Brighton HMO Floor Plan Requirements: What to Measure, What to Mark, and How to Avoid Rejection

Why Floor Plans Trip Up So Many Applications

The council's guidance says you can upload "a plan of the property — this could be a sketch." That sounds simple. But in practice, floor plans are the single most common document that gets applications flagged or returned.

The reason: a bare room layout isn't enough. Brighton and Hove needs specific annotations that prove your property meets statutory room size and safety requirements.

What Your Floor Plan Must Include

Room dimensions in square metres. Every room on the plan needs its usable floor area measured and written in m². Bedrooms are checked against mandatory minimums — 6.5 m² for one person aged 10 or over, 10.2 m² for two people. Kitchens are checked against separate scales that increase with occupant numbers.

Ceiling height boundaries. Any part of a room where the ceiling drops below 1.5 metres — under eaves, in attic conversions, below sloping roofs — must be marked on the plan. That area is excluded from the usable floor area. A bedroom that measures 8 m² on the floor but has a 2 m² section under the eaves at 1.3 metres actually counts as 6 m² — which fails the 6.5 m² minimum for a single bedroom occupied by a person aged 10 or over.

Room uses. Label every room: bedroom 1, bedroom 2, shared kitchen, bathroom, living room, hallway, storage. The council uses these labels to check occupancy limits and amenity ratios.

Door and window positions. Mark where doors and windows sit. These matter for fire safety and means of escape.

Fire safety equipment. Show the location of smoke detectors, heat detectors, carbon monoxide alarms, fire blankets, and any fire extinguishers. For HMO applications, you'll also need to mark emergency escape routes from each bedroom to the nearest exit.

Thumb-turn locks. If you've fitted thumb-turn locks on bedroom doors (a standard licence condition for HMOs), mark their positions.

Do You Need a Professional Survey?

No. Brighton accepts hand-drawn sketches as long as they include all the required annotations. You don't need CAD drawings or architect plans.

Use a tape measure (or a laser measure for speed) to get room dimensions. Measure at floor level, then note any ceiling restrictions. Draw each storey on a separate page. It doesn't need to be to scale, but it should be proportionally reasonable and clearly labelled.

What you're trying to avoid is paying for a professional survey (typically £200–£400 for an HMO) when a careful sketch will do. The council wants to see that rooms meet the standards — they're not judging your draughtsmanship.

The Mistakes That Get Plans Rejected

• Missing m² annotations. A plan with room names but no measurements.
• Ignoring sloped ceilings. Not marking the 1.5 m boundary in attic rooms or loft conversions.
• Conservatories marked as bedrooms. Brighton explicitly prohibits using conservatories as sleeping accommodation.
• Single drawing for a multi-storey property. Each floor needs its own plan.

The Brighton and Hove Landlord Licensing Guide includes a printable floor plan template with annotation prompts for every required element.

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