Council ‘powerless’ to stop HMO bulk buying

Councillors have been told there is no mechanism to prevent landlords and developers’ bulk-buying homes for conversion into houses in multiple occupation (HMO), despite mounting concern over concentrations in residential areas.

Councillors on Belfast Council’s licensing committee raised concerns about ‘cash-only’ purchases in East Belfast, with several properties acquired together and repositioned as HMOs to increase returns.

The growing number of HMOs in parts of the Holylands and Stranmillis are leading to repeated complaints about anti-social behaviour.

Applications for new HMO licences have increased in other parts of the city, with some being refused and then accepted after first refusal.

HMO licence refusal

Belfast Live reports that councillors were told that current HMO rules mean a licence cannot be refused on overprovision grounds.

New applications can be rejected where local thresholds are exceeded, although those limits are already surpassed in certain streets.

The policy sets a 20% cap for HMOs and apartments within designated housing management areas, falling to 10% outside them.

In practice, concentrations in parts of the Holylands are reported to exceed 90%.

Bulk buying properties

DUP councillor Ruth Brooks said the pattern is now visible in East Belfast, pointing to multiple acquisitions bundled into single portfolios and shifted towards higher-yield HMO use.

She said: “This involves a number of commercially purchased properties, for example, a selection of maybe seven random properties within residential areas, which would be purchased as a portfolio, then would be specifically put on the market to achieve higher rental rates as HMOs than as single let.”

She added: “I am acutely aware that in Titanic there has been an increase in cash-only offers, and it is really now moving from single-let properties to (landlords) trying to get a higher rate per bedroom.”

UC HMO choice

A council licensing officer said overprovision assessments are based on numbers and capacity within a locality, alongside housing need and waiting list data.

He pointed to younger tenants relying on shared housing and for those on Universal Credit, HMO accommodation is their only choice.

Licensing checks, he said, focus on management standards, financial capacity and whether the property meets physical requirements.

However, housing management areas remain under review as part of Belfast’s local development plan with ongoing work on HMO concentrations.