Mish Liyanage – Property Expert

Plans to control the growth of HMOs are gaining momentum. Shared housing provides essential flexibility and affordability for students, young professionals, and households priced out of traditional markets.

At the same time, poorly managed HMOs can strain local infrastructure, overcrowd streets, and disrupt community cohesion. The challenge is balancing housing supply, quality, and affordability — without harming tenants or neighbourhoods.

Blanket Caps Risk Unintended Consequences

Broad, across-the-board restrictions may seem like a simple solution, but they carry serious downsides. Limiting HMOs indiscriminately can reduce supply, driving rents higher and pricing out the very people who rely on shared housing. Responsible landlords, who maintain high-quality properties, are also unfairly penalised under blanket measures.

The market needs precision, not blunt tools. Restrictions should target specific areas where growth creates measurable problems, rather than applying a blanket ban that affects communities that are managing HMOs successfully.

Targeted Regulation Protects Tenants and Communities

Tools like selective licensing and Article 4 Directions can help strike the right balance. By focusing on areas with demonstrable issues — overcrowding, noise complaints, parking strain — these policies allow regulation to be proportional, predictable, and fair.

When controls are targeted rather than indiscriminate, tenants benefit from safer, more secure housing, and neighbourhoods experience fewer disruptions. The focus shifts from simply limiting numbers to improving standards, which strengthens the market rather than suppressing it.

Quality Standards Matter More Than Quantity

Licensing schemes and planning policies should prioritise quality over quantity. Requirements around space, safety, and property condition raise the overall standard of HMOs, while well-managed properties set a benchmark for the market.

Encouraging quality ensures that HMOs continue to meet genuine housing needs without creating long-term problems for local residents. Poorly converted or neglected properties become the exception, not the rule, which improves both community perception and tenant satisfaction.

Aligning Local Policy With National Housing Goals

Local HMO planning measures work best when they complement wider national reforms. Changes in landlord accountability, rental standards, and tenant protections provide a framework that reinforces local controls.

When local and national policies align, the focus is on the type of housing provided, not just the number of HMOs. This creates a market where tenants gain secure, affordable homes, landlords operate responsibly, and neighbourhoods retain their character.

A Vision for a Balanced, Sustainable Market

HMOs are not going away, and trying to ban them entirely would be short-sighted. The goal should be smart, evidence-based regulation that balances supply, affordability, and community cohesion.

When done correctly, HMO controls:

• Protect tenants and ensure safe, secure homes
• Maintain rental affordability
• Support responsible landlords
• Preserve community character

This approach turns regulation into a tool for strengthening, not restricting, the housing market. Communities, tenants, and landlords all benefit when policy is precise, fair, and future-focused.