Rental Property Licensing in Shoreditch

Shoreditch sits across two London boroughs: Hackney and Tower Hamlets. Both boroughs operate licensing schemes, so the requirements for your property depend on exactly which side of the borough boundary it falls on.

Shoreditch in Hackney

The part of Shoreditch that falls within Hackney is covered by Hackney's selective licensing scheme. Hackney operates selective licensing across 17 wards, and the Haggerston ward, which covers much of Shoreditch, is included. Within this area, most privately rented properties need a selective licence, including properties rented to a single household.

Hackney also operates additional licensing for smaller HMOs with three or more tenants from two or more households sharing facilities.

Shoreditch in Tower Hamlets

The part of Shoreditch that falls within Tower Hamlets is covered by the Tower Hamlets Spitalfields and Banglatown selective licensing scheme. Tower Hamlets also operates borough-wide additional licensing for smaller HMOs.

From 1 April 2024, any property within the Tower Hamlets selective licensing area that is occupied as an HMO (three or four people from two or more separate households sharing facilities) requires an additional licence rather than a selective licence.

Mandatory HMO licensing

Mandatory HMO licensing applies across both Hackney and Tower Hamlets, as it does across all of England, for properties with five or more tenants from two or more households sharing facilities.

How to check which borough your property is in

The borough boundary runs through Shoreditch, so the quickest way to find out which rules apply to your property is to check its address using Tuxa. Enter the address and you will get an immediate answer on which licensing scheme applies.

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Tuxa monitors licensing scheme data across England. Use the search above to check any property in Shoreditch or anywhere else in the country.