THE PROPERTY FILTER TAKE
Refusals of HMO planning applications across 144 English councils rose from 590 in 2021 to 1,203 in 2025, and the approval rate has slipped from around 68% to 63%.
Decided applications grew 87% over the same years, so the refusal rate on decided cases moved from 31.9% to 34.8%, a real tightening well short of the headline doubling.
Consider checking your target council's Article 4 position and its recent HMO decisions before you exchange contracts, and speak to a planning consultant about pricing a possible refusal into the deal.
HMO (house in multiple occupation) planning refusals in England more than doubled between 2021 and 2025. Refusals rose from 590 to 1,203 across 144 councils, according to research from property firm 1st Avenue reported by Mortgage Strategy on 26 August 2026. Approval rates sat at around 68% between 2021 and 2023, and early 2026 figures put the rate at 63%.
How much harder has HMO consent really become?
The doubling is real, and so is the growth underneath it. Decided applications, meaning cases where a council actually reached a decision, rose 87% between 2021 and 2025. That is a move from 1,848 to 3,454 (1st Avenue, via Mortgage Strategy, 26 August 2026).
Work the two figures together and the move is smaller than the headline suggests. In 2021, 590 refusals out of 1,848 decisions is a refusal rate of 31.9%. In 2025, 1,203 out of 3,454 gives 34.8%. The rate shifted by under three percentage points while the raw count of refused schemes doubled.
That gap matters when you underwrite (test whether a deal's numbers stand up). More applications are being decided, and a slightly higher share are being turned down, which reads as a supply story as much as a policy one. If you are testing what a finished HMO would be worth on refinance (remortgaging after the work), our free HMO valuation calculator works that side of the sum.
What does an Article 4 direction change for your conversion?
Article 4 directions sit behind much of this shift. An Article 4 direction lets a council remove permitted development rights, the automatic right to turn a family home into a small HMO without a planning application. Once one covers your area, a conversion needs planning permission (Mortgage Strategy, 26 August 2026).
There is no central register you can check in one place. The National Residential Landlords Association estimates that between 75 and 80 English local authorities have introduced one (via Mortgage Strategy, 26 August 2026).
So the council is a variable you underwrite, not a formality. Before you exchange contracts, you may wish to confirm whether your target area carries an Article 4 direction. Then read that council's recent HMO decisions rather than its published policy alone. If you are weighing a conversion against a simpler hold, our property investment strategies hub is a sensible starting point.
What should you check before you buy to convert?
Consent is only the first hurdle. The licensing requirement is a separate one. Mandatory HMO licensing applies to properties let to five or more people from two or more households who share facilities (Mortgage Strategy, 26 August 2026). Some councils also run additional licensing schemes covering smaller HMOs. 1st Avenue property expert Paul Endacott refers to both a refused planning permission and a turned-down licence application, which are two different decisions.
His wider point is about supply. Endacott says the research is "a story about where people are actually going to live" (Mortgage Strategy, 26 August 2026). 1st Avenue warns that restricting legitimate HMO supply could push some tenants towards informal or unregulated accommodation, while demand for affordable shared housing stays high.
One boundary is worth naming. These figures cover HMO planning decisions in England only, so they are not a guide to consent for any other use of a property. If shared housing is new ground for you, the free property resources hub gathers the groundwork in one place.
Whatever you end up running, the numbers have to survive the rate a lender tests you at. Our free stress test calculator covers rental coverage under a stressed rate, which is worth running before you commit to a purchase price on a conversion.
Key takeaways
HMO planning refusals across 144 English councils rose from 590 in 2021 to 1,203 in 2025, research from 1st Avenue reported by Mortgage Strategy shows.
Decided applications grew 87% over the same period, from 1,848 to 3,454, so the refusal rate moved from 31.9% to 34.8%.
Approval rates held at around 68% between 2021 and 2023 and stood at 63% in early 2026.
The National Residential Landlords Association estimates 75 to 80 English local authorities have introduced an Article 4 direction, and no central register of them exists.
Consider verifying your target council's Article 4 position and recent HMO decisions before you exchange contracts on a conversion.
Frequently asked questions
Have HMO planning refusals really doubled?
Does that mean my application is twice as likely to be refused?
What is an Article 4 direction?
When does a property need a mandatory HMO licence?
Do these figures cover the whole UK?
