News

Landlords in Hackney warned – it’s time to prepare for new property licensing schemes

Sunday, February 8th, 2026 - Hackney Council

Owners of most privately rented homes in Hackney are being warned they will soon need a licence to rent out their property.

Hackney Council’s previous additional and selective licensing schemes ended after five years on 30 September 2023 (read here).

Over eighteen months later, Hackney Council consulted on new property licensing proposals for 14 weeks from 12 June to 21 September 2025 (read here).

Hackney Council’s Cabinet meeting approved new additional and selective licensing schemes on 24 November 2025 and both schemes will come into force on 1 May 2026.

Additional licensing

Hackney Council’s new additional licensing scheme will apply borough wide. It will extend licensing to most Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) including shared accommodation and bedsit-HMOs occupied by three or four people.

The only exemption will be so-called Section 257 HMOs which are certain buildings converted into self-contained flats. Licensing will still apply to individual flats occupied by three or more people who are not all related.

Selective licensing

Hackney Council’s new selective licensing scheme will apply to seventeen council wards:

Brownswood
Cazenove
Clissold
Dalston
De Beauvoir
Hackney Central
Hackney Downs
Hackney Wick
Homerton
King’s Park
Lea Bridge
London Fields
Shacklewell
Springfield
Stamford Hill West
Stoke Newington
Victoria

Within these wards, licensing is being extended to every private rented property occupied by a single household or two unrelated people.

What will property licensing cost?

According to a council press release, the additional licence application fee will be £1,400 per property, and the selective licence application fee will be £925 per property.

Hackney Council say the scheme is designed to be cost-neutral with fees set to cover the administration, inspection and monitoring needed to maintain safe, high-quality homes across the borough.

Last time we checked, the licence application fees had not yet been published on the council’s property licensing web-page and it was unclear when landlords and managing agents can start to apply.

According to the council, private rented homes make up nearly a third of residential properties in Hackney and play a valuable role in providing housing for residents of the borough. They acknowledge many landlords provide well-maintained, responsibly managed homes and the private rented sector provides important housing choice for local people.

However, a recent independent review of Hackney’s private rented sector found that a significant proportion of privately rented homes may contain serious hazards – almost double the national average. These issues are even more prevalent in houses in multiple occupation, with 30% of HMOs in the borough predicted to have a serious hazard, three times the national average.

Hackney Council have said these new schemes are designed to raise standards in the private rented sector. They say it will champion responsible landlords through advice, guidance and support, whilst giving the council stronger tools to crack down on poor practice.

Late last year, Caroline Woodley, Mayor of Hackney, said:

“Everyone in Hackney deserves a good, safe and secure home, and we know more must be done to make that a reality. Most landlords do the right thing, but too many renters face unacceptable conditions and poor property management. These conditions don’t just harm individual tenants, they also contribute to wider issues in Hackney – from disrepair to antisocial behaviour. We’ll use every tool we have to enforce against landlords who don’t play by these new rules and focus on building up a network of responsible landlords in the borough.“

Councillor Sem Moema, Hackney’s Deputy Cabinet Member for Private Renting and Housing Affordability, said:

“We’ve long campaigned for changes to the private rented sector, including a ban on section 21 no fault evictions. This new licensing scheme alongside the introduction of the Renters’ Rights Act is a big step in ensuring that we can raise standards for people in privately rented homes, support responsible landlords and help our residents have safe and well managed homes.“

Our free guide containing more information about property licensing and HMO planning restrictions in Hackney is available here.