What to look for in an HMO investment

Location is important

HMO properties remain the most common among student tenants however there has been a growing demand from young professionals and professionals particularly in Central London. Before you invest in a HMO you will need to decide who will likely want to live there and who your target is. This will determine the best locations to look out for. For a typical HMO you will want to look at University Cities and Towns with high student populations where the rental markets are buoyant. A great example of this is London, Manchester, Glasgow and Edinburgh. In these cities you will want the properties to have great transport links, ideally within a 20 min journey by public transport to University Campus. There should also be a vibrant student culture in the area too evident in local coffee shops, book shops, bars and restaurants.

Is there a space for open plan living?

If you can combine living space you can really make the most of your investment by adding in some extra sleeping space. You will of course have to consult with your local authorities, but if given permission you can open a world of possibilities. For instance a typical 2 bedroom flat with separate kitchen and living room could easily be converted to a 3 bed HMO room lets with minimum alterations to the property itself. you can combine the kitchen with the living room to make way for the additional bedroom.

Building up

For certain properties you may even be able to extend to the roof space to really expand the square footage of the property. This can add significant value to your property as well as add additional living space which could be a few extra bedrooms to let. Check with the title deeds and local authority but with top floor apartments, generally the roof space directly above the property belongs to the flat below, so if you are looking at investing in a top floor apartment this is definitely something to consider.

Windows

In most local authorities bedrooms must have a window so it is great practice to look at the number of windows in a property and forget about the room configuration. if there are multiple windows in one room, is there a possibility of moving some interior walls and adding a partition (fire rated) to divide the room and create an additional dwelling?

Existing commercial property

Fire doors are an HMO requirement as are the emergency lighting, there will be other requirements too. We would advise you check with the relevant local authority. If these are already in place in the property this will save you some additional expense. If you are looking at existing commercial property i.e a B&B and hope to change over to a HMO then it is likely many of these requirements will already be in place.