Manchester HMO amenity standards

Manchester requires a mandatory HMO licence where a privately rented property is occupied by five or more people forming two or more households who share amenities such as a kitchen, bathroom or laundry. The council states that it does not currently run an additional licensing scheme for smaller HMOs. Selective licensing applies to privately rented homes in specific areas of the city, so a smaller shared house can still need a licence of a different kind.

Source: Manchester — Check if you need a licence and apply.

The council’s Houses in Multiple Occupation Guidance and Amenity Standards say they are based on legislation, relevant guidance and the council’s expectations of all HMOs, licensable or not. Licensed houses must also comply with the HMO licence conditions, which form part of every licence. The document allows officers to agree a different solution where a property’s layout needs one and tenants still get a safe home.

Both PDFs: Manchester — HMO standards and conditions.

Manchester restates the national bedroom floors: 4.64 m² for one child under 10, 6.51 m² for one person over 10 and 10.22 m² for two people over 10. Those figures assume separate living space exists elsewhere in the house. Where living space is combined in the bedroom, the room must be at least 10 m² for a person over 10. If a bedroom falls below 10 m², the missing living space has to be found in a communal room. Floor under a ceiling lower than 1.5 m is not counted.

A kitchen for two to four people should be at least 5.5 m², with an extra 1.4 m² per person from five up to ten. A dining room for two to five people should be 9 m², plus 1.86 m² for each additional person, and kitchen and dining rooms must sit on the same level. The council expects one four-ring cooker with oven and grill, and one sink, for every five people sharing, plus an extractor fan and a fire blanket. Other kitchen sizes can be accepted where the layout still allows safe and hygienic cooking.

The amenity ratio is one set of facilities to five people, and for every fifth person the WC must be separate from the bath or shower room. Where four or fewer people share, there must be at least one bathroom with a bath or shower and a toilet with a wash hand basin. Bathrooms should be no more than two floors from sleeping rooms, and WCs no more than one floor from living and sleeping rooms. Every separate WC needs its own wash hand basin.

The standards document records that the council has an Article 4 direction in place, so you need planning permission to change the use of a Manchester property to an HMO. Meeting building regulations does not by itself show that a house meets HMO standards. Planning detail: Article 4 HMO rules in Manchester. Sale route: Sell an HMO in Manchester.

English licensed HMOs share the 2018 prescribed bedroom floors, and Manchester layers its own kitchen, dining and bathroom sizes on top. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland license HMOs under different laws. Overview: HMO standards. Regulation text: SI 2018/616.