Ealing sets 24 September deadline on smaller HMO licensing renewal

24 September 2026 is the key date for Ealing landlords: that is when the council’s consultation closes on whether to renew its additional licensing scheme for smaller HMOs for another five years from April 2027.

Nothing has been renewed yet. But landlords should not mistake “consultation” for irrelevance. If the scheme is extended, smaller shared houses and flats outside the national mandatory HMO regime could still need a borough licence, with the usual costs, conditions and scrutiny that follow.

A free two-hour workshop for landlords and tenants is also scheduled for 17 September 2026, focused on the neighbourhood and community impact of HMOs. That matters because it may indicate where Ealing’s enforcement attention will fall if the scheme continues.

The issue is smaller HMOs, not the national scheme

Mandatory HMO licensing applies nationally to larger HMOs that meet the statutory test. Additional licensing is different: it allows a council to bring other HMOs into licensing locally.

That distinction matters in Ealing because the consultation concerns smaller HMOs. The material provided here does not confirm the final property definition, fee structure or whether any terms would change under a renewed scheme. Landlords should read the council’s consultation documents directly rather than assume the next scheme will simply mirror the current one.

Why landlords should act before any decision is made

The main risk is not a rule change today. It is waiting until 2027 and discovering that a property you treated as outside licensing is in scope after all.

Any landlord with shared housing in Acton, Southall, Greenford, Hanwell, Northolt, Perivale or Ealing Broadway should check now whether a property is occupied by more than one household and could fall into the smaller-HMO category if the scheme is renewed.

For single-property landlords, that means confirming the actual living arrangement rather than relying on old file notes. For portfolio landlords and agents, it means auditing every Ealing HMO for licence status, expiry dates and missing compliance records. A poor paper trail does not just slow applications; it can expose wider management weaknesses if the council looks more closely.

What Ealing is likely to care about

The workshop’s stated theme — neighbourhood and community impact — is a useful clue. In practice, councils usually use that language to point to issues such as:

• refuse and waste storage
• noise and anti-social behaviour
• overcrowding concerns
• external upkeep and property condition
• complaint handling and day-to-day management

That means landlords should think beyond certificates. If the scheme is renewed, visible management failures are just as likely to attract attention as missing paperwork.

Consultation responses need evidence, not indignation

If you want to influence the council’s decision, submit evidence before 24 September 2026.

The most useful responses are likely to be the ones that explain actual operational impact: application costs, fire safety upgrade costs, delays, overlap with other controls, management burdens, or evidence that existing rules already address the problem the council is targeting. General objections to “more red tape” rarely move policy.

Build the file now, not after renewal

Landlords should use the consultation period to assemble a clean document pack for each Ealing property that is already an HMO or could become relevant under a renewed scheme. That should include:

• current occupancy and household layout
• existing licence status and expiry date
• EICR
• gas safety record where applicable
• fire alarm testing records
• emergency lighting records where installed
• waste arrangements
• logs of complaints or anti-social behaviour issues

If the scheme is renewed from April 2027, that preparation will make applications faster and reduce the chance of being caught by missing records or inconsistent management information.

Three steps before the deadline

First, decide whether any Ealing property in your portfolio is a likely smaller HMO.
Second, attend the 17 September 2026 workshop or submit questions on fees, conditions and enforcement priorities.
Third, send an evidence-based response by 24 September 2026 if the renewal would affect your costs, operations or tenant management.

Rentals & Sales can review your Ealing properties for likely HMO licensing exposure and prepare the compliance documents needed for a renewal or fresh application.