An agent representing a HMO landlord has told Belfast Council he experienced would-be tenants crying in his office because there were not enough student houses.
At the recent meeting of Belfast Council ’s Licensing Committee, three houses in South Belfast - at Sandhurst Gardens, Wolseley Street and University Avenue - were refused new HMO licences after the landlords had forgotten to renew the old licences. Councillors refused the new licences on the basis of overprovision of HMO properties in those areas.
HMOs, which landlords lease out to three or more tenants from different addresses, have become increasingly controversial, with some arguing they have negatively affected communities and led to anti-social behaviour, in places like the Holyland and Stranmillis in South Belfast where landlords pack houses with undergraduates.
