Glossary
Article 4: Article 4 direction
A council order that removes permitted development rights, often for small HMOs.
What it means
An Article 4 direction lets a council remove a permitted development right in a defined area. For investors it most often means you can't turn a family house into a small HMO for three to six sharers without full planning permission. Always check the council's Article 4 map before you offer on an HMO, because permission is far from guaranteed.
Worked example
ExampleTwo identical four-bed houses on either side of an Article 4 boundary.
- Outside the area
- Convert to a four-bed HMO under permitted development
- Inside the area
- Planning application needed, eight weeks or more, may be refused
The same house can be worth very different amounts to an HMO investor.
Information, not advice. Example figures are fictional and for illustration only.