Common Problems When Dealing With An HMO Landlord
What is an HMO property?
Your home is a house in multiple occupation (HMO) if both of the following apply:
- At least 3 tenants live there, forming more than 1 household
- You share toilet, bathroom, or kitchen facilities with other tenants
Your home is a large HMO if both of the following apply:
- At least 5 tenants live there, forming more than 1 household
- You share toilet, bathroom, or kitchen facilities with other tenants
Your home is not an HMO and instead classed as a household if:
- Either a single person or members of the same family who live together. A family includes people who are:
- married or living together – including people in same-sex relationships
- relatives or half-relatives, for example, grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings
- step-parents and step-children
Renting in the UK is already pretty complicated at times, however, renting within an HMO can be even more slippery! Just like tenants, the quality of landlords can vary pretty wildly, from those who just want to make as much money as possible by cramming tenants into rooms, to those who are almost nowhere to be seen, and not forgetting you do have some very good HMO landlords too. Either way, before you sign your tenancy agreement, it’s a good idea to make yourself aware of some of the most common problems with HMO landlords.
Landlords who do not meet HMO standards.
HMOs have a different set of standards to regular rental properties and for very good reason, HMOs have more people under one roof than most households and the turnover of tenants is also higher, which can put additional stress on the property.
Every HMO landlord must meet basic standards, such as the need for a safe escape route in the event of a fire, keeping communal areas in a good state of repair and providing enough bins for rubbish disposal for the number of people living in the HMO.
Quick Tip: Speak to the landlord and ask them to solve these problems and definitely put all of this in writing too so that you have a record of it. If the landlord does not act within a reasonable timeframe, you may choose to contact the local authority. The local authority will be able to come and inspect the property and act if they find it is dangerous, badly managed or unsuitable for the number of people living there, including prosecuting the landlord.
One thing you shouldn’t do is stop paying rent. If you don’t pay your rent, then you are in breach of your tenancy agreement and your landlord may be able to serve notice on you to leave the property.
Landlord not returning your deposit
This particular problem isn’t exclusive to HMOs, in fact, any tenancy that requires a deposit whereby the landlord doesn’t live with you is affected by this – getting your deposit back at the end of your tenancy. The tenancy deposit can only be used to cover any damage that the tenant might inflict on a property. A tenancy deposit can’t be used as an excuse to re-decorate or buy new furniture or just top up the landlord’s savings account. In some cases, landlords or letting agents will use language that almost suggests that you have very little say or choice in what deductions can be made from your deposit and may even become non-responsive or obstructive when it comes to getting that money back.
Quick Tip: Make sure that your deposit is protected by a deposit protection scheme (DPS, TDS or MyDeposits are the only 3 schemes approved in England & Wales), this is a legal requirement.
Take a full inventory of the property when you move in and then again when you move out and even take time-stamped photos on your smartphone if you can. Check your tenancy agreement for the timetable for deposit return and chase the landlord/agent for responses. If the landlord continues to insist on keeping some or all of your deposit for no good reason, then raise a dispute with the deposit protection scheme holding your deposit. If you suspect or even know your deposit hasn’t been placed in a protection scheme, contact us here to check for you.
Don’t leave it too long to raise a dispute. There are time limits on how long you can leave it to raise a dispute over suggested deductions and use the deposit protection scheme’s internal dispute resolution service. The limit is normally three months and after that, you’d have to go to court.
The landlord didn’t protect your deposit
Some HMO landlords seem to be under the impression that the rules on deposit protection don’t apply to them. It doesn’t matter what kind of tenancy a landlord is using, whether all the tenants have signed the same tenancy, or each has a separate tenancy for their own room – the deposits that have been paid by the tenant must be protected in one of the three government schemes (TDS, DPS or MyDeposits).
In addition to protecting the deposit, the landlord or agent must issue the “Prescribed Information” to the tenant, which is information on where the deposit is being protected and this must be provided within 30 days of the deposit being paid over by the tenant. Failure to do any of the above ultimately means the landlord or agent has broken the deposit protection law and you could be owed 3x the value of your deposit in compensation as a result.
Quick Tip: Use our free deposit check service. We will check to see if your deposit was protected in any of the three government-approved schemes and then we will give you an indication of what your claim could be worth if you decide to make a no-win, no-fee claim. This stands even if your deposit has been returned either partially or in full.
If you still have your tenancy agreement, keep it safe. If you can’t locate your tenancy agreement, try and ensure you have evidence of your deposit payment – either in the form of a receipt, bank statement or written communication with the landlord or letting agent that recognises the deposit paid and the amount paid.
Do not accept it if your landlord says the rules are different for HMOs. Unless you are living in the same house as your landlord (in which case you could well be a lodger) the deposit must be protected. It really is as simple as that.
Disclaimer:
This article is provided as a guide. Any information should be used for research purposes and not as the base for taking legal action. Tenant Angels does not provide legal advice and our content does not constitute a client-solicitor relationship.
