North Belfast landlord loses HMO house status after failing to place ad in local papers

A landlord for a house in North Belfast has been refused a HMO licence renewal at City Hall after failing to prove they had published information about the application in the local press.

Elected members at the recent Belfast City Council Licensing Committee meeting refused an application by Orla and Stephen Carragher for a new HMO licence at 49 Atlantic Avenue, Belfast, off Antrim Road, despite them previously having a HMO licence for the house. Councillors refused the new licence on the basis of overprovision of HMOs in the area.

The Carraghers failed in their renewal of their HMO licence after failing to prove they had put an ad in a local newspaper announcing an application for HMO renewal. Atlantic Avenue has a high rate of HMO houses at 60 percent, well above the 20 percent limit required by the latest Belfast Local Development Plan.

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Having failed to renew their HMO licence, the Carraghers had to apply for a new licence. Elected representatives accordingly refused the new HMO application on the grounds of overprovision in the area.

Houses of Multiple Occupation, or HMOs, which landlords lease out to three or more tenants from different addresses, have become increasingly controversial, with some arguing they have negatively affected communities and led to anti-social behaviour, in places like the Holylands and Stranmillis in South Belfast where landlords pack houses with undergraduates.

Applications for new HMO licences have increased in other parts of the city in recent months, notably in North Belfast.

HMO licence renewal cannot be refused on the basis of overprovision of such properties in an area, but new licences can be refused on this basis.

While the council policy is that HMO’s should not account for more than 20 percent of any area of housing management, in reality many streets well exceed this, with some in the Holylands reaching over 90 percent. Outside housing policy areas the threshold is 10 percent.

Regarding the Atlantic Avenue application, the council Licensing report states: “The property had the benefit of an HMO licence issued by the Housing Executive which expired on June 13 2022.

“Reminder letters were sent to the licence holder on January 19 2022 and May 18 2022 informing them of the need to renew the HMO licence before the expiry of the existing licence. On May 19 2022 an HMO licence application was received from the owner of the accommodation to renew the licence.

“The NIHMO Unit ceased to consider the application as the owner failed to comply with Regulation 2 of The Houses in Multiple Occupation (Notice of Application) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2019, which requires that within seven days of submitting the application the applicant must publish information of the application in one or more newspapers, circulating in the locality of the HMO and provide a copy to the NIHMO Unit. A reminder of the requirement to publish the notice was sent in advance of the service ceasing to consider the application.”

It adds: “On August 10 2022 an incomplete application for a Temporary Exemption Notice was received and subsequently refused the same day. A further TEN application was received on August 22 2022 and approved the following day, and an extension to the TEN was approved on October 25 2022 which expired on January 25 2023. No further extensions to the TEN are permitted under the 2016 Act.

“On December 5 2022 an HMO licence application was received from the owner of the accommodation which was rejected on December 15 2022 for breach of planning control. A further licence application was received on December 12 2023.”

The council report said the applicant had not been convicted of any HMO related offences by the council and all statutory bodies confirmed there were no relevant, previous convictions in respect of the applicant, managing agent or occupants. The report said council officers were “not aware of any other issues relevant to the applicant’s fitness.”

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