Agenda item

The Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) Manageroutlined the details of the application to the Committee. 

He explained that the property had had the benefit of an HMO licence issued by the Housing Executive in the name of the previous owner, who was a Director of S&B Properties N.I. Ltd., which had expired on 10th June, 2023.  On 2nd October, 2023, the applicant had purchased the property and, in accordance with Section 28 (2) of the Houses in Multiple Occupation Act (NI) 2016, the existing license ceased to have effect on the date ownership transferred.

On 24th April, 2023, an application for a new HMO licence was received from S&B Properties N.I. Ltd., which was subsequently rejected on 5th May, 2023, as the Council could not be satisfied that the occupation of the living accommodation as an HMO would not constitute a breach of planning control.  An application for a temporary exemption notice was issued on 30th August, 2023, and subsequently extended to 1st March, 2024.

The Members were advised that on 14th November, 2023, an HMO licence application was received from the owner of the accommodation. If the new owner had applied for a licence before the change of ownership had taken place, the licence which was already in effect in respect of the HMO would have been treated as being held by the new owner until such times as the application had been determined.

TheHMO Manager outlined that, pursuant to the 2016 Act, the Council could only grant a licence if it was satisfied that:

a)     the occupation of the living accommodation as an HMO would not constitute a breach of planning control;

b)     the owner, and any managing agent of it, were fit and proper persons;

c)      the proposed management arrangements were satisfactory;

d)     the granting of the licence would not result in overprovision of HMOs in the locality;

e)     the living accommodation was fit for human habitation and—

                                                   i.          was suitable for occupation as an HMO by the number of persons to be specified in the licence, or

                                                  ii.          could be made so suitable by including conditions in the licence.

The Committee was advised that, as it was a new application, the Council’s Planning Service was consulted. It had confirmed that a Certificate of Lawful Existing Use or Development (“CLEUD”) was granted on 10th November, 2023.

It was reported that the NIHMO Unit had consulted with the Environmental Protection Unit in relation to nighttime and daytimenoise; the Public Health and Housing Unit in relation to rubbish accumulation/filthy premises; and the Enforcement Unit in relation to litter and waste and all had confirmed that there had been no relevant enforcement action required in respect of any of the issues in the HMO in the last 5 years.  The owners of S& B Properties N.I. Ltd. had confirmed that they had not been convicted of any relevant offences pursuant to the 2016 Act.

For the purpose of Section 12(2) of the 2016 Act, the Council had determined the locality of the accommodation as being Housing Management Area (HMA) “2/09 Eglantine” as defined in the document Council’s Local Development Plan Strategy, which was formally adopted on 2nd May, 2023.  It was reported that Legal Services had advised that there was a clear requirement in section 8 of the 2016 Act upon the Council to be satisfied that the granting of a licence would not result in overprovision.

The officers had had regard to:

a)     the number and capacity of licensed HMOs in the locality; and

b)     the need for housing accommodation in the locality and the extent to which HMO accommodation was required to meet that need.

To inform the Council in its consideration of the above provisions, the Council had taken account of the 2023 Strategy given that “Nurturing sustainable and balanced communities was a fundamental aim of the LDP’s housing policies.”  In particular, the Council had considered Policy HOU10, which stated:

“Within designated HMAs, planning permission will only be granted for Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) and/or flats/apartments where the total number of HMOs and flats/apartments combined would not as a result exceed 20% of all dwelling units within an HMA.”

The Committee was advised that, on the date of assessment, 1st February, 2024, 95% of all dwelling units in policy area “HMA 2/09 Eglantine” were made up of HMOs and flats/apartments, which in turn exceeded the 20% development limit as set out in Policy HOU10.  There were 259 (22%) licensed HMOs with a capacity of 1297 persons in that HMA.

It was outlined that there were a total of 1175 dwelling units in HMA 2/09.  The Committee was advised that the fact that the use of the property as an HMO was permitted for planning purposes was arelevant consideration in determining whether the granting of the licence would result inoverprovision. 

The Houses in Multiple Occupation Manager reminded the Committee that there was a need for intensive forms of housing and, to meet that demand, HMOs were an important component of the housing provision. HMOs, alongside other accommodation options within the private rented sector, played an important role in meeting the housing needs of people who were single, who had temporary employment, students, low income households and, more recently, migrant workers and asylum seekers.

The Committee was advised that, on 1st February, 2024, out of 69 premises available for rent within the BT9 area on PropertyNews.com there were 9 licensed HMOs which, from the information presented on the website, represented 40 bed spaces. The HMO Manager advised the Committee that anecdotal evidence from previous conversations with HMO managing agents suggested that that there was currently a lack of HMO accommodation available in that locality.

He reiterated that the Ulster University Director of Campus Life, in December 2022, had advised the Council’s City Growth and Regeneration Committee that there was an “increase in competition for HMOs particularly from NIHE, Immigration Services and statutory agencies and there were increasing accommodation issues across the housing sector which required a holistic view and should include the consideration of international students, families and graduates looking for professional accommodation.”

However, the QUB Director of Student Plus had confirmed that the current trend indicated a significant move of students to purpose-built student accommodation blocks. She had advised the Members that there were 7,000 purpose built managed student accommodation (PBMSA) rooms in the city, the majority having been built since 2018, and approximately 5,000 in the city centre.

The Committee was reminded that recent monitoring information produced by the Council’s Planning Service for PBMSA indicated that 2055 bedspaces were currently under construction with an operational date of 2024.

Therefore, with the continued expansion of the PBMSA sector and students transitioning from private rentals to PBMSAs, it was too early to tell whether the increased competition from non-students for HMOs was a temporary problem which could be managed by the contraction in students residing in existing HMO accommodation within the locality, or evidence of an emerging long-term supply issue.

The Houses in Multiple Occupation Manager explained that, in assessing the number and capacity of licensed HMOs, as well as the need for HMO accommodation in the locality, officers could not be satisfied that the granting of the HMO licence would not result in overprovision of HMO accommodation in the locality of the accommodation for the purpose of section 8(2)(d) of the 2016 Act.

The Committee was advised that no objections had been received in relation to the application. 

It was reported that the accommodation had been certified as broadly compliant with the physical standards for an HMO by a technical officer from the NIHMO service, on 24th November, 2023, with some minor works to be completed.

On 1st February, 2024, pursuant to Paragraph 9 of Schedule 2 of the Houses in Multiple Occupation Act (Northern Ireland) 2016, officers had issued a Notice of Proposed Decision to the Applicant advising that it was proposing to refuse the licence on the grounds of overprovision.  The Members’ attention was drawn to the applicant’s response.

The Chairperson then welcomed Mr. E. McCarthy, Barrister, representing the applicants, to the meeting.  He advised the Committee that:

·        in 2021, having acted upon legal advice, the owners transferred the property and 2 others, into a limited company, of which they were directors;

·        the applicants ran a day nursery on the ground floor of the site of nos. 67, 69 and 71 Eglantine Avenue, and the upper floors provided accommodation for some of the daycare staff;

·        the accommodation was much more generous in size than the minimum standards requirements for an HMO;

·        the applicants understood that a licence application should have been made before the transfer of ownership had been completed and had apologised for that oversight;

·        the reason for refusal given by officers was “overprovision”, yet it was a case of replacing one HMO with another in exactly the same location; and

·        had the applicants not transferred the property to a company, and had simply renewed the application, “overprovision” would not have applied.

The Chairperson thanked Mr. McCarthy for his attendance.

In response to a Member’s query, the Solicitor confirmed that the Committee was bound to take overprovision into consideration as it was a new application.

In response to a further Member’s question regarding setting a precedent, the Solicitor confirmed that the Committee had taken a consistent approach towards previous applications, each with varying personal circumstances, and that the Committee had not deviated from applying the policy to date.

            Moved by Councillor O’Neill,

            Seconded by Councillor McCann,

      Resolved – that the Committee agrees to refuse the application as, in accordance with Section 12 of the Houses in Multiple Occupation Act (Northern Ireland) 2016, it was satisfied that the granting of the HMO licence would result in overprovision of HMO accommodation in the locality of the accommodation, as determined under section 8(2)(d) of the Act.