Rented property licensing

Application Fees

Licence fees will be taken in two parts.

• Part A will be taken upon application and will cover the cost to process and the administration to determine the application. The application fee is non-refundable, regardless of whether the application is successful.
• Part B will be taken once the Council has determined to grant a licence and will cover the administration, management, and enforcement of the licensing functions for the scheme. 

You are not obligated to make payment of Part B in advance of Part A, however we are willing to comply with requests for this. Should you proceed with this option and your licence is subsequently refused, you will be entitled to a refund for the Part B payment.

Any Property Licensing Application forms received without payment (or where incorrect or deficient information is supplied) will not constitute a valid application.

Failure by a landlord to pay the part B fee will result in the application being refused and the fee for Part A being retained by the council.

Selective and additional licence applications (New or Renewal)

Mandatory (HMO) licence applications (New or Renewal)

To apply for a houses in multiple occupation (HMO) licence with 30 or more lettings please email our team propertylicensing@newham.gov.uk to discuss your application before you commence an application online.

Fee Notes (New or Renewal)

A multi-dwelling Selective Property Licence discount can be considered after your first licence where the following conditions are met:

• A Selective Licence application per self-contained dwelling within a Part 3 House is duly made online to the Local Authority on the same date
• Each of the dwellings are separate dwellings (usually self-contained flats), which are contiguous to one another in the same building ‘house’; and
• The whole ‘house’ and each of the dwellings within it are occupied under non “exempt tenancies”; and
• The whole ‘house’ and each of the dwellings are all within common ownership and management control.

All Multi-dwelling Selective Property Licence applicant will be required to pay the standard rate for the first application and discounted fee for each dwelling application thereafter.

The Council recognises that where the same applicant seeks licences in respect of more than one dwelling in the same building, there will be some efficiencies in respect of the necessary checks that are required to be carried out in relation to the building, the proposed licence holder and any other interested parties. As a result, the Council will offer a discount on the Part A element of the licence fee for eligible properties where the applications are applied for at the same time.

To apply for a Multi-dwelling Selective Property licence for flats within the same block, ownership and management control, send us an email propertylicensing@newham.gov.uk to register your interest and details of the addresses to be licensed. We will then get in touch to discuss your case.

Licences will last for 5 years unless the Council has concerns about the management, use, condition, or occupation of the property, in which case the Council may grant a licence for a shorter period.

No discounts with * apply when a failure to licence warning letter has been sent as enforcement costs have already been incurred by the service.

Recognised Accredited Organisations and Warmer Homes Discounts

A Selective Licence costs £750, for up to 5 years. However, there are discounts available for a Licence Holder who is a certified member of a landlord accreditation organisation and has a warmer home rated EPC of A+, A, B or C could reduce the online application fee down to £650 for the licence.

The discounts available for being a certified member of a landlord accreditation organisation and having a warmer home (EPC of A+, A, B or C to qualify) will be applied to applications online prior to payment being made.

Both offered discounts are only eligible to Licence Holders who are accredited.  Managing Agents who are accredited but are not the Licence Holder are not eligible to this discount when making an application on the Licence Holders behalf. Certification or confirmation of the Licence Holders membership is required to be uploaded at the point of application submission.

List of LBN currently recognised accredited organisations:

• London Landlord Accreditation Scheme (LLAS)
• National Residential Landlord Association (NRLA)
• British Landlords Association (BLA)
• Safeagent
• Propertymark
• UK Association of Letting Agents (UKALA).

This list will be updated on the Newham website and we will consider further organisations providing a similar level of accredited training and landlord support.

A valid EPC rating certificate/registration will be required (EPC of A+, A, B or C to qualify). Certification is required to be uploaded at the point of application submission.

Discounts if eligible are applied online at the time of making the application. Discounts or required documentation cannot be considered once the application has been successfully submitted and payment made.

No discounts with * apply when a failure to licence warning letter has been sent as enforcement costs have already been incurred by the service.

Miscellaneous Licensing Actions and applicable fees

Fees you must pay if you make a change to your licence.

If you wish to operate a house as an HMO, it must have the correct class of planning use. You may need to apply for planning permission to change it from C3 (dwelling house) to C4 (house in multiple occupation).

There is no guarantee that your planning application will be approved, but if you rent out your property, you must have a property licence. If you are refused planning permission for an HMO, we cannot refund your licensing fee.

Our licence fees are not connected to the length of a licence.  If you wish to revoke your licence before it expires, we cannot give you a refund for any unused time.