HMO and selective licensing in Wandsworth Council

Wandsworth has operated borough-wide additional HMO licensing since 1 July 2025. Selective licensing began the same day in Furzedown, Tooting Bec, Tooting Broadway and South Balham, then expanded in April 2026 to East Putney, West Putney and Northcote, so the borough now has seven selective wards, listed below. A single-household rental outside those wards needs no licence, while the same flat inside one does, so the expansion date matters for Putney and Northcote tenancies.^[13]

Whatever Wandsworth designates locally, a large HMO shared by at least five people from more than one household needs a mandatory licence anywhere in England. The London licensing guide sets out the national tests that sit behind every local scheme.^[16]

Wandsworth's selective scheme covers these wards:^[13]

• Furzedown
• Tooting Bec
• Tooting Broadway
• South Balham
• East Putney
• West Putney
• Northcote

Wandsworth's register of licensed properties is on its Regulatory Services hub, and the council's licensing FAQs say you must create an account before viewing it. The property-licence-check page offers an address checker without a sign-in. Save the authenticated result and the checker output, especially where selective licensing started later than the additional scheme, and use the report form to flag an application not shown.^[13]

1. Run the address checker, then sign in for the register. Licence checker (opens in new tab)^[13]
2. Search the exact address. Save a dated screenshot or download of the result. Councils must keep a register of licences, temporary exemption notices and management orders and make it available for inspection.^[17]
3. Ask about applications and exemptions. A missing entry is a reason to investigate, not proof of an offence, so ask whether a licence, application or exemption covered the dates you rented there.^[20]
4. Report or ask in writing. Report an unlicensed property (opens in new tab). The council provides a dedicated online form for reporting an unlicensed privately rented property.^[15] Ask for a reference number and keep the reply.

Wandsworth's frequently asked questions and renter guidance describe licence conditions concerning safety, occupation, management, waste and antisocial behaviour. Selective licences in the named wards and additional HMO licences borough-wide are not interchangeable, so retrieve the condition set for the actual licence type. Report disrepair through the renter-support route as well as checking compliance with that document.^[14]

• National conditions are the floor. Every licence carries the prescribed conditions on gas, electrics, alarms, tenancy terms and waste, and can last up to five years; the London licensing guide lists them in full.^[18]
• Compare the licence with reality. The register entry or licence may identify the manager, the permitted occupancy and property-specific conditions. Check those details against how the home is actually occupied and managed.
• Keep separate evidence of hazards. A licence does not establish continuing compliance. Report disrepair or an immediate safety risk separately, and keep photographs, messages and certificates.

The answer turns on property type and location: additional HMO licensing is borough-wide, while selective coverage began in four southern wards and expanded to three more in April 2026. Use the address checker rather than a neighbourhood label, save its result, and account for the later expansion date when you compare tenancy periods.^[13]

1. Confirm the scheme and dates. Match the address, occupancy and rental period to the designation in force at the time.
2. Ask the council in writing. Report an unlicensed property (opens in new tab). Ask Wandsworth Council whether an effective application or temporary exemption existed and when it took effect.^[15]
3. Check the legal position. An application, an exemption, a reasonable excuse or the identity of the person legally responsible (the "person managing or controlling" the property) can all affect whether an offence is proved.^[20]
4. Preserve the evidence. Keep the tenancy, rent payments, proof of occupation, dated searches and council correspondence.

For a licensing offence committed on or after the 1 May 2026 rule change, a tenant can ask the First-tier Tribunal for up to two years' rent, and normally has two years from the offence to apply. The tenant must prove the offence beyond reasonable doubt, and the tribunal decides any award from the statutory factors and evidence; recovery is never automatic.^[21] Older offence periods may be governed by earlier limits. Free housing advice is available from Shelter and Citizens Advice, and local law centres can help with tribunal cases.