Durham Council Tightens HMO Regulations in the City

Student landlords in Durham will have to apply for planning permission if they wish to turn houses into HMOs from September onwards.

The rules will come into force after Durham County Council announced an Article 4 direction after years of lobbying by local residents and politicians who sought a tightening up of student accommodation growth within the city.

In March the council will also be reviewing a new student accommodation policy to cover the intervening period that would force developers to prove both that their development is needed, and that it will not have a negative impact on the local community.

The council are however still refusing to implement a much talked about Regulation 7 directive that would force landlords to apply for permission to even put up To let boards. They have also truned down requests to implement an Additional Licensing Scheme for HMOs.

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