Promoted by Nicola Dinan at Millbank Tower, 21-24 Millbank, London, SW1P 4QP, on behalf of Reform UK at the same address. Reform UK Hertsmere is an approved local branch of Reform UK.
What Is an HMO—and Why Are Residents Concerned? | Reform UK Hertsmere
Reform UK HertsmereExplainer22 June 2026•1 min read
What Is an HMO—and Why Are Residents Concerned?
HMOs can provide lower-cost accommodation, but poorly managed properties and excessive concentrations can place unacceptable pressure on family neighbourhoods. Reform UK Hertsmere believes residents, tenants and responsible landlords deserve firm regulation and effective enforcement.
Article Summary
At a Glance
The key points you need to know.
What This Means For Residents
Small HMOs can currently operate without planning permission and, where there are fewer than five occupants, without an HMO licence. Reform UK Hertsmere believes this regulatory gap leaves residents and tenants insufficiently protected. We will campaign for smaller HMOs to be brought into licensing and for stronger inspection and enforcement across Hertsmere.
Key Facts
✓An HMO is occupied by people who do not form one household and who share facilities.
✓Small C4 HMOs generally accommodate between three and six unrelated residents.
✓Hertsmere’s mandatory licensing scheme currently applies from five occupants.
✓Hertsmere has not introduced additional licensing for smaller HMOs.
✓Reform UK Hertsmere will target irresponsible landlords and poor management—not stigmatise tenants.
What Happens Next
Reform UK Hertsmere will seek publication of reliable borough-wide data covering licensed and known HMOs, planning status, complaints, inspections and enforcement action.
We will also press for an evidence-based additional licensing scheme covering smaller HMOs, supported by proactive inspections and effective penalties for landlords who break the rules.
The Full Story
A House in Multiple Occupation, commonly called an HMO, is a property occupied by people who do not form one household and who share facilities such as a kitchen, bathroom or toilet.
That can include workers, students and other adults renting individual rooms. The problem is not the identity or background of the people living in an HMO. Reform UK Hertsmere will not blame tenants for the decisions of landlords, developers or government agencies.
Our concern is the conversion of family homes into high-density rented accommodation without adequate planning control, licensing or enforcement.
What are the current rules?
In planning terms, a small HMO—known as Use Class C4—usually accommodates between three and six unrelated people.
Unless an Article 4 Direction is in force, a family home can normally be converted into a small HMO without a planning application. HMOs accommodating more than six people generally require planning permission.
Licensing is separate from planning permission.
Hertsmere currently requires an HMO licence only where five or more people, forming two or more households, share facilities. This means a smaller HMO containing three or four occupants may not require either planning permission or an HMO licence.
Hertsmere has the legal power to consider an additional licensing scheme covering smaller HMOs, but the council’s own 2026 policy confirms that it has not exercised that power.
Reform UK Hertsmere believes this gap is unacceptable.
Why can concentrations of HMOs cause problems?
A well-managed HMO with responsible occupants may cause no difficulty. However, converting too many family homes within a small area can fundamentally alter the character and functioning of a neighbourhood.
Potters Bar’s Article 4 Direction will require planning permission for new small HMOs—but not until 6 May 2027. Reform UK Hertsmere is asking why residents must remain exposed to further uncontrolled conversions throughout the waiting period.
Residents in Potters Bar have reported concerns including:
✓Overflowing bins and inadequate waste storage
✓Additional pressure on limited residential parking
✓Noise and late-night disturbance
✓Poor property maintenance
✓Unsafe or unauthorised building works
✓Loss of privacy and residential amenity
✓Suspected overcrowding
✓Antisocial behaviour
✓Properties operating without effective management
✓Family homes being removed from the local housing supply
The residents’ petition that forced Hertsmere Borough Council to confront this problem reported that licensed HMOs in Potters Bar had increased from three in 2021 to 75 by July 2025, with a further 15 licence applications pending.
Those figures came from the petitioners and the council’s licensing information—not from comprehensive planning records. The true number may be higher because smaller HMOs can fall outside mandatory licensing and may therefore be much harder to identify.
Community safety must be taken seriously
Some residents have told us they feel less comfortable allowing children to play outside or family members to walk alone where persistent disturbance and antisocial behaviour have occurred.
Those experiences must not be dismissed. However, it would be wrong to claim that every HMO or every HMO occupant is connected with criminality.
Reform UK Hertsmere will insist on an evidence-led approach. We want police call-outs, environmental complaints, waste reports, planning breaches and housing-enforcement records examined property by property and street by street.
Where an HMO is linked to repeated, evidenced problems, the council must act decisively against the landlord or manager responsible.
Residents and tenants both deserve protection
Poorly regulated HMOs can harm neighbours, but they can also exploit tenants.
People should not be expected to live in overcrowded rooms, unsafe conversions or properties without adequate kitchens, bathrooms, fire protection, waste storage or communal space.
This is why Reform UK Hertsmere supports much stricter licensing and inspection. Responsible landlords should be able to demonstrate that their properties are safe and properly managed. Those who cannot meet the required standard should not be permitted to operate.
Our position is clear: housing need must never become an excuse for uncontrolled conversions, weak standards or the neglect of established communities.
Reform UK Hertsmere will make irresponsible HMO operation harder, pursue unlicensed landlords and protect established communities with stronger licensing, inspections and enforcement.
