Landlord licensing and compliance in Hinckley and Bosworth
Hinckley and Bosworth confirms mandatory HMO licensing and has an HMO Article 4 Direction in force from 1 May 2026 for a defined area around Hinckley town centre. The council's published licence fees are for 2025/26, so confirm the current fee year before applying.
Licence requirements and fees
The council requires a licence for qualifying HMOs with five or more occupants from two or more households. Five-year licences are typical, but shorter terms may be issued. Its fee schedule is explicitly for 2025/26 and gives typical new licence costs of about £800 for a small HMO and £1,000 for a large one, with charges varying by size and risk. Online applications avoid a £75 paper fee. The schedule does not set out a separate renewal or instalment arrangement, so confirm 2026/27 charges before applying.
Check the Article 4 map
An HMO Article 4 Direction took effect on 1 May 2026 in a defined, street-by-street area in Hinckley town centre and nearby streets. It is not borough-wide and is not retrospective. Check the council's map and side-specific street exclusions before converting a property. This planning permission requirement is separate from an HMO licence.
Sources: Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council HMO rules and 2025/26 fees, register information and Article 4 Direction. The current 2026/27 fee schedule, selective/additional licensing status and local enforcement or rent repayment outcomes remain UNVERIFIED - could not confirm on council website. Illustrative guide - scheme boundaries and dates 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 (ordinary lets): UNVERIFIED - could not confirm on council website. 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.