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Fit and proper person requirements

Find out about Fit and Proper person requirements for an HMO .

Introduction 

The council checks if landlords and managers of HMOs are responsible and trustworthy. This is called being "fit and proper." 

Who Needs to Be Checked? 

  • Anyone applying for an HMO licence 
  • Property managers and anyone running the property 
  • If a business owns the licence, all directors and managers are checked 

If someone fails the check, they may not get a licence, or their licence could be taken away. 

What we consider

The council needs to check if the plans for managing the house are good. They will look at: 

  • If the people managing the house know what they are doing.  
  • If other people helping to manage the house (not the main manager) are good and responsible. 
  • If the management plans and money arrangements are suitable. 

The council will check if a person is good enough to help manage the property. They will look at the person's past experience with managing HMOs, how hard the management tasks will be, and the plans for managing the property. 

Also, we must check if a person has: 

  • Committed any crimes like fraud, dishonesty, violence, or drug-related offences, or any serious offences listed in the Sexual Offences Act 2003. 
  • Practiced unlawful discrimination based on sex, colour, race, ethnic or national origins, or disability in any business activities. 
  • Broken any housing or landlord and tenant laws. 
  • Not followed any approved codes of practice. 

If someone linked to the applicant has committed crimes, this may be used as proof. It helps decide if the licence holder or manager is suitable. 

A person will not be considered fit and proper if a banning order under section 16 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016 is in force against the person. The council must revoke a licence if a banning order is in place. 

You will be required to complete a fit and proper person declaration within the application form.  

Banning orders 

A banning order is a rule that stops a landlord or property manager from renting out homes. It happens if they commit serious crimes, like not getting the right licences for HMOs or breaking the rules of their current licences. 

Certain crimes can lead to a banning order, as explained in the Housing and Planning Act 2016. But committing these crimes doesn't always mean there will be a banning order. 

If someone has a banning order, they are not seen as "fit and proper" under the Housing and Planning Act 2016. 

Follow the 'Banning Order Offences under the Housing and Planning Act 2016 – Guidance for Local Housing Authorities'. 

Requesting further information 

We might ask for a simple criminal record check. This is for the licence holder and everyone managing the property. The check must be from the last 6 months. You can get this from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).

A basic DBS check shows if the person has any criminal convictions. It helps the council decide if they are fit and proper. Only unspent convictions will be looked at.

You only need to get a DBS check if we ask for it. 

Duration

If found unfit, the status typically lasts for five years.  

If you apply again during this time, we will look at any new evidence to reconsider your application. 

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