Redbridge HMO Licence Fees: Additional and Mandatory Costs Explained

Redbridge HMO licence fees scale with the number of households in the property, and the jump between bands can be substantial. A two-household HMO costs £1,865.34 at the standard rate; by ten or more households, it reaches £2,728.51. Knowing your household count before you apply saves you from paying the wrong fee or under-reporting and facing enforcement later.

Additional vs Mandatory: Same Fee Schedule

Both additional HMO licensing and mandatory HMO licensing in Redbridge use the same fee table. The difference is in which properties they apply to:

• Additional HMO — three or four people forming two or more households, sharing amenities. Applies borough-wide, including the five wards exempt from selective licensing. Also covers Section 257 converted blocks of flats.
• Mandatory HMO — five or more people forming two or more households, sharing amenities. National requirement, applies borough-wide.

The fees are identical for both. What varies is the Part B amount based on how many distinct households occupy the property.

2026/27 HMO Fee Table

Part A (application fee) is fixed at £696.14 for all HMO applications.

The £35 accreditation discount comes off Part B when you submit proof of LLAS or equivalent training at the time of application.

Counting Households Correctly

The fee band depends on households, not people. Under the Housing Act 2004, a household is a group of people related by blood, marriage, civil partnership, adoption, fostering, or step-relationships. Everyone else is a separate household.

Practical examples:

• Three unrelated tenants sharing a flat = three households → 3-household band (£1,969.60)
• A married couple plus one unrelated housemate = two households → 2-household band (£1,865.34)
• Five unrelated professionals in a house share = five households → 5-household band (£2,185.95)

Getting this wrong affects which licence type you need, how much you pay, and the occupancy limits on your licence. Under-reporting household numbers is a breach of licence conditions.

Additional Costs to Budget For

Beyond the licence fee itself:

• Paper application surcharge: £139.23 if you don't apply online
• Pre-application advisory visit: £477 for a council officer to inspect your property before you apply and flag any physical compliance issues
• Safety certificates: you'll need a current Gas Safety Record, EICR, PAT testing, and for HMOs, a Fire Risk Assessment and fire detection/emergency lighting certificates — all at your own cost

How Fees Compare to Selective Licensing

A selective licence in Redbridge costs £997.69 total (£962.69 with the accreditation discount). Even the cheapest HMO licence — the 2-household band — costs nearly double that at £1,865.34.

This price gap is one reason misclassification matters. If a property crosses from two unrelated occupants (selective) to three unrelated occupants (additional HMO), the fees jump by over £800 and the document requirements expand to include fire safety assessments.

The Redbridge Landlord Licensing Guide includes a licence type decision worksheet that walks through the occupancy and household tests, so you know which licence you need and what it will cost before you start the application.

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