Additional HMO licensing in Gateshead

What the designation says

Gateshead operates an additional licensing scheme for houses in multiple occupation, made alongside the selective designation and implemented in a single phase which came into force on 1 June 2025. It extends licensing to shared properties that fall outside the national mandatory regime, typically those let to three or four people forming two or more households who share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet. Mandatory HMO licensing continues to apply separately wherever a property is let to five or more people forming two or more households. Because Gateshead also runs selective licensing across two phases of designated neighbourhoods, a landlord should establish which scheme catches a given property before applying.

What this means for a landlord

A licence must be in place before the property is let, not applied for afterwards. Operating unlicensed in a designated area is a criminal offence: a civil penalty of up to £30,000 per offence, a rent repayment order of up to twelve months' rent, and a section 21 notice that cannot be served while the property is unlicensed. Mandatory HMO licensing applies separately and everywhere, wherever a property is let to five or more people forming two or more households.

Gateshead's own licensing page →