Most of the cost and risk in an HMO is decided at the design stage. In Kingswinford we start by measuring every room and checking Dudley Council's position on licensing and planning, then build the specification around it.
Our team is based in Great Barr, Birmingham, about 11 miles from Kingswinford. That keeps survey visits, site meetings and follow-up inspections easy to arrange.
HMO rules in Dudley Council
| Rule | Dudley Council |
|---|---|
| Mandatory HMO licence (5+ people) | In force everywhere in England |
| Additional HMO licensing | Not confirmed |
| Selective licensing | Not confirmed |
| Article 4 direction for small HMOs | In force Whole borough, since 15 September 2023 |
Checked October 2026 against Dudley Council's HMO licensing page. Schemes change, so we confirm the position for your address before any work starts.
Dudley Council has an Article 4 direction across its whole area, so turning a family house in Kingswinford into a small HMO needs planning permission. We prepare the planning application before any conversion work starts. Seven or more occupants always needs planning permission. We couldn't confirm whether Dudley Council runs additional licensing, so we check with the council for the address.
Loft conversions for HMOs in Kingswinford: what we do
Plenty of houses have roof space that could hold extra bedrooms, but in Kingswinford we always measure the headroom first, because floor under a 1.5 m ceiling does not count towards room size. That tells you how many rooms the loft can really add.
A loft room usually creates a third storey, so we plan the protected escape route and alarm upgrades for the whole Kingswinford house, not just the new floor. We also check the occupant count, because seven or more residents needs planning permission anywhere in the West Midlands.
- New staircase and protected escape route
- Planning and permitted development position checked first
- Headroom survey and countable floor area calculation
- Structural design and building control application
- Alarm extended and doors upgraded on lower floors
Loft conversions for HMOs near Kingswinford
- Wolverhampton under a mile
- Brierley Hill 2.3 miles
- Wombourne 2.5 miles
- Stourbridge 3.1 miles
- Dudley 3.6 miles
- Sedgley 3.6 miles