HMO licence applications are paperwork-heavy and unforgiving. A council that finds a single gap — an EICR within six months of expiry, a missing room-size schedule, a fire-safety evidence pack that does not name the standard — sends the file back. First-application rejection rates across the most active London boroughs sit between 35% and 50%. A rejection costs you the council fee, twelve more weeks of unlicensed letting risk, and exposure to a civil penalty of up to £30,000 per breach.
Our £400 all-in service covers the lot: we complete the application, assemble the evidence pack to the council's specific format, write the management plan, and stay on the file until the licence is issued. Mandatory licensing applications under Part 2 of the Housing Act 2004 run 12–16 weeks at most London councils. Additional licensing under Part 2 typically clears in 8–12 weeks. Section 257 conversion-block applications are quoted separately at £500 because the schedule of evidence is materially larger.
The Renters' Rights Act 2026 abolished Section 21 in May 2026, which moved possession risk squarely into the licensing and fire-safety domain. Councils that were slow under the old regime have accelerated enforcement. The cost of getting an HMO licence wrong is no longer a £30k civil penalty alone — it is also a Rent Repayment Order under Section 40 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016, recoverable by tenants for up to 12 months of rent.
Why Electrician London
Form completion + evidence pack
We complete every section of the council application form and assemble the supporting evidence pack — EICR, fire-alarm cert, FRA, gas safety, room-size schedule and management plan — in the council's required format.
Council liaison until issuance
We act as the named contact on the file. Council clarification requests come to us, not you. Most files clear with one or two clarification rounds — we handle the back-and-forth.
Room-size Schedule 4 check
Schedule 4 of the Housing Act 2004 sets minimum sleeping-room floor areas: 6.51m² for a single adult, 10.22m² for two adults sharing, 4.64m² for a child under 10. We measure and certify before submission.
Fire-safety + electrical evidence assembly
A satisfactory EICR less than 5 years old, a BS 5839-6 Grade D1 LD2 interlinked smoke and heat alarm certificate, and a written Fire Risk Assessment under the RRO 2005 are non-negotiable. We provide all three from one visit if you need them.
Management plan drafting
Every HMO licence carries conditions on management — repairs response times, tenant communication, rubbish disposal, anti-social behaviour procedure. We draft a council-acceptable management plan that you can defer to during the licence term.
HMO licensing assistance pricing
Flat fees per application — no hidden extras. Council fees billed separately.
Mandatory HMO licensing assistance
5+ persons forming 2+ households, England-wide mandatory scheme
£400
Additional HMO licensing assistance
Borough-discretionary additional schemes (Newham, Hackney, Waltham Forest, Brent, Croydon and others)
£400
Selective licensing supplement
Where the property also falls inside a selective-licensing area requiring a separate application
£150
Section 257 conversion HMO
Converted-block HMOs under Section 257 Housing Act 2004 — larger evidence schedule
£500
Re-application after rejection
Where you have a recent rejection — we identify the cause and resubmit
£200
What the £400 fee covers
- Initial scoping call and evidence audit
- Completion of the council application form
- Schedule 4 room-size schedule with measurements
- Annotated floor plan for council upload
- Written management plan to council standard
- EICR, fire-alarm cert and FRA evidence assembly
- Smoke and CO alarm interlinking commissioning statement
- Portal submission and council liaison until issuance
- Up to two clarification rounds with council officers
- Renewal calendar reminder 90 days before licence expiry
How the £400 licensing assistance works
- 1
Initial brief
A 30-minute call to scope the property, occupancy, current certificate status and the borough's scheme. We confirm which application route (mandatory, additional, Section 257) applies and what evidence is missing.
- 2
Evidence audit
We audit your existing EICR, fire-alarm, gas safety and EPC certificates against the council's current requirements. Anything missing or near expiry is quoted as a separate compliance line — never bundled silently.
- 3
Form prep + management plan
We complete the council application form, write the management plan, and produce the room-size schedule and floor plan. Draft pack returned to you within 5 working days for review.
- 4
Council submission + liaison
Application submitted via the council portal. We are the named contact. Acknowledgement and council reference number forwarded to you within 48 hours.
- 5
Council clarifications
Most applications get one or two clarification requests — extra evidence, a corrected document, a wording change on the management plan. We respond within 48 hours so the file stays on track.
- 6
Licence in hand
When the council grants the licence we forward the PDF and a calendar reminder for renewal — typically 5 years for mandatory and additional schemes.
Frequently asked questions
What counts as a mandatory HMO?
Since the 2018 national expansion, an HMO is mandatorily licensable if it houses 5 or more persons forming 2 or more households who share basic facilities (kitchen, bathroom, WC). The number of storeys is no longer relevant. A 5-bed flat-share at any height triggers mandatory licensing across the whole of England.
When does additional HMO licensing apply?
Additional licensing is a council-discretionary scheme designated under Section 56 of the Housing Act 2004. It typically captures smaller HMOs (3 or 4 persons) and HMOs that fall under the licensing threshold but are concentrated in a particular ward. Newham and Waltham Forest operate borough-wide additional licensing capturing HMOs from 3 persons. Hackney, Brent, Croydon and several others have borough-wide or designated-ward additional schemes.
What counts as a household?
A household is a single person or members of the same family living together — including unmarried partners, parents and children, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins. Two unrelated friends sharing a flat are two households. A couple plus an unrelated lodger is two households. The household count determines whether the property is an HMO at all.
What is the Schedule 4 room-size minimum?
Schedule 4 of the Housing Act 2004 (as amended in 2018) sets minimum sleeping-room floor areas for HMOs: 6.51m² for one adult, 10.22m² for two adults, 4.64m² for a child under 10. Room space below floor-to-ceiling height of 1.5m does not count. Councils reject licence applications where any sleeping room falls below the threshold.
What fire-safety evidence does the council want?
A written Fire Risk Assessment under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, a BS 5839-6 Grade D1 LD2 interlinked smoke and heat alarm certificate, and — for any HMO with three or more storeys or any communal escape route — BS 5266-1 emergency lighting certification. PAS 79-2:2020 is the current housing FRA methodology councils expect.
What electrical evidence does the council want?
A satisfactory EICR no more than 5 years old at the date of application and no more than 5 years old when the licence is granted. Any C1, C2 or FI codes must be remediated and the certificate re-issued before submission. Interlinked smoke alarms on every storey with a habitable room, and a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a fixed combustion appliance, per the 2022 amendment to the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations.
What is the management plan minimum?
A management plan must name the licence holder and the manager (often the same person), set out repair response times (24 hours for emergencies, 5 working days for non-urgent), describe the rubbish disposal arrangement, and explain how the manager handles anti-social behaviour and complaints. Most councils provide a template — we adapt it to your specific property.
What are the typical licence fee bands per council?
London council application fees for mandatory HMO licensing typically sit between £700 and £1,200 per property. Additional licensing fees usually mirror mandatory or sit £100–£200 lower. Some councils split the fee into a per-application admin charge and a per-property element. Fees are non-refundable on rejection, which makes pre-submission auditing the cheapest insurance available.
How long does a council take to decide?
Mandatory HMO applications target 12–16 weeks at most London councils. Additional licensing targets 8–12 weeks. Newham and Waltham Forest routinely meet 8 weeks for clean applications. Designated-ward councils with high application volumes (Hackney, Lambeth, Tower Hamlets) often slip to 14–16 weeks even on clean files. Clarification rounds add 2–4 weeks each.
What happens if the council rejects?
A rejection must come with written reasons. Common causes are out-of-date EICR, missing FRA, room sizes below Schedule 4, owner not fit-and-proper under Schedule 4 of the Housing Act 2004, or management plan gaps. You have 28 days to appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber), but in practice most rejections are resolved by a corrected resubmission — we cover this under our £200 re-application service.
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