HMO Conversion · Oldham

HMO Conversions in Oldham

Last updated 08/26 · 9 minute read · Renovat Construction

Reviewed by RICS and PMP certified project management

Converting a house into a small HMO anywhere in Oldham now needs full planning permission. Since 1 January 2026, a borough wide Article 4 Direction has removed the permitted development right that used to let a landlord convert an ordinary house into a small HMO of up to six unrelated tenants without asking Oldham Council first. The change followed a public consultation held between 6 October and 16 November 2025 and was confirmed by the council on 15 December 2025. It does not touch large HMOs of seven or more residents or new build HMOs, which already needed planning permission before the direction and still do now. Separately, any HMO occupied by five or more people from two or more households still needs a mandatory HMO licence from Oldham Council, whatever route was used to create it.

What Changed: The Oldham Article 4 Direction for HMOs

Until the end of 2025, an ordinary house in Oldham could usually be converted into a small HMO, a house shared by three to six unrelated tenants, without any planning application at all. That freedom came from Class L, Part 3 of Schedule 2 to the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015, which grants permitted development rights to change a building’s use between a dwellinghouse (Use Class C3) and a small HMO (Use Class C4) in either direction.

Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council decided to withdraw that right for conversions into small HMOs. The council agreed to consult on 22 September 2025, ran a public consultation from 6 October 2025 to 16 November 2025, and confirmed the Article 4 Direction on 15 December 2025. It took effect on 1 January 2026 and applies borough wide, not to a single ward or neighbourhood. The council’s stated reasoning is to allow proper consideration of the effect a proposed small HMO would have on an area’s amenity and local community before planning permission is granted, rather than the conversion happening automatically.

Source: Oldham Council, Article 4 Direction; legislation.gov.uk, Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015, Schedule 2, Part 3, Class L.

Does My Oldham Property Need Planning Permission for an HMO Now?

For a small HMO conversion, yes, in almost every case. The table below sets out what changed on 1 January 2026.

Change of Use	Before 1 January 2026	From 1 January 2026
Dwellinghouse (C3) to small HMO (C4), 3 to 6 unrelated occupants	Permitted development. No application needed.	Full planning permission required from Oldham Council.
Dwellinghouse to large HMO, 7 or more occupants (sui generis)	Full planning permission required.	No change. Still requires full planning permission.
New build HMO, or an HMO created from a change of use other than a dwellinghouse conversion	Full planning permission required.	No change. Still requires full planning permission.
Any HMO conversion to a listed building	Listed Building Consent required.	No change. Listed Building Consent still required.

A planning application for a small HMO gives Oldham Council the chance to weigh matters such as noise, parking, waste storage and the existing concentration of shared houses on that street before deciding, rather than the conversion proceeding without any local scrutiny. This does not mean an application will be refused. It means the council now has the opportunity to consider it.

Source: Oldham Council, Article 4 Direction.

What the Article 4 Direction Does Not Cover

The direction is narrower than many landlords assume. It removes permitted development rights only for converting a dwellinghouse into a small HMO. It does not change the position for:

• Large HMOs of 7 or more residents. These already needed full planning permission before the direction, because they fall outside Class L entirely, and they still do.
• New build HMOs. A property built from scratch as an HMO was never covered by Class L and still needs full planning permission.
• HMOs created from another change of use. Converting, for example, a former shop or office directly into an HMO sits outside Class L and needs full planning permission regardless of the Article 4 Direction.
• Existing lawfully established small HMOs. A small HMO that was already in lawful use before 1 January 2026 is not affected retrospectively; the direction controls new conversions going forward.

Source: Oldham Council, Article 4 Direction.

Mandatory HMO Licensing in Oldham

Planning permission and HMO licensing are separate systems, and both can apply to the same property. Nationally, mandatory HMO licensing applies wherever a property is occupied by 5 or more people forming 2 or more separate households who share a kitchen, bathroom or other facilities, whatever the number of storeys. The storey rule that used to limit mandatory licensing to buildings of 3 or more storeys was removed nationally from 1 October 2018.

Oldham Council’s current mandatory HMO licence fees are:

Fee Item	Amount
Application fee, 5 bedroom property	£834
Each additional bedroom	+ £35.60
Compliance and enforcement fee, paid once the licence is issued	£380

The government also introduced national minimum sleeping room sizes alongside the 2018 changes: 6.51 m² for one person over 10 years old, 10.22 m² for two people over 10, and 4.64 m² for a single child under 10. No room smaller than 4.64 m² may be used as sleeping accommodation at all. A licence is granted per property, and it is needed whether the HMO was created under the old permitted development right or under a fresh planning permission.

Sources: Oldham Council, Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO); gov.uk, Houses in multiple occupation and residential property licensing reform guidance.

Selective Licensing: A Separate, Older Scheme

Oldham also operates a Selective Licensing scheme, which is entirely different from HMO licensing and easy to confuse with it. Selective licensing applies to privately rented homes let to a single household in designated parts of the borough, including ordinary rented houses that are not HMOs at all. Where a property sits inside a designated area, a selective licence costs £582, made up of a £340.34 fee on application and a further £241.66 once the licence is granted.

A landlord converting a house into an HMO in a selective licensing area does not need both a selective licence and an HMO licence for the same property; the mandatory HMO licence takes over where the HMO threshold is met. But if you are letting other properties in Oldham as standard single household lets, it is worth checking Oldham Council’s designated area map separately, since selective licensing is issued and enforced independently of any HMO or planning consent.

Source: Oldham Council, Selective Licensing of private landlords.

Fire Safety and Building Regulations for Oldham HMOs

Whichever route creates the HMO, fire safety duties apply on an ongoing basis, not just at the point of conversion. Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the responsible person for an HMO must make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the fire risk to the people who live there, and must review that assessment regularly and whenever circumstances change.

Separately, under the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006, the manager of an HMO has an ongoing legal duty to keep every means of escape from fire free from obstruction and in good repair, to keep fire fighting equipment and fire alarms maintained in good working order, and to display clear notices showing escape routes (this notice duty does not apply where the HMO has 4 or fewer occupants).

Oldham Council reflects both duties directly in its licensing process: every HMO licence application must include a current fire risk assessment and a fire detection system certificate showing annual testing records. Get the fire detection specification agreed before work starts rather than retrofitting it once the conversion is finished, since remedial fire works are far more disruptive once walls, ceilings and floor coverings are already in.

Building Regulations apply on top of both of these duties wherever the conversion involves structural work, new partitions, additional kitchens or bathrooms, or upgraded escape routes, covering fire separation between rooms (Part B), sound insulation between converted rooms (Part E), ventilation (Part F) and electrical safety (Part P).

Sources: legislation.gov.uk, Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, Article 9; legislation.gov.uk, Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006, Regulation 4; Oldham Council, Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO).

What Does Converting a House Into an HMO Cost in Oldham?

Build costs for an HMO conversion do not vary much by borough, since the trades, materials and fire and sound requirements are the same wherever the property sits. Renovat’s Manchester wide guide price for a full HMO conversion is £40,000 to £120,000, or roughly £8,000 to £15,000 per room for a mid specification fit out including ensuites. Oldham’s housing stock, with a large stock of Victorian and Edwardian terraces across areas such as Glodwick, Werneth, Coldhurst and Waterhead, tends to suit HMO layouts well, since these properties were often built with the room proportions and party wall arrangements a shared house needs. For the full room by room breakdown, see our HMO conversion cost guide.

What changes the total bill in Oldham specifically is now the planning process itself: budget for a full planning application, the supporting reports a case officer may ask for, and a realistic 8 to 13 week decision period, on top of the licensing fees set out above.

Should You Convert to an HMO, or Something Else?

An HMO is not always the right route, even where the numbers look attractive on paper:

• Convert to a small HMO if the property sits near Oldham town centre or good transport links, where demand for shared, affordable rooms is strongest, and you are prepared to run the planning application and licensing process.
• Consider a standard single let instead if the property is in a settled family housing area, where an HMO application is more likely to draw neighbour objections and where standard rental demand is already strong.
• Consider a full refurbishment instead if your goal is simply to modernise the property rather than change its use. See our house renovations guide for costs and planning rules.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need planning permission to convert a house into an HMO in Oldham?

Yes, for a small HMO of 3 to 6 unrelated occupants, since 1 January 2026. A borough wide Article 4 Direction removed the permitted development right that used to allow this conversion without an application. Large HMOs of 7 or more residents, and new build HMOs, already needed full planning permission and are unaffected by the change.

When did the Oldham HMO Article 4 Direction come into force?

It came into force on 1 January 2026. Oldham Council confirmed the direction on 15 December 2025, following a public consultation held between 6 October and 16 November 2025.

Does the Article 4 Direction affect HMOs that already exist?

No. The direction controls new conversions from the effective date onward. A small HMO that was already in lawful use before 1 January 2026 is not affected retrospectively, though it will still need a mandatory HMO licence if it meets the licensing threshold.

Do I still need an HMO licence if I get planning permission for my Oldham HMO?

Yes. Planning permission and HMO licensing are two separate systems. Getting planning permission for a small HMO does not remove the separate legal requirement to hold a mandatory HMO licence wherever the property will house 5 or more people from 2 or more households.

What fire safety documents does Oldham Council ask for with an HMO licence?

Oldham Council’s licence application asks for a current fire risk assessment and a fire detection system certificate that includes annual testing records. These sit alongside the manager’s ongoing legal duty under the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006 to keep escape routes clear and fire alarms in good working order at all times, not only when the licence is renewed.

Is selective licensing the same as HMO licensing in Oldham?

No. Selective licensing is a separate scheme covering privately rented single household homes in designated parts of Oldham, currently costing £582. HMO licensing is a distinct, mandatory scheme that applies once a property houses 5 or more people from 2 or more households, wherever in the borough it sits.

Cost ranges are indicative for 2026 and will vary depending on property condition, scope of work and specification. Obtain at least three detailed quotes before committing to any contractor. Planning policy, Article 4 directions and licensing fees can change; always confirm the current position with Oldham Council before starting work or submitting an application.