Two councillors who say they are fed up at the uncontrolled spread of Houses of Multiple Occupancy (HMOs) are trying to force their local authority to take action.

The Fant and Oakwood Independent Cllr Paul Harper has joined with Conservative Cllr Stan Forecast in submitting a motion to Maidstone council.

The pair are calling on the council to use Article 4 directives to help control the number of HMO conversions.

They also want the council to develop a parking policy that will require future applicants to provide sufficient spaces for tenants.

There has been a significant upturn in the number of homes converted to HMOs - officially defined as a building occupied by five or more people who are not part of the same household.

Usually, tenants have their own lockable bedroom, but may or may not share a kitchen and lounge with others.

Although HMOs are a great benefit to single people looking for a home, they are often viewed with dismay by existing residents on the street.

Problems with parking arise when multiple tenants each have their own car and also the properties can become unsightly with multiple sets of waste bins spilling out on the street.

Traditional residents also often say HMOs can be disruptive, particularly if the tenants have no shared common room, since then they tend to socialise noisily outside.

As the law stands, anyone can convert a single-family home into a six-person HMO without applying for planning permission.

Cllr Harper said: “This has been a major topic of concern in Fant for over six years.

“We all too frequently see property owners and developers ‘abusing’ permitted development rights - first extending a house to the rear and in the attic, using permitted development rights, and then also under permitted development rights making it into a six-bedroom HMO with no requirement for planning control or for residents to have a democratic input.”

An Article 4 order removes permitted development rights from either a specified property or an area.

It would not ban HMO conversions altogether, but would mean that in each case a planning application would need to be made, which could then be considered on its merits by the council.

Cllr Harper first asked for such a policy in September 2021 but it was not adopted.

In March this year, Cllr Clive English (Lib Dem) who was then leader of the opposition, joined in the clamour against HMOs.

He said then: “We need to get a grip on this issue once and for all and commission the work to get the evidence of parking pressure in these areas so that we can finally put policies in place to prevent inappropriate development.”

At his instigation, the council’s planning committee wrote to the then cabinet member for planning and regeneration, Cllr Paul Cooper (Con) to ask that he commission a new HMO policy.

Since the local elections in May, Cllr English is now the deputy leader of the council - but still no adopted policy has emerged.

Cllr Harper said: “Nothing happens. In Fant and Oakwood Ward conversions of properties to HMOs are occurring at the rate of one a month, sometimes one a week.

“The area cannot take more of this.

“The character of inner urban Maidstone is changing at a rapid rate.

“Residents want to see action and the time for action is now.”

The motion submitted by Cllr Harper and seconded by Cllr Forecast will be considered by the full council on Wednesday next week (December 4).

Cllr Forecast said: "This motion is not anti-HMOs. They have become a by-product of a failed planning system and housing crisis.

“However, the situation in Fant has become untenable.

“The whole area has faced strain on its infrastructure with parking an everyday nightmare for residents.

“I am surprised this was not an immediate priority of Green/Lib Dem administration given its huge impact in the ME16 region.

“Instead there has been a focus on student politics motions and ideological decisions like decarbonising Maidstone House for £5m."

Cllr English said: “I haven’t yet seen the motion, but there is very little chance of getting an Article 4 Directive, and if it were possible, it would likely take two years because of the long consultation timetable.

“Cabinet members are trying to progress this HMO issue through changes to Planning Policy documents already in preparation. Sadly change takes time.”