Reviewed by Sean McNamara, 2026-10-07
Every licensing authority must keep a public register of licensed HMOs (Housing Act 2004 s.232). The catch: there are 300+ councils, each with its own register format, and some are easier to search than others. This site indexes them - the authoritative source remains your council.
Common failures: the council register search only matches exact addresses (try the street name alone), registers lag behind grants, and some councils removed registers pending redesign (they must still answer queries). Fix: screenshot or save the register entry WITH its date - evidence decays.
The register extract for your exact tenancy dates is the single most important document in an unlicensed-HMO claim. Get it in writing from the council (FOI works), not a screenshot from a third party. This site's checker points you to the right council register - then request the official extract.
Yes. Search your council's HMO register (usually on its website under 'HMO register' or 'public register of licences') by address. If the online register is unclear, email the licensing team or make a Freedom of Information request - they must confirm whether the address holds a current licence.
Five or more people from two or more households sharing facilities = mandatory licence in England. Three or four sharers may still need one under local additional schemes. Two requirements: check occupancy AND your council's scheme map.
Ask the landlord (they must supply conditions on request in practice) or request a copy from the council's licensing team - some publish full licences, others only register entries. Tenants preparing rent repayment order claims should get the register extract in writing.
Yes - to the council's licensing or environmental health team. Complaints about noise, waste, overcrowding or management failures can trigger inspections, licence condition enforcement, or even licence revocation.
Lawfully: operate outside the licensable definitions (single household, or below local scheme thresholds). Unlawfully: under-declaring occupants. The second is a criminal offence and opens the door to rent repayment orders - tenants check.
Below the HMO definition entirely: two unrelated sharers or a single family. Three-plus from two or more households is an HMO (possibly licensable under local schemes); five-plus is mandatorily licensable in England.