Durham Council Closes HMO Planning Loophole From 17th August...
- Jul 31
- 4 min read
31st July 2026
New Article 4 Directions will give residents living in County Durham a formal opportunity to comment on proposed small Houses in Multiple Occupation across County Durham.
New planning controls designed to prevent family homes from being quietly converted into Houses in Multiple Occupation will come into force across County Durham on Monday 17th August 2026.
The confirmed Article 4 Direction will remove the permitted development rights that currently allow an ordinary dwellinghouse, known as a Class C3 property, to be converted into a small Class C4 HMO without first obtaining planning permission.
From 17 August, anyone seeking to convert a family home into accommodation for between three and six unrelated occupants will normally have to submit a planning application to Durham County Council.
Why some HMOs are missing from the register ?
Durham County Council’s deputy leader, Councillor Darren Grimes, has sought to clarify claims that the authority already operates a comprehensive “HMO register”.
Although the council maintains a public register of properties licensed under the Housing Act 2004, that register does not necessarily identify every property being used as an HMO.
Mandatory HMO licensing generally applies where a property is occupied by five or more people forming two or more separate households. Small HMOs containing only three or four occupants may therefore fall outside mandatory HMO licensing requirements.
Planning law, however, defines a small Class C4 HMO as accommodation occupied by between three and six unrelated people who share facilities such as a kitchen or bathroom.
That distinction has created a significant gap. A three or four-person HMO could legally fall within the planning definition of an HMO while remaining outside the mandatory HMO licensing regime.
Until the new direction takes effect, many such conversions can still be carried out under permitted development rights without a planning application being submitted.
It means the council, neighbours and elected representatives may have little advance warning that an ordinary family home is being converted into shared accommodation.
However, Properties situated within one of County Durham’s selective licensing areas may still require a separate landlord licence regardless of whether they meet the mandatory HMO threshold. Licensing and planning permission are separate legal requirements and landlords must consider both.
Residents will be able to see applications
From the 17th of August 2026, proposed changes from Class C3 family housing to Class C4 shared accommodation in the newly covered areas will have to enter the normal planning system with planning applications publicly available and residents being able to submit comments or objections concerning legitimate planning issues ..
Existing Durham restrictions extended across the county
Article 4 controls already apply in parts of Durham City and surrounding communities, including Framwellgate Moor, Pity Me, Newton Hall, Mount Oswald, Carrville and Belmont.
The new direction will cover the remainder of Durham County Council’s administrative area, meaning the planning controls will effectively operate throughout the county once they come into force.
Existing lawful HMOs will not automatically become unlawful on 17 August. However, landlords who claim that a property was already lawfully operating as an HMO before the commencement date may need evidence demonstrating when that use began.
Grimes points to asylum accommodation contractors…
Councillor Grimes has directly linked the planning changes to properties being procured for migrant and asylum dispersal accommodation.
Mears holds the Home Office asylum accommodation contract covering the North East, Yorkshire and the Humber, as well as other regions. Its responsibilities include procuring and managing accommodation for people seeking asylum.
Grimes claims contractors have been able to use smaller shared properties because they may fall below the mandatory HMO licensing threshold and, until now, could also be converted without a planning application.
He said:
“The Home Office migrant dispersal contractors know this. So they buy three and four-bed houses instead. No licence needed, no planning permission needed, because permitted development rights let them convert on the quiet.”
Cllr Grimes added:
“Which is precisely why we’re bringing in an Article 4 Direction from 17 August. It strips out those permitted development rights and forces them through the planning system where you get to see it coming and object.”
For residents, landlords and property investors, the important date is therefore Monday 17 August 2026.
From that date, the automatic right to convert ordinary homes into small HMOs will be removed throughout the remaining parts of County Durham.
The change will not amount to a complete ban on HMOs. Applications can still be made and approved where the council considers the proposed use acceptable.
What will change however is the level of public scrutiny. Conversions that could previously take place without a planning application will instead be brought into the open, allowing Durham County Council and local communities to consider their effect before another family home is turned into shared accommodation which many claim is adding to the housing pressures on families seeking affordable family homes in an area becoming increasingly saturated with HMO’s that many local’s feel are not needed….. or even wanted !
