Local HMO compliance enquiry route
HMO Certificate Enquiries in Bromley
Organise the separate safety records relevant to a Bromley HMO licence application, renewal, property purchase or shared-house handover. Bromley Council currently operates mandatory HMO licensing only: unless exempt, an HMO occupied by five or more people in two or more households needs a licence when occupiers share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet. A smaller HMO can still be subject to the council's HMO standards and management duties even though it is not within the current mandatory licensing threshold. Planning is a different decision because Bromley's borough-wide Article 4 direction has removed the usual C3-to-C4 permitted development route since 1 September 2022. Send the complete address, occupation, households, layout, application wording, existing reports, planning history, access contacts and deadline so each requested record is matched to the correct part of the property.
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Establish the occupation, layout and current use before booking
The licence threshold is based on people, households and shared amenities. Inspection scope is based on the installations, appliances and communal areas involved. Planning depends on the lawful use and proposed change. Confirm all three rather than asking for a generic HMO certificate.
Residents and households
List every current or proposed resident, explain which people form a household and identify the kitchen, bathroom or toilet they share. Include a resident landlord in the total and describe whether the accommodation is a shared house, flat, bedsit arrangement or converted building.
Rooms, amenities and occupancy
Prepare a floor-by-floor plan with room uses, usable dimensions, stairs, doors, windows, kitchens, bathrooms, WCs and shared living space. Bromley's standards link occupancy to room sizes and amenity provision, so the plan and proposed letting arrangement must describe the same property.
Existing evidence and defects
Provide the full gas safety record where gas is supplied, EICR, fire-alarm certificate, emergency-lighting certificate and evidence for completed remedial work. State each report date and the areas covered instead of relying on a certificate title or first page.
Planning and authorised access
Give the current lawful use, proposed HMO use, planning decision or application reference, building-control information and any later alterations. Name the tenant, landlord, agent, freeholder or block manager who can open every bedroom, cupboard, garage, loft and common area in scope.
Bromley HMO visits need accurate directions across a large borough
Bromley town, Beckenham, Penge, Anerley and Crystal Palace borders include Victorian and Edwardian terraces, flats above shops, mansion blocks, converted houses and newer apartment developments. A postal area can cross a borough boundary, so use the full postcode rather than a neighbourhood name when checking the council route. In a converted building, the tenant or leaseholder may control the dwelling while a freeholder or managing agent controls entrance halls, meter cupboards, risers, alarm equipment or emergency lighting. Give the building name, flat number, correct entrance, parking or loading instructions and a separate common-parts contact where needed.
Orpington, Chislehurst, Petts Wood, West Wickham, Hayes and Biggin Hill include suburban terraces, semis, maisonettes and houses altered with loft rooms, rear additions, subdivided garages or annexes. Bromley is geographically extensive, so an incomplete address or late key-holder can make a grouped visit impractical. Record controlled parking, side or rear access, gate codes and the locations of boilers, gas meters, consumer units, alarm panels and emergency-lighting test points. If rooms or facilities have moved, update the plan before arranging inspections; an older report for the same address may no longer reflect the present layout or installation boundary.
Prepare Bromley's published evidence as distinct records
Bromley's landlord guidance and application form identify several records with different purposes and renewal periods. The council licence applies to the qualifying HMO, the floor plan describes the accommodation, and each inspection certificate addresses a particular installation or system. None should be represented as a combined HMO certificate.
Annual landlord gas safety record
Where gas is present, Bromley expects a current landlord gas safety record no older than one year. List the supply, meters, boilers, fires, cookers, flues and other relevant appliances, confirm which party controls them and include evidence that any recorded safety issue has been resolved.
Five-year electrical evidence
The council states that an HMO should hold a current Electrical Installation Condition Report no older than five years. Send the complete report, consumer-unit details and remedial evidence, and state whether it covers only the dwelling or any landlord-controlled common electrical installation.
Annual alarm and emergency-lighting tests
Bromley's guidance refers to a current annual BS 5839 fire-alarm test certificate and a current annual BS 5266 emergency-lighting certificate where those systems are provided. Identify detectors, sounders, panels, call points, lighting test points, fire doors and the escape route across every included floor.
Floor plan and management information
The application resources include guidance for a floor plan, and the form asks for room information plus tenancy and management details. Keep the plan, occupancy schedule, agreements, manager contact and current building arrangement aligned so inspectors and the council are not reviewing different versions of the property.
Which Bromley licensing scheme, standards and planning guidance apply?
Bromley Council currently operates mandatory HMO licensing only. Unless exempt, a qualifying HMO occupied by five or more people in two or more households needs a licence where tenants share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet; a resident landlord and four tenants reach the five-person total. The council says an HMO licence is normally valid for five years and must be renewed before expiry. Smaller HMOs can still fall within the HMO definition and must meet relevant adopted standards and management duties even though the present borough licensing route is mandatory only.
The council's landlord guidance requires a current EICR no older than five years, an annual landlord gas safety record where gas is present, and current annual fire-alarm and emergency-lighting test certificates where those systems apply. Its application resources also ask for floor and room information, a tenancy or licence agreement and management details. Separately, the borough-wide Article 4 direction has removed the C3-to-C4 permitted development right since 1 September 2022. London Landlord Certifications can route requested inspection enquiries; it cannot decide licence eligibility, planning permission, building-control approval or council acceptance.
Keep Bromley licensing, planning and inspection work separate
1. Test the mandatory licence threshold
Confirm that the property is an HMO, then count all residents and households and identify the shared amenity. Bromley currently says it operates mandatory licensing only, so a smaller HMO is not brought into a borough-wide additional licensing scheme, although HMO standards and management duties can still apply.
2. Check planning and building history
Bromley's HMO Article 4 direction has applied borough-wide since 1 September 2022. Check the lawful use, planning history and any building works before creating or marketing a small HMO; a property licence does not grant planning permission or building-control approval.
3. Reconcile the plan, reports and access
Compare the current room layout and occupancy with the gas record, EICR, alarm certificate, emergency-lighting certificate and remedial evidence. Resolve old addresses, omitted appliances, inaccessible bedrooms, locked common cupboards or responsibility disputes before the council or tenancy deadline.
Practical HMO certificate questions for Bromley properties
Is there one HMO certificate for a Bromley property?
No. Bromley Council issues the relevant HMO licence, while the gas safety record, EICR, fire-alarm test, emergency-lighting test, floor plan and management documents each have a different purpose. One record does not certify the other systems.
When does a Bromley HMO need mandatory licensing?
Unless exempt, Bromley says an HMO needs a licence when five or more people in two or more households occupy it and share at least one kitchen, bathroom or toilet. The five-person total includes a resident landlord and four tenants.
Does Bromley have additional HMO licensing for smaller HMOs?
Bromley's current adopted standards state that the council only operates mandatory HMO licensing. A smaller property can still be an HMO and must meet applicable standards and management duties, but it is not currently brought into a borough-wide additional HMO licensing scheme.
Does a new small HMO need planning permission in Bromley?
Yes. Bromley's borough-wide Article 4 direction removed the usual permitted development right for converting a C3 dwellinghouse to a C4 small HMO from 1 September 2022. Planning, building control and HMO licensing must be checked separately.
What should I send before arranging Bromley HMO inspections?
Send the full address and postcode, residents and households, shared amenities, current floor plan, proposed use, council wording, existing reports, remedial evidence, planning and building-control information, access contacts, parking notes and deadline.
Need to assemble the safety evidence for a Bromley HMO?
Send the complete Bromley address, current and proposed residents, household relationships, shared amenities, property and tenancy arrangement, floor plan, council application or renewal wording, current gas, electrical, alarm and emergency-lighting records, remedial evidence, planning and building-control history, authorised access contacts and required date. The enquiry can then be divided into the relevant inspection routes without confusing the council licence with a combined safety certificate.