HMO licensing in South Hams

South Hams District Council operates the national mandatory scheme. We found no additional or selective licensing scheme in force or proposed as of September 2026. Councils can introduce one after a public consultation, so it is worth setting an alert.

The published fee for a new HMO licence is £446.40, and £446.40 to renew. Fees can depend on the number of occupants or lettings, and they are reviewed each year.

Fee confirmed on South Hams District Council's own 'HMO licensing' page and its 'Licensing and environmental health fees' schedule (Homes in Multiple Occupation (HMO) section): New Applications (new properties/change of ownership) = £446.40; Renewals (every 5 years) = £446.40 (same figure, no discount for renewal); plus a separate 'Fit and Proper' fee of £144.00, which the fee schedule lists as a distinct line item (appears to relate to fit-and-proper-person checks on the licence holder/manager, charged in addition to the licence fee). No accredited-landlord discount or instalment option is mentioned anywhere in the council's published fee information.

Check the current fee on the council website (southhams.gov.uk) before you apply.

National minimums for licensed HMOs are 6.51 m² for one adult and 10.22 m² for two adults; councils can apply higher local standards.

• South Hams District Council states all HMOs must be free from Category 1 Hazards as assessed under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS), with additional requirements covering adequate fire precautions and means of escape in case of fire (South Hams District Council, 'About HMOs' page).
• The council's own guidance cites national fire statistics: occupants are six times more likely to die in a fire in an HMO compared with a single-family house, rising to sixteen times more likely in an HMO of three or more storeys (South Hams District Council, 'About HMOs' page).
• The application requires a floor plan with all rooms labelled (bedroom, kitchen, etc.) and dimensions for each room; the council reviews this alongside a current gas safety certificate and electrical condition report before granting a licence (South Hams District Council, 'HMO licensing' page).
• No South Hams-specific document setting out detector grades, fire-door ratings or escape-route specifications (equivalent to neighbouring councils' published fire-safety-standards tables) could be located on southhams.gov.uk during this research; the council's 12-page 'HMO Fact Sheet' section (covering suitability for occupation, mandatory licensing, fit-and-proper-person, HHSRS, management arrangements, etc.) does not include such a table. Property-specific fire safety conditions are therefore set case-by-case via the licence rather than published as a general standard - do not assume a detector grade or fire-door specification without checking the individual licence conditions issued for a property.

• The council states a licence will only be granted if 'the property meets amenity standards, such as an adequate number of bathrooms and cooking facilities' (South Hams District Council, 'HMO licensing' page), and separately that a licence must be granted only if the HMO 'is reasonably suitable for occupation by the number of persons permitted under the licence' per The Licensing (HMOs and Other Houses) Regulations 2006, Sch 2 (South Hams District Council, HMO Fact Sheet - 'Suitability for occupation' page).
• No published kitchen/bathroom-to-occupant ratio table (equivalent to the amenity standards documents published by some neighbouring Devon councils) could be located on southhams.gov.uk during this research; suitability for occupation and the specific number of amenities required are assessed by the council on a property-by-property basis under the 2006 Regulations rather than set out in a single public standards document.

• Completed HMO application form — 'HMO application form SHDC.pdf' (new applications) or 'HMO licensing renewal application form South Hams.PDF' (renewals), submitted by email to licensing@swdevon.gov.uk with the fee.
• Gas safety certificate — Required documentation per the council's HMO licensing page (implicitly annual, in line with the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, though the page does not itself restate the 12-month validity period).
• Electrical condition report (EICR) — Required documentation per the council's HMO licensing page; no specific validity period is stated on the page itself.
• Floor plan — With all rooms labelled (e.g. bedroom, kitchen) and dimensions given for each room.
• Fit and proper person information — The council must be satisfied the licence holder and manager (if different) are 'fit and proper' persons and that management arrangements are satisfactory; a separate £144.00 'Fit and Proper' fee is charged per the council's fee schedule.

• southhams.gov.uk
• southhams.gov.uk
• southhams.gov.uk
• southhams.gov.uk
• southhams.gov.uk

Compiled from the council’s own published pages and documents; data reviewed September 2026. Rules and fees change, so always confirm with South Hams District Council before applying. This is general information, not legal advice.