Castle Point: mandatory HMO licensing and a new oversight policy
Castle Point requires a mandatory HMO licence where a property is rented to five or more people forming more than one household and sharing facilities. A new HMO policy was agreed on 15 July 2026 to regulate and monitor HMOs, but it should not be treated as an additional licensing designation without a separate designation. Other current local scheme details remain unverified.
The mandatory threshold
Castle Point says a licence is required where a property is rented to five or more people forming more than one household and sharing facilities such as a toilet, bathroom or kitchen. Its page states that properties occupied by fewer than five people do not need a licence under that route. The intended occupancy and household arrangement still need checking.
The new HMO policy is not a new designation
Cabinet agreed a new HMO Policy on 15 July 2026, reported by the council on 17 July. The policy regulates and monitors HMOs, but the reviewed material did not confirm a separate additional licensing designation. Do not turn the policy date into a new licence requirement.
Use the public register carefully
Castle Point's public HMO register displays licence numbers, addresses, postcodes, start dates, end dates and durations, with five-year durations shown on its records. Whether five years is the general current term, and whether licences are non-transferable, are UNVERIFIED - could not confirm on council website. The council also publishes a TEN register, but current TEN rules and costs were not confirmed.
Application and fee details need confirmation
The council provides a general licensing application page, but an HMO-specific application portal and current fees or discounts were UNVERIFIED - could not confirm on council website. Confirm the correct form and payment before relying on a register entry or granting a tenancy.
Planning is a separate threshold
Castle Point states that planning permission is required for an HMO occupied by more than six people. Six people or fewer is described as a small HMO where a C3-to-C4 change is permitted development. That planning statement does not replace the licensing test, and an Article 4 direction was UNVERIFIED - could not confirm on council website.
Enforcement remains unverified
Current civil-penalty amounts, prosecution wording and rent repayment order rules were UNVERIFIED - could not confirm on council website. Every tenancy still needs annual gas safety, a five-yearly EICR, a valid EPC, deposit protection within 30 days, Right to Rent checks, working smoke and CO alarms and the Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet.
Verify current Castle Point HMO thresholds, fees, register, TEN rules, policy and planning position via the council's official pages. Illustrative guide - local policies and schemes change; general information, not legal advice.
Renewal tracked from expiry, reminders from 60 days out, proof of service to tenants logged. Knows the 2-month early-renewal rule that keeps your date fixed.
Five years goes quicker than you think. Kept remembers so you don't have to - including the 28-day duty to give tenants a copy.
Expiry tracked from the certificate details you confirm - band E is the current minimum for most domestic private lets unless exempt, and proposed changes are flagged only when they become law.
30-day protection window tracked from the day the money lands - not the tenancy date - with prescribed information logged.
Check dates and follow-up dates for time-limited permissions, stored against each tenant.
Smoke alarms every storey, CO alarms where required, checked and dated at the start of every tenancy.
A one-off duty for tenancies that existed on 1 May 2026. Who was served, when, and how - the £7,000 question, answered with a dated record.
Preparation and export support for the future official registration process - clearly marked as planned.
Selective licensing: UNVERIFIED - current status. See the local picture above - every other duty applies exactly as it does nationwide.
Add a postcode and Kept resolves the council, location and local context automatically.
Planned preparation and export support for the government's regional PRS Database rollout.