815118 to request a licence application pack. Trading without a licence will be a criminal offence, which may be punishable by a fine of up to £20,000. We will work with landlords to ensure that the process is as trouble free as possible.

Further information in relation to fire standards can be found at Homestamp - a partnership consortium with an interest in private sector housing comprising of many Local Authorities, the Private Rented Sector, West Midlands Police and West Midlands Fire Service. For details about Homestamp, the new safety programme to help protect people living in HMOs, click here.