Additional HMO licensing · Sandwell Council
The Metropolitan Borough Council of Sandwell Designation for an Area for Additional Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation 2024 (council page name: Additional Licensing, borough wide)
- Status
- In force
- Runs
- 1 October 2024 to 30 September 2029
- Designated
- 19 June 2024
- Fee
- The council's latest published fee, for April 2025 to March 2026, is £1,021 per licence: £655 once your application has been checked and approved, and £366 when the draft licence is issued. Fees go up each April, so check the current amount with the council. There's £168.30 off for members of the Midland Landlord Accreditation Scheme or landlords with housing training or qualifications, £56.10 off for NRLA or similar membership, and £56.10 off each property after the first. A renewal costs £727.25.
- Applies to
- HMOs anywhere in Sandwell that don't need a mandatory licence, usually homes let to three or four people from two or more households who share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet, whatever the number of storeys, flats included. Converted blocks of flats (section 257 HMOs) are covered too. Exempt: buildings the law says aren't HMOs, such as those managed by the council, a housing association, the police, fire service or NHS, some student housing managed by a university, and homes shared by just two people. HMOs under a management order or with a temporary exemption are exempt too.
Our records last verified 18 October 2026 · council designation page · licence conditions
Area covered
The scheme covers the whole of Sandwell Council. Every privately rented property in the borough that meets the scheme’s criteria needs a licence, wherever it is.
What this means for landlords
Additional HMO licensing extends licensing to shared homes below the national 5-person mandatory threshold. If your property in this area houses unrelated sharers, check the scheme’s occupancy criteria. Running a licensable HMO without a licence carries the same penalties as any licensing offence: a civil penalty of up to £40,000 and a rent repayment order of up to 24 months’ rent.
Is your property inside the scheme area?
This checker reflects HouseFile’s records of council licensing designations, not the councils’ live registers. Our records indicate the position at the verification date shown on each result. Schemes are designated, renewed and revoked throughout the year, and postcode-level lookups are approximate near scheme boundaries. Always confirm with the council before letting or buying a property, using the source link on each card. This is general information, not legal advice.
If you hold a licence here, HouseFile can track its renewal date
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