Criteria and inspection

• What criteria do I need to meet to get a licence?
• What happens if I do not meet the ‘fit and proper person’ criteria?
• What accreditation schemes will be recognised by Private Sector Housing?
• If I have previously held a licence what criteria will my HMO need to comply with from your space standards?
• I’m concerned that my property does not meet the HMO space and amenity standards, what can I do?
• Once I have applied for a licence, will my property be inspected?
• When can I provide updated certificates?

The criteria for being granted an HMO licence can be found on these pages:

• Applying for an additional HMO licence
• Applying for a Section 257 additional licence
• Applying for a HMO mandatory licence

If an applicant does not meet the ‘fit and proper person’ criteria, then an appropriate alternative manager must be appointed, or the council can consider taking over the management of an HMO through a Management Order until an alternative person can be appointed to manage the property. You can appeal a decision that you are not a fit and proper person.

Full accreditation scheme info can be found on the accreditation scheme information page.

This PDF outlines the required space and amenity standards for HMOs in Portsmouth.

The document details the minimum standards expected for newly created HMOs, for increase of occupancy to existing HMOs, or where an application for planning permission is made in relation to the use or physical enlargement of a HMO.

All HMO owners are encouraged to meet these standards.

However, the document also outlines a level of digression from these standards that officers will apply when assessing the space and amenity for existing HMOs where no alterations to the size of the property or number of occupants are being made.

Whether the property has been licensed before or not is of no relevance to the space and amenity standards that will be expected.

If you have concerns that your property will not meet the space and amenity standards, you can:

1. Continue to manage and operate your HMO in the same way as you do now, and wait for a housing regulations officer to inspect your property and advise if it does not meet the local space and amenity standards. If the officer identifies that the property is not suitable for the number of occupants, they’ll advise how you can address this. Typically they will explain what alterations you might need to make to meet the required standards (provide an extra toilet or increase the size of the communal space for example), or to reduce the number of occupants. The officer will work with you to resolve this and will set reasonable time scales for this.
2. Make alterations to your property to meet the requirements if you’re confident it does not meet the space standards and you know what you’d need to do to rectify this. For example you can install an extra toilet, or increase the size of the communal space if it’s currently too small.
3. Reduce the number occupants in your property if there are currently too many tenants compared with the space and amenities available if you are confident that the property does not meet the space standards required and you cannot, or do not want to, make alterations to the property. If you decide to do this, and it would mean that your HMO would no longer be operating as a HMO (for example it would reduce from three to two tenants) but will still be occupied as an HMO on 1 September (when the scheme begins) then you should apply for a temporary exemption for up to three months. We will only grant an exemption if you are taking active steps to bring the property out of licensing requirements. Any action you take to reduce occupancy must be in accordance with legal eviction procedures, and you should seek independent legal advice if you are unsure of this.

Please note that regardless of which option you choose, if your property will be occupied as an HMO on 1 September 2023, then you must either apply for a licence, or apply for a temporary exemption if you are taking steps to reduce the number of tenants.

Once you have applied for a licence there are different types of inspections of your property that may be undertaken.

• Verification inspection – these inspections are carried out before a licence is issued, when an officer needs to confirm information within the application. Not all properties will require a verification inspection before the license is issued. The result of this inspection could be that special conditions are included in your license (for example to provide additional amenities or undertake certain training).
• Licence Compliance inspection – Every licensed property will have at least one inspection during the licence period, and the result of this inspection could be that remedial works are required if deficiencies in the property are found, or failure to comply with licence conditions could result in enforcement action being taken. Any action taken would be in accordance with the councils Private Sector Housing Enforcement policy.

Certificates should be provided as per your licence conditions. Certificates can be uploaded and submitted via the landlord application portal. If you need any support please contact the team on hmo.licensing@portsmouthcc.gov.uk or call 023 9284 1659.