Demand for HMOs in Birkenhead is high. There are many suburbs of Birkenhead that are popular for HMOs, including Liscard, Wallasey, Rock Ferry and Prenton. Some more affluent areas such as New Brighton and Oxton have proven popular for HMO developments. 

From our research we can see that the average rent in Birkenhead is between £300 and £450 per month per room with very few listed above £450. Double rooms are standard with over 50% of the rooms in Birkenhead being ensuites. So if you are looking to develop HMOs in Birkenhead it’s important that they are double rooms and ensuite. There is a significantly bigger professional HMO market in Birkenhead than there is student.  

Student HMOs have not been common in Birkenhead until recently. The vast majority of houses in multiple occupation in Birkenhead are for professional tenants. However, the student market in Birkenhead may be set to boom should Chester University continue it’s expansion plans to Birkenhead to make use of cheaper real estate in the area. We have already seen some 500 nurses a year being trained by Chester Uni at their new premises in the centre of Birkenhead which could give rise to more student accommodation in the area. Demand for student accommodation in Birkenhead for students studying at one of the 4 Universities in Liverpool is not seen as being high enough and investors should do their own research should they be targeting this demographic. 

The biggest demand for lets is blue collar workers. We also see demand from tenants working in bars and restaurants. 

The average size HMO in Birkenhead is 6 beds. 4 and 5 bed HMOs are also available however the housing in the area is particularly large dating back to the shipping success of the late Victorian era. As such this housing type lends itself well to either flat conversion or HMOs. We have seen a lot of HMO development in larger buildings that are 3 storeys, and making a fourth floor in the basement and as such we see HMOs that are 10 bedrooms and larger.

Unfortunately we do not provide any recommendations for third party HMO letting agents in Birkenhead. However if we can help you select one then please give us a call to discuss.  

There is currently no Article 4 direction affecting HMOs for Wirral or Birkenhead. The only Article 4 directive on the Wirral affects Bromborough Pool but this is a low demand area for HMOs on the Wirral and around Birkenhead. However, take note, that the Wirral Council did discuss introducing article 4 to areas of the Wirral in 2020 but nothing further has materialised. For further updates about article 4 they will first be published on The Wirral Council’s website. 

Wirral Borough Council do have an active selective licensing scheme in place in Birkenhead. The scheme was first introduced on 1st July 2015. This covers all residential let properties in four , therefore all HMOs for less than 5 occupants will need a Selective License.

As standard, any HMO property rented to less than 5 tenants would not normally need a license. However, some borough councils around the UK have introduced selective licensing schemes aimed at improving living standards. Out of the rental stock in Birkenhead, 1 in 3 properties is deemed to be below par, and from the inspections that have been conducted under the selective licensing scheme in Birkenhead, some 70% of properties have required improvement works.  

Should you require a selective license for your small HMO then there is a high chance the Council will conduct an inspection. Any HMO that is rented to five or more tenants is required to have an HMO licence in Birkenhead. If you have an HMO with 7 beds or more then you should already have planning permission to rent the property as an HMO. 

If you have an HMO rented to 6 or less tenants, then you will not need planning permission as there is no article 4 that affects HMOs in Birkenhead.  This is because the change the use of property from a dwelling house (C3) to a house in multiple occupation (C4) is possible under permitted development rights, which means you don’t need to ask the Council for permission. 

However, if you have a house of multiple occupancy with 7 bedrooms or more, then nationally you are required to have full planning permission to convert from whatever use case it is to a “Sui Generis HMO”.