Section 257 HMOs in Portsmouth, plainly explained
If you own a converted block of flats rather than a shared house, the licensing rules that apply are easy to miss — and Portsmouth now enforces them. Here's what actually qualifies, what it costs to get wrong, and what we do about it.
What makes a building a Section 257 HMO
A Section 257 HMO is a building that's been converted into self-contained flats, where the conversion doesn't meet current Building Regulations standards. Two tests decide whether a property falls into this category:
- Conversion date. The building was converted into flats before June 1992 — before the regulations that would otherwise cover this were in force.
- Ownership split. Fewer than two-thirds of the flats are owner-occupied. A block that's mostly let out qualifies; a block of mostly owner-occupied flats with one or two rented out generally doesn't.
Both tests have to be met. Neither is always obvious from the outside — the conversion date in particular usually means a conversation with building control or a look at the original planning history, not a guess from the building's age.
Why it matters in Portsmouth specifically
Since September 2023, Portsmouth City Council requires a licence for any HMO or Section 257 property in the city — not just the larger, mandatorily-licensable HMOs that apply nationally. That's a wider net than most landlords expect, and the council doesn't proactively write to owners to tell them they're in it. Responsibility for working out whether a property qualifies, and for holding the licence if it does, sits with whoever manages the building — in practice, usually the freeholder or their managing agent.
Operating an unlicensed HMO where a licence is required carries a fine of up to £30,000, on top of the licence itself once you do apply. It's a compliance gap that costs far more to be caught in than to close.
What a licence actually requires
Getting licensed isn't paperwork on its own — the conditions attached cover the building itself:
- Fire precautions appropriate to the building's layout — detection, escape routes, fire doors where needed
- Gas, electrical and water safety maintained and evidenced with current certificates
- Common areas — hallways, stairwells, shared entrances — kept safe and in good repair
- Clear information provided to tenants about who manages the building and how to reach them
- Adequate waste storage and disposal for the number of households in the building
A Fire Risk Assessment by someone competent to carry one out is expected as a matter of course, not just when the council asks for it.
If you're not sure whether your property qualifies
Freeholders are responsible for working this out, and the starting points are the same two tests above: check the conversion date with building control if it isn't already documented, and work out the current owner-occupation split. If you're a leaseholder who can't get a straight answer from your freeholder, the council or an independent adviser can help — but the licence obligation follows the building, not any one flat.
How we help
This is the part of the business we started in: licensing and planning applications, HHSRS inspections, fire risk assessments, and representation where an enforcement notice or civil penalty is already on the table. We'll tell you plainly whether your property qualifies before we tell you what it costs to fix.