Southampton HMO amenity standards

Southampton publishes Guidance on Standards for Houses in Multiple Occupation (2025) covering fire, amenities and room sizes for licensed stock. The document distinguishes shared houses with communal living from other HMO types and ties kitchen location to whether a communal dining or living space exists. Licence conditions can require works to meet those standards.

Source: Southampton — Guidance on HMO standards 2025 (PDF).

Where a separate communal living space is provided, Southampton allows 6.51 m² for one person over 10 and 10.22 m² for two persons over 10. Without that communal living space, a bedroom for one adult needs 10 m² and a two-adult room needs 14 m². Rooms between 4.64 m² and 6.51 m² are assessed against whether the house benefits from separate communal living space as stated in the guidance.

No kitchen facility should be more than one floor distant from its users, unless a communal living or dining space is available on the same floor or within one floor of the kitchen. Shared kitchens start at 7 m² for up to five occupants, and for ten or more occupants a second kitchen may be appropriate. Those layout rules often drive conversion costs more than the bedroom floors alone.

Attach the measured schedule, note whether communal living space exists, and include the current licence. Buyers underwriting Southampton student stock should test the 6.51 m² versus 10 m² fork before accepting a marketed occupancy. Sale route: Sell an HMO in Southampton.

Southampton’s 2025 manual is another English dual-track bedroom model keyed to communal living space, built on the national 2018 floors. Devolved nations use different HMO licensing frameworks and amenity manuals. Overview: HMO standards.