The licence gets you open; the Management Regulations keep you open. We run the routine an HMO legally requires — inspections, fire precautions, common parts, certificates and records — and turn it into the evidence trail that makes licence renewal easy.
The legal baseline
The Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006 place continuing duties on whoever manages an HMO — and they apply to every HMO, licensed or not. The manager must keep escape routes free from obstruction and all fire precautions in working order; keep the common parts, their fixtures and installations clean, safe and in good repair; maintain the water supply, drainage, gas and electrical installations; make and maintain proper arrangements for storing and disposing of waste; and display a notice in the property giving the manager's name, address and contact number.
These aren't licence conditions that appear when a council grants a licence — they're standing criminal law. A bicycle stored in the hallway, a fire door propped open, an overflowing bin store or a missing manager's notice is not "untidy"; each is a potential breach an enforcement officer can act on during any visit.
Breaches are offences even for unlicensed HMOs. Councils can prosecute or issue civil penalties for breaches of the Management Regulations regardless of whether the property needs a licence — and a record of breaches also counts against you at licence application or renewal, where management arrangements are assessed.
Our routine
Common parts, fire doors, detection, lighting and waste areas checked on a set rhythm, with date-stamped photos every visit. Small issues get raised while they're small — and the photo log becomes proof of continuous management, not just a snapshot taken before renewal. Room-level condition can be added through mid-term inspections.
Gas, EICR, fire alarm, emergency lighting, PAT and EPC renewals tracked on a single calendar across the portfolio — see the full HMO certificate stack. Nothing expires unnoticed, because expiry dates are chased by us, not remembered by you.
Every issue found, action taken and certificate renewed is logged in one file per property. When the licence comes up for renewal — or an officer knocks — the management story is already written and dated, which is precisely what "satisfactory management arrangements" means in practice.
Remedial works in an occupied shared house need coordination — proper notice, access windows that respect shift patterns, and clear communication in a house of strangers. We arrange it so works happen once, on time, without souring five tenancies at a stroke.
Getting started
New management instructions begin with a baseline visit: we walk the property against the Management Regulations and your licence conditions, check every certificate's status and expiry, and report what's compliant, what's marginal and what needs fixing — in priority order. If fire precautions are the gap, an HMO fire risk assessment slots straight into the plan; if paperwork is the gap, missing certificates are booked from the same office. From there the routine takes over.
Send the address and occupancy, or message us on WhatsApp, and we'll quote for the baseline visit and the ongoing routine together.
Common questions
It depends on the size of the HMO, how many properties are in the portfolio and how much of the certificate work we take on. Tell us the addresses, occupancy and what's currently in place via the quote form and we'll reply with a fixed quote, usually the same working day.
Yes. The Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006 apply to HMOs whether or not they're licensable, and breaching them is a criminal offence in its own right. A small three-person house share with no licence still has a manager with legal duties.
In summary: keep escape routes free from obstruction and fire precautions in working order; keep the common parts, fixtures and installations clean and in good repair; maintain water supply, drainage, gas and electricity; make proper arrangements for waste storage and disposal; and display a notice in the HMO with the manager's name, address and contact number. Tenants also have duties not to frustrate the manager's.
We agree a rhythm that fits the property — common parts and fire precautions are typically checked more frequently than full inspections. Every visit is photographed and logged, so the record shows a continuous history rather than a scramble before licence renewal.
Yes. Many agents handle tenancies well but aren't set up for HMO compliance routines. We can take just the compliance layer — inspections, certificates, the evidence log — and feed reports to your agent, or handle the management duties in full. Either way, one party is clearly accountable for compliance.
Tell us the property type and postcode — we'll come back with a fixed quote and the earliest available date.