London HMO Licence Fees Comparison: Borough-by-Borough 2026 Costs

Why Fees Vary So Much Across London

Every London borough sets its own HMO licence fees under the Housing Act 2004. The Act allows councils to charge on a cost-recovery basis — meaning the fee reflects the borough's administrative and enforcement costs, not a national standard. The result is dramatic variation: a mandatory HMO licence can cost anywhere from under £500 to well over £1,500 depending on the borough, the scheme type, and whether the borough adds room surcharges.

Where Tower Hamlets Sits

Tower Hamlets is at the higher end of the London range, particularly after the April 2026 fee increase that raised additional HMO licence costs by approximately 75%.

Tower Hamlets current fees (April 2026):

The room surcharge is per habitable room — bedrooms, living rooms, and dining rooms count; kitchens, bathrooms and hallways do not. A four-bedroom HMO with a living room adds five rooms at £68.50 each (£342.50) on top of the base fee.

If you pay in two parts, the listed Part A and Part B amounts total £1,037 for a mandatory HMO and £1,405.50 for an additional HMO, before room charges. Those split-payment totals are higher than the online fee paid in full.

For an additional HMO with five habitable rooms, the total is £1,323 + £342.50 = £1,665.50.

How Other London Boroughs Compare

Licence fees shift regularly, but the 2026 landscape across boroughs with active additional or selective schemes shows a wide spread:

Lower end (under £1,000 for mandatory HMO): Some outer London boroughs without additional schemes charge only the mandatory HMO fee, which typically runs £500–£900. Boroughs without discretionary schemes (no additional or selective licensing) only process mandatory HMO applications, resulting in lower administrative overheads and lower fees.

Mid-range (£900–£1,200): Boroughs like Newham, which runs one of the largest selective licensing schemes in England, charge around £500 for a selective licence but add significant fees for HMO applications. Other boroughs in this range include Hackney, Lewisham, and Southwark.

Higher end (over £1,200): Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Brent, and some inner London boroughs with active additional HMO schemes sit at the top of the range. These boroughs typically have large private rented sectors with high enforcement activity, which drives up cost-recovery fees.

The Hidden Costs Beyond the Base Fee

When comparing London boroughs, the headline fee is not the full picture. Look at:

• Room surcharges — Tower Hamlets adds £68.50 per habitable room. Not all boroughs charge this. A five-room property in Tower Hamlets pays an extra £342.50 that a landlord in a no-surcharge borough avoids entirely.
• Missing document charges — Tower Hamlets charges £112.50 (mandatory) or £157.50 (additional) per missing document. Some boroughs charge less or nothing.
• Split-payment fees — Tower Hamlets' listed Part A and Part B amounts total more than its online fee paid in full. Compare the current split-payment amounts with the full-payment fee before choosing a payment method.
• Postal vs online — Tower Hamlets charges significantly more for postal applications (£1,147 for mandatory vs £977 online). Some boroughs do not offer postal applications at all.
• Renewal discounts — some boroughs offer reduced fees for licence renewals. Tower Hamlets' historical selective scheme had renewal rates (£747 vs £897 for new), but the additional HMO scheme does not currently distinguish.

What This Means for Landlords with Properties in Multiple Boroughs

If you own HMOs across several London boroughs, your annual licensing cost varies dramatically by location. A five-bedroom mandatory HMO in a low-fee outer borough might cost £700 total, while the same property profile in Tower Hamlets costs £977 + £342.50 in room surcharges = £1,319.50.

Factor licensing fees into your yield calculations for each property. For Tower Hamlets specifically, the five-year licence term means you are paying these fees once per cycle, not annually — but the upfront cost is substantial, and the room surcharges scale with property size.

For a detailed fee calculator, a breakdown of every Tower Hamlets surcharge, and a walkthrough of the Part A/Part B payment process, see our Tower Hamlets Landlord Licensing Guide.

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