Agenda item

Council notes:

That HMOs provide an important, positive first step for many Cambridge residents to move into and find work and start their journey on the housing ladder;

That dwellings being converted to HMOs for over 6 people must obtain planning permission for change of use to HMO usage  (a sui generis use) and that HMOs for five or more persons not forming a single household must obtain a licence from the City council, enabling conditions to be inspected and enforced;

That smaller dwellings, with three or four persons forming two or more households, count as an HMO but do not require planning permission (as they fall under Permitted Development)  or a licence to operate;

That conditions in some HMOs are not acceptable, particularly in those smaller units which do not require planning permission or a licence and which have been converted and may lack the necessary health and safety adaptations;

That our Enforcement teams already work hard to identify smaller HMOs in poor condition, but without a central register of such properties, this is very challenging;

That currently, many tenants are afraid to complain about poor conditions for fear that they may then be evicted and lose a reference for a future rental, though we note that the proposed reforms to evictions would assist in strengthening tenants' rights in this area, which is very welcome;

That the proposed Renters' Reform bill may include a requirement for landlords and properties to be registered on a national database, which we also strongly welcome;

That because demand for HMOs exceeds supply, there is a risk that more poor quality HMO provision will be available and tenants will have little choice but to accept this, despite very high rents.

Council Believes:

That increased council intervention in the standards of planning and operation of HMOs is appropriate, particularly so long as Cambridge is experiencing an overall shortage of housing, and that the council must optimise and apply the range of power that it has, and may gain in the future, across its services in order to secure a fairer deal for tenants.

Council Resolves:

To ensure that the emerging local plan requires that all HMO properties that require planning permission for construction and/or for change of use are considered under the emerging new policy covering HMOs;

To ask officers to prepare a report on the case for and feasibility of one or more Article 4 directions within the city boundaries, which would remove Permitted Development rights for smaller HMOs (currently Use Class C4) and instead require planning permission for all new builds and for change of use for existing housing stock to be used as HMOs for more than two people;

To ensure that all HMOs that require planning permission meet minimum space standards and that a record is kept of such properties.

Subject to proper consideration through the current plan making process, seek to retain the measures already in place in Policy 48 regarding positive HMO development in the new local plan;

To encourage developers to consider provision of purpose built, decent HMOs as part of their affordable and standard homes delivery;

To note council's support for a proper register of landlords and their properties as part of the proposed Renters' Reform bill;

To report back to the Planning and Transport scrutiny committee and the Joint Local Plan Advisory Group on the findings on Article 4 or any other appropriate measures to ensure high quality HMO provision, by the summer of 2025.