Planning Needed for Small HMOs in Birmingham from June 2020

On Thursday 6 June 2019, Birmingham City Council published a proposal to remove the current permitted right to change the use of dwelling houses to small Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) that can accommodate up to six people without requiring planning permission. This proposed ‘Article 4 Direction’ will cover the whole of the City and means that a planning application will be required for all proposals to convert family houses to small HMO accommodating between 3 and 6 residents. The Council state that the Article 4 Direction will mean they can properly consider the implications of new HMOs that are to be created, avoid excessive concentrations of such HMOs and to continue to monitor their distribution and the effects they have on the wider area.

The Council undertook a 6-week consultation period publicising the proposed City-wide direction last Summer. Following this, the City Council’s Cabinet has now confirmed that the Article 4 Direction will proceed and will come into force on Monday 8th June 2020.

The Council is asking landlords of existing small HMOs to declare these to them before Monday 8th June 2020 providing details of the address of the property and any evidence to demonstrate that it is an existing HMO – before the Article 4 Direction becomes enforceable. The Council state that after Monday 8th June 2020 existing HMOs that haven’t already been declared may require the submission of an application for a certificate of lawful use or for retrospective planning approval. If you have any small HMOs in Birmingham and would like us to advise you further, including applying for a Lawful Development Certificate where appropriate, please do contact Gail Collins, Director, on 0121 744 5511.