Conversion to HMO

[billyt]

Hi all,

(Or perhaps I should post this in AIBU?)

Need some help in trying to stop yet another HMO.

3-bedroom mid-terrace house sold to a developer. Work starts almost immediately. then it is brought to the attention of the neighbours it is to become a HMO for 'six professional adults'. Apparently, the notice attached to the lamppost outside 'disappeared'.

Each room on ground and first floor will become a bedroom with ensuite, with a new loft conversion proving two more.

Planning Application on Council website but still awaiting decision. Also, joint application for 6m extension for communal kitchen.

Work has been ploughing on for a few weeks now but decision not yet made. is it because the developer just expects the council to rubber-stamp?

Main issues we have are around water pressure which can be poor at times, parking (doesn't everyone) and that there are already quite a few HMOs close by.

I would expect six residents to create a need for water at similar times, be able to park.

And what about rubbish? House has a very small forecourt for bins(we have black and green bins here).

There have been over 40 objections already but building work still carries on.

if permission hasn't been granted do BC visit and inspect?

And the final straw is that no PWA has been agreed with the two houses either side!

You need to find correct grounds to appeal.
One of the main ones as i understand it is light. Does / will each room have a window?

thanks for responding.

just looked and yes, as they are converting existing rooms into bedrooms with en-suites. The en-suites, being located in corners etc. don't but I realise that's fine.

Looks like the rooms vary in size from 11.07 - 16 square metres inc en-suites.

Have they applied for a HMO license?

A 3 storey house near us was just bought and we assumed it was going to be a HMO, but apparently there are no more licenses being given out in this patch as they've reached the threshold. We we assume it will be flats instead, which will at least limit the number of people they squeeze in.

We objected to the house next door to us being turned into 4 flats (they revised it down to 3 in the end, so only a partial victory). I researched the local development plan, looked as requirements around parking spaces, bedroom sizes etc - essentially reminded the council of their own rules. As well as reducing the number of flats, they installed bike racks (which are actually used!) and the residents share 3 larger bins, rather than having 3 per flat, which would've looked awful.

Do the houses either side know they are supposed to be offered a PWA? I was blissfully unaware of this and it was only because the guy doing the conversion and me saw the damage happening that we got it rectified.

Yes, planning application is for 'Change of use from dwellinghouse (Class C3) to purposes falling within Class C3 (dwellinghouse) and Class C4 (house in multiple occupation)

The objections mention 'Having looked at the drawings and plans I note that they state "This drawing, unless noted, does not represent compliance with the Party Wall Act 1996 and if required, all agreements are to be in place before works commence" yet neither immediate neighbours have had any PWA agreements

A couple of us have even quoted the council's own words about too many HMOs in one area.

It's a nightmare isn't it OP, I have total sympathy. I also live in an area with a large number of HMOs, more going through planning and little willingness on the part of the council to try and mitigate.

I recently objected to one on my road, I wrote quite an extensive thing citing:

• concentration of non-family residential accommodation in the area
• removing another family size accommodation from the area
• local planning policies: I live in Birmingham so the specifics probably not relevant to you but it would really be worth trying to find this in your area and do some reading
• no identified social need for the proposed HMO in this area
• recent local press citing the inability of the council to properly regulate this type of housing
• the temporary nature of HMO accommodation and what this does to encourage decline in an area due to lack of community cohesion
• documented problems of household waste management which are inadequate for HMOs and cause material effects on the quality of life in the area
• this area is deprived and the large number of HMOs are contributing to an impression of this area as dirty and chaotic which the capacity of the community to deal with is limited
• I found the HMO licence register on the council website and listed all of the current ones in the area - there was a lot.

I don't honestly know how much of this is effective from an objection point of view. I think the planning policy guidance is likely to have the most weight. Good luck.

In a timely coincidence I had a response from the planning portal to say that application has been refused, so maybe it did help!

I'm living in a 6 bedroom HMO at the moment.
There is a high turn over of tenants. Everyone works but generally speaking most people don't drive or own cars. 50 % are foreign nationals coming here to work in the UK. They are either using taxis or working from home.
One of the main issues is noise as people just bang about the house slamming doors and also they seem to always be in a competition to see who can talk or shout the loudest.
The other issue is rubbish. They just refuse to put it in the correct bin and make sure the lid closes. If your lucky it will make it to the bin and be hanging out of the top but they don't mind piling boxes outside as crushing them is hard work.
It doesn't help that Amazon seem to send everything in massive boxes.
The tenants then shrug there shoulders when the bin men refuse to empty it.
The rubbish is also a bigger issue as people would rather get takeaways delivered than use the shared kitchen.