Article 4 HMO rules in Brighton & Hove

The Article 4 Direction means planning permission is needed for houses everywhere within the city to change from a dwellinghouse (C3) to a house in multiple occupation (C4). You do not need permission to convert a C4 property back to C3, but you would need it to convert back again to an HMO. A dual-use permission can allow the property to switch between C3 and C4 for ten years; the use at the ten-year point becomes the lawful use unless another permission is obtained.

Source: Brighton & Hove — Planning permission for houses in multiple occupation.

City Plan Part One policy CP21 and City Plan Part Two policy DM7 relate to HMOs, including change of use to C4 and mixed C3/C4 use. CP21 states applications for new HMOs will not be permitted where more than 10% of dwellings within a 50-metre radius of the application site are already in C4, mixed C3/C4 or other HMO sui generis use. DM7 adds that a proposal should not leave a non-HMO dwelling sandwiched between two HMOs where the three houses are immediately adjacent in a continuous frontage.

Brighton & Hove updates an HMO concentration map annually in October for Article 4 planning purposes. The council notes the map does not include licensing, planning permission or enforcement data. Lawful development certificate needs particularly affect smaller C4 HMOs that were already operating before the relevant Article 4 dates — including St Peters and North Laine wards and, before 3 June 2020, other wards across the city.

Brighton & Hove also licenses HMOs; the planning page notes around 4,000 licensed HMOs in the city. Licensing status does not answer the CP21 or Article 4 planning question. Sale routes: Sell an HMO in Brighton · HMOs for sale in Brighton.

Brighton’s package pairs a city-wide Article 4 with explicit percentage and sandwiching tests. That is more policy detail than many English directions publish on the same landing page. Explainer: Article 4 direction.