Merton additional and selective licensing schemes starting soon

Tuesday, September 12th, 2023 - London Property Licensing

New additional and selective licensing schemes are being introduced in the London Borough of Merton on 24 September 2023.

Merton Council consulted on proposed new licensing schemes from November 2022 to 22 January 2023 (read here) and the schemes were approved at a Cabinet Meeting on 19 June 2023.

Unfortunately, there was no press release to announce that new licensing schemes had been approved. London Property Licensing fears many landlords and agents operating in the area may still be unaware. 

Additional licensing

Merton’s new additional licensing scheme will extend licensing to all Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) in seven council wards:

• Colliers Wood
• Cricket Green
• Figge’s Marsh
• Graveney
• Lavender Fields
• Longthornton
• Pollards Hill

Unhelpfully, the council’s HMO webpage has not yet been updated to reflect this. It still says that HMOs with four or fewer tenants to not require a licence.

The correct information can be found be reading a different landlord licensing consultation page on the council’s website.
 
Selective licensing

Merton’s new selective licensing scheme will extend licensing to all private rented homes in four council wards:

• Figge’s Marsh
• Graveney
• Longthornton
• Pollards Hill

This includes all properties rented to a single family or two unrelated sharers.

Licensing fees

Merton Council will charge a selective licensing fee of £692 per property and an additional licensing fee starting from £1,450 for a two bedroom property.

The council is proposing to offer an early bird fee discount for two months, plus a further discount for accredited landlords.

Time is running out to apply

To ensure compliance with the new licensing schemes, applications should be submitted by 24 September 2023, or as soon as possible thereafter.

However, the application process is not yet live (as of 12 September 2023) and the council have told London Property Licensing they will publish more information soon.

Our free guide containing more information about property licensing and HMO planning restrictions in the London Borough of Merton is available here.

For all the latest news and events, you can sign up for the free London Property Licensing newsletter here.