I have made enquiries because a couple of the houses in the Council Supported Living scheme have had bills of 50% sent to the landlord on the grounds that they are houses of multiple occupation.

This has never been the case before and when I have queried why these two properties have been billed I am told that all of the properties have been billed incorrectly in the past and they are all going to be billed.

When I have queried this I am told that these properties have a landlord liability - can anyone clarify whether they are exempt dwellings or houses of multiple occupation.

Thanks

According to my housing law materials the council are wrong to give HMO status to any dwelling because it falls into a particular class, such as hostels, supported accommodation, etc.

Section 345 of the Housing Act 1985 describes a HMO as “a house which is occupied by persons who do not form a single household”.

In Barnes v Sheffield CC 1995 (a case where a house shared by students was classed by the court as not a HMO), Sir Thomas Bingham MR stated “(i)n my judgement it would be wrong to do what Lord Hailsham rightly said could not be done and suggest that there was a litmus test which could be applied to determine whether a house was being occupied as a single household or not. Nonetheless, I do regard these factors, in whichever order they are taken as being helpful”.

First, the origin of the tenancy. Did the occupants arrive as a single group? Is there a joint tenancy or single ones? Second, What, if any, facilities are shared? Third, who is responsible for the house as a whole in terms of cleaning and keeping it in reasonable order? Fourth, do the tenants keep locks on their bedroom doors? Fifth, who is responsible for filling vacancies, the landlord or the tenants themselves? Sixth, Who allocates the rooms, the landlord or the tenants themselves? Seventh, the size of the establishment, the bigger the establishment and the more occupants there are then the more likely that it is a HMO. Eighth, the stability of the group. Continuity of the residence of the group will be a factor. Ninth, the mode of living. How was the cooking, eating, shopping and cleaning done, separately or more communally.

Thus each case will turn on its own facts and should be investigated separately and thoroughly.