HMO Conversions Kennington

HMO conversion in Kennington is a narrow line of work, because the VOA counts only 18% of homes here as houses. The candidates are the terraced houses, 16% of all homes, and existing shared houses that need upgrading. Lambeth's additional HMO licensing is borough-wide, and HMO planning turns on Policy H9 and the family housing test. We fit out bedrooms, kitchens, bathrooms and fire protection to the licence and consent the landlord holds.

In Kennington, a light HMO conversion for four to six tenants typically costs £40,000 to £75,000 in construction, or £90,000 to £150,000 with an en-suite to every bedroom (indicative London ranges, Mayfair Studio and LetCompliance, 2026). GS Renovation Ltd, a building contractor based in Potters Bar, does the work in Kennington: we build the fire doors, detection, bathrooms and kitchens to the council's HMO standards, the landlord applies for the licence, and a registered electrician certifies the electrics.

Planning: C3 to C4 and larger HMOs in Kennington

Planning for a Kennington HMO depends on how many people will share. The London Plan glossary classes HMOs for three to six people as Use Class C4 and HMOs for more than six as sui generis. Class L of the General Permitted Development Order 2015 lets a C3 house become a C4 HMO without an application, unless an Article 4 direction removes that right, so your agent should confirm with Lambeth whether one covers the Kennington address.

Two limits apply even where Class L is available. It does not allow one former house to be used as two or more separate C4 HMOs. And Lambeth says that renting an HMO to seven or more people needs planning permission for a change of use. Where an application is needed, Lambeth Local Plan Policy H9 supports a new HMO only where, among other tests, it does not lose family housing as Policy H6 defines it.

Housing in Kennington

For Kennington the Council Tax list gives about 8,500 homes; by type 82% flats and 18% houses, by age 60% post-war, 12% interwar and 28% older than 1919.

Mandatory and additional HMO licensing across Lambeth and Kennington

Every shared house in Kennington needs a licensing check before the layout is fixed. GOV.UK defines a large HMO as one rented to 5 or more people who form more than 1 household, and that needs a mandatory licence. Lambeth's additional HMO licensing scheme is borough-wide and applies to any property occupied by three or more individuals that is not captured by mandatory licensing. So a smaller Kennington house share is caught too.

One exception matters here: a flat in a purpose-built block of three or more self-contained flats falls outside mandatory licensing, although a council's additional scheme can still cover it.

Lambeth charges its HMO licence fee per habitable room, so the number of lettable rooms affects the paperwork as well as the rent. The landlord or their agent applies for the licence, and its conditions set the standard we build to. GOV.UK warns that renting out an unlicensed HMO can lead to an unlimited fine, which is why the licence schedule should be in hand before the rooms are divided.

Room sizes, kitchens and bathrooms in a Kennington HMO

A Kennington HMO layout is driven by the licence conditions on room size and shared amenities. Since 1 October 2018 every mandatory licence in England has required a sleeping room of at least 6.51 square metres for one person over 10 and 10.22 square metres for two. No room under 4.64 square metres may be used for sleeping. In a terrace, the old front and back rooms usually meet them easily, while box rooms, half landings and rear closet rooms need measuring before they appear on the letting plan.

The shared kitchen, bathrooms and WCs are sized to the number of occupiers, following the council's HMO amenity standards that your licence refers to. More occupiers mean more sinks, cooking space, fridge space and bathrooms, and those drive the drainage and ventilation design. A registered electrician certifies the electrics, a Gas Safe engineer handles any gas appliances, and we fit extraction to every kitchen and bathroom in the Kennington house before decoration.

Fire safety, sound and energy in a Kennington shared house

Fire safety is the biggest part of the build in a Kennington HMO. The escape route down the stair is protected with fire resisting walls and ceilings, each bedroom typically gets a self-closing fire door, and a linked detection and alarm system covers the rooms and circulation. Building regulations Part B, the council's HMO fire standards and the LACORS housing fire safety guidance set the level, and the licence conditions confirm it for each house.

Sound between rooms matters more in a shared house than in a family one, because each tenant keeps different hours. We add insulation to stud walls between bedrooms and to floors under upper rooms. Energy rules apply too: GOV.UK says that since 1 April 2018 landlords may not let domestic properties on new tenancies with an EPC rating of F or G unless an exemption applies. Since 1 April 2020 that has covered continuing lets too. Insulation goes in while Kennington walls and floors are open.

• Self-closing fire doors and frames to every bedroom and the kitchen
• Hard-wearing floors, finishes and decoration for a let house
• Separate WCs and wash basins to the amenity standard

VOA Council Tax stock of properties, March 2025, for Lambeth Walk & North Kennington and Oval. Counts rounded by the VOA.

If this is your first project in Kennington, these are worth a look: bathroom renovation in Kennington, hmo conversions across Lambeth, what a main building contractor does, how snagging works at handover, how we handle hmo conversions across London and Bathroom Renovation Cost.

The GS Renovation Difference in Kennington

An HMO has to satisfy the licence, the planning position and building regulations at once, and each has its own inspector. We build from the licence schedule and any consented drawings the landlord holds, run the fire protection, electrics, plumbing and fit-out under one site lead, and photograph the fire stopping and alarm wiring before they are covered. You get a written programme and one contact until the rooms are ready to let.

• Every bedroom measured against the national minimum room sizes
• A written scope and programme agreed before work starts
• Detection laid out to the grade the council's HMO fire guidance sets

Checked by Abdelaaziz Saaid, founder and director of GS Renovation Ltd (Companies House no. 14611254).