Hackney Property Licensing Public Register: How to Search It and What It Shows

Tenants checking whether a landlord is licensed, landlords verifying their own listing, buyers doing pre-purchase due diligence — they all end up at Hackney's public register. Under section 232 of the Housing Act 2004, the council is required to maintain and publish this register. Knowing how to read it (and what it cannot tell you) matters.

Where the Register Lives

LB Hackney hosts the register on its property licensing portal at propertylicensing.hackney.gov.uk. Map2 hosts a separate Licensing Act 2003 register; it is not a map view of the property-licensing dataset.

Use the public register to check the details recorded for a licensed property.

What Each Entry Shows

A register entry for a licensed property typically includes:

• Property address — the full postal address covered by the licence
• Licence holder — the name and contact address of the person who holds the licence (usually the property owner)
• Managing agent — if a managing agent is named on the licence, their details appear here
• Permitted occupancy — the maximum number of occupants and households the licence allows
• Room details — the room-count specifications recorded for the property
• Licence type — selective, additional HMO or mandatory HMO
• Expiry date — when the licence term ends (up to five years; the current local schemes run to 30 April 2031)

Why a Missing Listing Does Not Mean Exemption

This is the single most important caveat. A property that does not appear on the register might be:

• Awaiting processing. The council adds a property to the register after the licence is formally granted and Part B is paid. An application that is duly made and sitting in the assessment queue will not show up yet, even though the landlord has met their obligation to apply.
• Recently granted. There may be a delay between licence grant and the public register update.
• Genuinely unlicensed. The property requires a licence and the landlord has not applied.
• Exempt. The property falls under a statutory exemption (resident landlord with two or fewer lodgers, public-sector housing, registered-provider stock, or a property in one of the four excluded wards with a single household).

Because the register cannot distinguish between a pending application and a missing one, an absent listing is not proof of non-compliance. The only way to get a definitive answer is a formal written status check from LB Hackney's Private Sector Housing Team at [email protected].

How Tenants Use the Register

Tenants in shared accommodation increasingly check the register before or during a tenancy. If a property that should be licensed does not appear, tenants can:

• Raise the issue with the landlord directly
• Report the property to Hackney's housing enforcement team
• Apply to the First-tier Tribunal for a Rent Repayment Order (RRO) covering up to 24 months of rent paid while the property was unlicensed

Forum discussions on r/HousingUK show tenants in Hackney actively cross-referencing the register during rent disputes — one thread described a tenant discovering that a shared flat occupied by four unrelated people (four separate households under the Housing Act 2004 definition) was missing from the additional HMO register entirely.

How Landlords Should Use the Register

Once your licence is granted and Part B is paid, check that your property appears on the register. If it does not, contact the Private Sector Housing Team to confirm its register status.

If you are selling a licensed property, bear in mind that licences are non-transferable and the existing licence lapses on sale. The buyer will need to submit a new application in their name. The buyer's new licence will appear on the register only once it is granted. During the gap, the buyer should hold a duly-made application reference to demonstrate compliance.

For the full licensing process — which scheme applies, the application steps, documents, fees and conditions — the Hackney Landlord Licensing guide covers everything from scheme identification to licence grant.

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