Two Victorian terraced houses on a London street, one painted white and one in yellow stock brick, with bay windows
Floor plan drawings, pencil sketches of a house, a scale rule and a protractor spread across a desk
Photo: Tima Miroshnichenko / Pexels

HMO drawings · London Borough of Newham

HMO drawings in Newham, from £945 fixed

Newham's Article 4 direction has required planning permission to turn a house into a small HMO since 31 July 2013, everywhere except the former Legacy Corporation area. Since 1 January 2023 a three or four person shared house also needs an additional licence, and the council will not refund that fee if planning is refused.

HMO drawingsfrom £795 drawings + £150 survey (£945 total)
Council fee£610
Get your fixed feeFFP-01 · Rev A
Our fixed fee£795
Council fee, paid to your council£548
Our fee + council fee£1,343
CoverageAll 33 boroughs

Householder application fee, paid to your council at submission.

Plus the Planning Portal's own charge if the application goes through the Portal: up to £149 including VAT, depending on the application type, and some types have none (source).

Get this fee in writing

or email hello@fixedfeeplans.co.uk

No obligation. Nothing is sent until you ask; your enquiry comes to us and nowhere else.

Starts at£150
Boroughs33/33
Stages5

Photo: Huy Phan / Pexels

Fixed fee, in writing

Tell us about your project

Send the postcode and what you want to build, and add photos or old plans if you have them. We reply with the fee in writing and the payment stages set out in full.

Ask for your fixed fee in writing

Name and email are required. Everything else helps us price it, but is optional.

Your enquiry goes to us and nowhere else. It is never syndicated or sold. See our privacy notice.

Two Victorian terraced houses on a London street, one painted white and one in yellow stock brick, with bay windows
A London terrace. Photo: Huy Phan / Pexels.

What Newham Council asks of a HMO conversion

From the council's Article 4 Direction: Class C3 to Class C4 (notice of confirmation) (adopted 10 June 2013 (confirmed), in force 31 July 2013).

  • Newham made its Article 4 direction on 31 July 2012, confirmed it on 10 June 2013, and it came into force on 31 July 2013, so a change of use from Class C3 to Class C4 needs planning permission. (source, checked 25 October 2026)
  • The direction applies to the whole of the borough save for the area within the control of the London Legacy Development Corporation, as shown on the map with the confirmed direction. (source, checked 25 October 2026)
  • Newham's additional HMO licensing scheme launched on 1 January 2023 and applies to a house in multiple occupation shared by three or four people forming two or more households; five or more people need a mandatory licence. (source, checked 25 October 2026)
  • The council says an HMO must have the correct planning use class, and that if planning permission for an HMO is refused it cannot refund the licensing fee. (source, checked 25 October 2026)

What Newham HMO conversion drawings have to show

Newham's licensing page puts the order plainly: the house must have the right planning use before it can be let as an HMO, and a licence fee paid ahead of a refused application is not returned. So we draw for the planning application first. The proposed plans show the bedrooms, the shared kitchen and bathrooms, and the number of occupants the layout is designed for.

The 2013 direction covers Newham except the land that was under the London Legacy Development Corporation, around Stratford and the Olympic Park, so the first check is the direction map for your address. Inside the boundary, the planning drawings are reused for the licence application later, with the room areas already measured, so the licensing team sees the layout the planning officer approved.

PS2 · at a glance

Newham: 388 householder decisions

Newham
Approvals, prior approvals included86.9%

337 of 388 granted. London: 85.8%.

Decided within 8 weeks95.4%

227 of 238 applications, prior approvals excluded.

Source: MHCLG PS2, 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026. Dark tick: London.
An open-plan living room with an exposed brick wall, a sofa and a dining table under pendant lights
An open-plan ground floor: knocking rooms together is where a beam, and structural calculations, come in. Photo: Max Vakhtbovych / Pexels.

What it costs in Newham

  • HMO drawings: from £795 drawings + £150 survey (£945 total), plus £610 to Newham Council.
  • Where a change of use application is required.

HMO drawings across London · Newham planning rules · every price

Answers

Newham HMO conversion questions

Can I convert a house to an HMO in Newham without planning permission?
In most of the borough, no. Newham's Article 4 direction, in force since 31 July 2013, removes the right to change a family house (Class C3) into a small HMO (Class C4), so a planning application is needed. Only the area that was controlled by the London Legacy Development Corporation is outside it.
Should I apply for the Newham HMO licence or planning permission first?
Planning first, in most cases. Newham's licensing page says an HMO needs the correct planning use, and if planning permission is refused the council cannot refund the licensing fee. Our drawings are made for the planning application and reused for the licence, so the room areas stay the same.
Does a three-bedroom shared house in Newham need a licence?
If three or four people from two or more households share it, yes. Newham's additional HMO licensing scheme has covered these homes since 1 January 2023. A shared house with five or more people needs a mandatory HMO licence instead. Planning permission is a separate requirement on top of either licence.

Start with £150

Your fixed fee is already on this page.

Tell us the postcode and what you want to build. We confirm the fee in writing and book the survey.

Get my fixed fee020 7131 9703
01
Measured surveyWithin five working days
£150
02
Existing drawingsThe building as it stands
£175
03
Proposed drawingsYour scheme, revised until right
£225
04
Planning application packForms, statements, OS plans
£125
05
Submission and agent servicePortal submission, queries handled
£120
Total, planning application£795
Get my fixed fee