HMO management regulations: the ongoing duties every licensed HMO landlord must meet
Getting an HMO licence, or working out you do not need one, only answers half the question. Once a property meets the definition of an HMO, a separate piece of law applies for as long as the HMO exists: the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006. These set out the day-to-day duties owed to the people living there - fire safety, repairs, gas and electricity, common parts, waste - on top of whatever your licence conditions say. This guide covers those ongoing duties in their own right, separately from whether you need a licence at all, which our HMO licensing guide covers.
Who these regulations actually catch
The Regulations apply to any HMO in England, with one narrow exception for certain converted blocks of flats, and they are not limited to HMOs that need a licence. If your property meets the Housing Act 2004 definition of an HMO - broadly 3 or more tenants forming more than 1 household and sharing a kitchen, bathroom or toilet - these duties apply whether or not it sits above the 5-tenant mandatory licensing threshold or inside a council's additional licensing area. A small 3-tenant HMO needing no licence at all is still bound by every duty below, and plenty of landlords assume otherwise.
Who the duties actually fall on
The law does not automatically point at the landlord. It points at "the manager", defined as whoever receives the rent, whether that is you directly or an agent collecting it on your behalf. Run the property yourself and take the rent, and you are the manager. Use a letting or managing agent who collects rent under their own arrangement with you, and the legal responsibility can sit with them instead, though most landlords still want to know the duties are being met rather than hoping the agent has it covered. The manager is not automatically the same person as the licence holder - the two roles often coincide, but the regulations focus on who actually runs the place day to day, not whose name is on the certificate.
The core ongoing duties
The table below sets out what the manager must do once the property is up and running. These are continuing obligations, not one-off checks completed at application stage.
| Duty | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Contact details | The manager's name, address and phone number must be given to every household and displayed prominently in the HMO. |
| Fire safety | Means of escape kept free from obstruction and in good repair, fire alarms and fire-fighting equipment kept in working order, escape route notices displayed where there are 5 or more occupiers. |
| Water and drainage | Water supply and drainage kept in good, clean working order, tanks and cisterns covered and clean, pipework protected from frost, supply not unreasonably cut off. |
| Gas and electricity | Latest gas safety certificate supplied to the council within 7 days of a written request; supply not unreasonably interrupted. |
| Common parts and shared items | Staircases, hallways, handrails, shared lighting, gardens, boundary walls and shared appliances kept safe, clean and in good repair. |
| Living accommodation | Each let room kept in good repair, with fixtures and fittings maintained and windows in working order, subject to fair wear and tenant-like use. |
| Waste disposal | Sufficient bins for every household, plus arrangements for collection that fit with the local authority's own service. |
Fire safety and fire doors specifically
Fire is the duty landlords hear about most, so it is worth being precise about what these Regulations require. The manager must keep every means of escape free from obstruction and in good order and repair, and keep fire alarms and fire-fighting equipment in working order - which in practice covers the doors along an escape route as much as the alarms. What the Regulations do not do is set a specific national door standard. That usually comes from your property's fire risk assessment or from conditions attached to your council's licence, such as a self-closing FD30 door on a bedroom leading onto a shared hallway, and both need maintaining, not just satisfying once. Smoke alarms sit under the same general duty, and our smoke and carbon monoxide alarm guide covers the separate alarm rules in more detail.
Occupiers have duties too
The Regulations are not entirely one-sided. Tenants must not obstruct the manager in carrying out these duties, must allow reasonable access for checks and repairs, must give information reasonably requested, and must take care not to damage anything the manager is responsible for maintaining. Reflecting this in your tenancy paperwork helps tenants understand access and cooperation are conditions of the tenancy, not favours.
What happens if you do not comply
Failing to meet these duties is a criminal offence, carrying a fine on summary conviction, with a reasonable-excuse defence available where there is a genuine explanation. In practice most councils now deal with breaches through a civil penalty instead of going to court, up to £40,000 for this offence, the same ceiling that applies to unlicensed HMO offences, and a council cannot impose both a penalty and a prosecution for the same conduct. A proven breach also weighs against you if the council later reviews whether you remain a fit and proper person, which matters at renewal as much as at first application. Keeping your gas and electrical paperwork current, which our gas safety certificate guide covers in full, is one of the easier duties to evidence if asked.
These duties run for the life of the tenancy, not just at move-in
Gas safety renewals, fire alarm checks, EICR dates, licence conditions - HMO compliance is a calendar problem as much as a paperwork one. The Landlord Compliance Calendar in our Complete Landlord Pack keeps every recurring date in one place so nothing quietly lapses between inspections.
See our current offer prices →Frequently asked questions
Do the regulations apply if my property does not need a licence? Yes. They apply to any HMO meeting the Housing Act 2004 definition, regardless of whether that particular property crosses a licensing threshold.
Who counts as the manager? Whoever receives the rent, directly or through an agent. Usually the landlord, but not always, and not automatically the same person as the licence holder.
What happens if I breach the regulations? A criminal offence carrying a fine on conviction, though councils typically use a civil penalty of up to £40,000 instead, and a breach can count against you on a future fit and proper person assessment.
Do the regulations set a specific fire door standard? Not directly. They require escape routes to be kept clear and in good repair, with the specific door standard usually set by your fire risk assessment or licence conditions.
This guide is general information for landlords in England, not legal advice for your specific circumstances. Management duties apply on top of any licence conditions - check both against your own property before relying on either.