HMO
My HMO might need a licence it does not have: what now?
Last updated 7 July 2026 · Reviewed by Nick Thorpe, founder
The short answer
If your Huddersfield or Leeds property has five or more people from two or more households sharing a kitchen or bathroom, it likely needs an HMO licence. Kirklees runs mandatory licensing only; Leeds adds selective schemes and Article 4 areas. Apply now rather than wait to be found: penalties and rent repayment orders both bite hard.
Count the people, then count the households
Work out whether you actually meet the test before you worry about anything else. A property needs a mandatory HMO licence once five or more people, from two or more separate households, live there and share a kitchen or bathroom. That is the national rule under the Housing Act 2004, and it applies whether you set out to run an HMO or just ended up with one.
A household is a single person, or people from the same family, and a couple counts as one. Three unrelated sharers are three households. A family of four plus a lodger is five people from two households, and that alone is enough to tip a property over the threshold, even though it does not look like the classic student house share. If you have never actually sat down and counted, do it now, before reading any further. For the full breakdown of the test, see our Huddersfield HMO licence guide.
The rules are not the same everywhere
Where the property sits changes what else applies on top of the national test.
| Area | What runs | Extra to watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Kirklees (Huddersfield) | Mandatory licensing only, as of mid 2026 | None currently. Smaller HMOs (four people or fewer) need no licence |
| Leeds | Mandatory licensing, plus selective licensing in designated areas | Selective licensing catches properties of any size in those areas; Article 4 controls also apply in some student neighbourhoods |
That means the same headcount can land you in different places depending on the postcode. Our Leeds HMO licensing guide covers the designated areas and the Article 4 detail in full. Either way, councils change schemes without writing round to every landlord, so confirm your position with the council directly rather than assuming last year’s answer still holds.
Apply now, don’t wait to be found
If you think you meet the test and don’t hold a licence, the move is straightforward:
- Count properly. Occupants and households, based on who actually lives there, not who’s named on the tenancy.
- Apply to your council straight away. Don’t wait for a routine inspection, a neighbour complaint or a tenant referral to force the issue.
- Get the property up to standard. Licence conditions cover fire precautions, room sizes and enough kitchen or bathroom capacity for the headcount. Our HMO fire safety checklist covers what inspectors look at first.
- Ask for help if you’re not sure. A phone call is faster than guessing, and cheaper than guessing wrong.
The council does not send a thank-you card for coming forward, but it is still the queue you want to be in. Landlords who apply before anyone asks tend to have a far easier time of it than landlords who get a letter first.
What’s actually at stake if you don’t
Letting a licensable HMO without a licence is a criminal offence. Councils can prosecute through the courts, where the fine is unlimited, or issue a civil penalty of up to £40,000 instead of prosecuting. Tenants can separately apply for a rent repayment order to reclaim rent they have paid, capped at 12 months’ worth. None of that is a reason to panic; it is the reason to sort the paperwork before anyone else raises it first. “I didn’t realise it counted” is not a defence councils or tribunals accept, so the safer move is always to count, then apply.
Where we fit
If you have found out your HMO needs a licence you don’t have, or inherited one that was left unlicensed, we can take it from wherever it currently sits: licence applications, getting the property compliant, and the tenants themselves. Our HMO rescue service is built for exactly this. Call 01484 981717 and we’ll tell you where you stand before you commit to anything.
Licensing rules change, and this page reflects the position as of mid 2026. We confirm current requirements with the relevant council before every HMO we take on.