County Durham plans to extend Article 4 rules across the entire borough to control the spread of HMOs.

Durham County Council already has three existing Article 4 directions for changes of use to HMOs in Durham City and areas of Framwellgate Moor, Newton Hall, Pity Me, Mount Oswald, Carville and Belmont. It agreed proposals on a new direction after its consultation last November, and the authority has now drafted an HMO planning policy for the rest of the county to support this measure.

The policy aims to prevent over-concentrations and outlines that HMOs should not lead to three or more of the 10 nearest properties being HMOs, or the ‘sandwiching’ of a residential property between two HMO properties, or an HMO and a property that is not a house.

Evidence

A council report explains that there is now evidence the number of HMOs has increased outside of the Durham City Article 4 areas. “A policy is therefore needed to maintain mixed and balanced communities and ensure a high standard of amenity is maintain both for occupiers of HMOs and surrounding communities.”

Once agreed, the policy will outline how planning applications for HMOs will be determined when the new Article 4 takes effect on 17th August. A new consultation – which closes on 5th May - will give landlords a chance to read and provide any comments on the draft policy before it's finally agreed.

Interim

The authority says this is an interim policy which will be reviewed again as part of the process to develop the new County Durham Plan.

The current plan sets a limit that HMOs occupied by students (properties with a class N student exemption from council tax charges) should not exceed more than 10% of the total number of residential units within a 100-metre radius.

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