A new borough-wide additional licensing regime has been given the go ahead in part of London.

Redbridge council’s scheme has extended licensing to all HMOs in the borough, meaning that any property let to three or more occupiers forming two or more households need to have an HMO licence.

The introduction of this new HMO licensing scheme comes after a statutory consultation exercise  

A statement from the authority says: “Overall, it was found that there are significant issues such as poor housing conditions, ineffective management, crime, and anti-social behaviour persisting within HMOs in the borough.”

In a note to landlords, the council adds: “Additional HMO licences granted by the council remain in force until the expiry date printed on the licence. It is important you continue to comply with all the licence conditions. If your property is occupied by five or more people living together as two or more separate households a Mandatory HMO licence is required NOW.  Failing to licence is a criminal offence and may prevent you evicting tenants.”