Six-Bed HMO To Thirteen
Croydon, South London
A four-storey period house already running as a six-bed HMO, tested for more than double the room count using internal works only.
Feasibility In Brief
The Brief
Could an existing six-bedroom HMO be taken to thirteen bedrooms, and would the planning position support it?
What We Found
Yes, entirely within the existing envelope through internal alterations only, with no extension. All thirteen bedrooms are en suite at 12.6 to 27 sqm, against a Croydon en-suite minimum of 12.5 sqm. The communal hub is a 26 sqm kitchen and a 13.8 sqm dining room on the ground floor, supported by a second kitchen on the second floor and a 9.1 sqm utility. The lawful six-bed C4 use granted in 2025 is the baseline, so no family dwelling is lost, Croydon has no adopted HMO density threshold, and a directly comparable thirteen-bed sui generis HMO was approved nearby in 2022.
Our Recommendation
Proceed at thirteen bedrooms. The policy case is sound and the risk to manage is political: the site is in a conservation area, ward councillors have opposed nearby schemes, and a nearby seven-bed HMO was refused at committee in 2025. The application needs presenting with that in mind.
The Proposed Layout
Thirteen en-suite bedrooms from basement to second floor, all within the existing envelope, with the ground floor kitchen and dining room as the communal hub.
What The Client Received
Feasibility Overview
The proposed design, planning route, key constraints, commercial position and a clear Go or No-Go recommendation.
Planning Research & Risk Analysis
Site-specific policy research, planning precedents, appeal decisions and a risk register with cost implications.
Space & Standards Review
Bedroom, amenity, ceiling-height, kitchen and facility requirements checked room by room against the design.
These are real client reports, so they are not published here.
Official guidance reviewed: Croydon HMO space standards
The Decision
A clear route forward before purchase.
The scheme works on paper and on policy: an established lawful six-bed use, no density threshold in the borough, and a directly comparable approval nearby. What it has to survive is a committee in a conservation area that has refused smaller schemes.
Recommended roadmap
- 01Measured survey
- 02Design development
- 03Pre-application advice
- 04Full planning application
- 05Technical design
- 06Construction
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