THE Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, Wera Hobhouse has praised B&NES Council’s plans to protect three-bed ‘family homes’ from being converted into HMOs, amid concerns about the city’s housing affordability crisis.

Speaking in Parliament on Monday, November 2, the MP highlighted the need to balance the demand for affordable shared accommodation with the need to protect homes for local families.

She recognised that HMOs (Houses of Multiple Occupancy) provide an important and often more affordable housing option for students, young professionals and people on lower incomes.

However, she warned that their unregulated growth can lead to the loss of family-sized homes, reducing the housing options available to local residents.

HMOs are houses where groups of unrelated adults live, often students, single people, professionals, or low-income workers.

Her intervention comes as B&NES have removed the automatic right to develop standard family homes to HMOs without planning permission across designated areas of the city.

Bath estate agents Martin & Co advise on their website: “In practice, this means any landlord wishing to create a new HMO in an Article 4 zone must submit a full planning application and approval is far from guaranteed.

“The council has been notably cautious in granting new consents, particularly in areas already showing high concentrations of shared housing.”

The MP praised the local authority’s proposals in its draft Local Plan to prevent the conversion of properties into HMOs where this would result in the loss of three-bedroom homes in areas including Southdown, Twerton and Whiteway and Odd Down.

There are growing concerns about housing affordability in Bath with property prices across the city rising by more than 70 percent over the past decade, with homes in some areas costing up to 18 times the average salary.

Meanwhile, private renters can expect to spend around 40 percent of their income on rent.

In 2025, more than 6,000 people were on the B&NES housing waiting list, with at least 500 in crisis.

The Minister for Housing and Planning, Matthew Pennycook, responded to the Bath MP in Parliament by congratulating B&NES Council on its progress towards adopting an up-to-date Local Plan and strong policies on HMOs.

He encouraged other local planning authorities facing similar concerns to familiarise themselves with good practice, pointing to the importance of robust local planning policies in ensuring HMOs are properly regulated.

The Liberal Democrat MP for Bath commented: “HMOs play an important role in providing accommodation for students, young professionals and people on lower incomes, but we need to make sure that the growth of HMOs does not come at the expense of homes for local families, ensuring a balanced community.

“Three-bedroom homes are particularly important for families who want to put down roots in Bath. I therefore welcome B&NES Council's decision to address this in its draft Local Plan, with targeted protections in areas such as Southdown, Twerton and Whiteway and Odd Down.

“It’s encouraging to see the Government congratulate the council, and recognise their work as an example of good practice.”