HMO BlueprintFast Track Toolkit
Tool 03 Β· Viewing Checklist

What to check when you're standing in the house

You've found a property worth a look. A viewing is your one chance to catch the expensive surprises and grab the measurements you'll need later β€” and most people waste it admiring the kitchen. This keeps you on track: the condition red flags that cost real money, and the exact numbers the Potential Checker needs, captured before you leave.

"Eyeball the dΓ©cor, measure everything else."
🧰 Take this with you
  • A tape measure (or a laser measure β€” far quicker for whole rooms)
  • Your phone for photos of every room, the meter cupboard and the loft
  • A torch for the loft, under-stairs and any cellar
  • This checklist open on your phone β€” fill it in as you walk round

Everything saves automatically on this device, and the measurements carry straight into the Potential Checker.

Measurements Condition Layout Practicalities Your read β€”

1The property

Now you're looking at a specific house, not just an area. Capture the basics β€” the address carries forward to the Potential Checker.

Property address
Asking price
Β£
Tenure?Freehold is simplest for an HMO. Leasehold can restrict letting, sub-letting or HMO use entirely β€” read the lease before you offer, and check ground rent and service charges.
EPC rating?From October 2030 every let property must reach EPC C (HMOs are assessed as a whole building). A D/E/F now means budget for insulation, glazing or heating upgrades.
Agent

2Measure theseβ€”

The numbers that decide whether this can be your target HMO β€” and the ones you can't get from Rightmove. Capture them now; they flow straight into the Potential Checker so you're not guessing later.

Current internal floor area?The existing internal area across all floors. Quickest source is the EPC or a floorplan; otherwise measure each room (length Γ— width) and add them up. The Potential Checker builds your room layout off this.
mΒ²
Existing bedrooms / reception rooms?How many bedrooms and separate reception rooms there are now. It tells you how far the layout has to change to hit your target room count.
Loft height β€” floor to ridge?Put the tape on top of the existing ceiling joists (the loft floor) and measure straight up to the underside of the ridge at the highest point. The single most useful number for judging a loft conversion β€” and a key Potential Checker input.
m
Roof structure?A traditional cut roof (open rafters, usually pre-1970s) converts easily. A trussed roof (W-shaped timbers filling the loft) needs steels and a structural redesign first.
Ground-floor ceiling height?Floor to ceiling on the ground floor. Needed for the Potential Checker's loft floor-drop maths (a deep drop borrows height from the floors below).
m
First-floor ceiling height?Floor to ceiling on the first floor β€” the other half of the floor-drop calculation.
m
Footprint width (frontage)?The external width of the house across the front. With the depth and garden, this lets the Potential Checker model extension potential.
m
Footprint depth (front to back)?How deep the house is, front wall to back wall. Used with the garden depth to size a rear extension.
m
Garden depth?From the back wall to the rear boundary. Determines how far you could extend while leaving usable outdoor amenity space.
m
These feed the Potential Checker. Capture as many as you can on-site β€” anything you miss, you'll only be able to guess at later.

3Layout & conversion potentialβ€”

Walk it as if the works are done. Can it actually become the HMO you scored β€” enough good rooms, proper shared space, sensible plumbing runs?

Could most rooms take an ensuite?Space for a shower pod (~1.2 Γ— 1.8m) without killing the bedroom
Room for a proper shared kitchen / diner / lounge?HMOs need genuine communal space, not a galley kitchen
Downstairs WC present or easily added?Valuable for a busy HMO; plumbing nearby helps
Does the room count realistically hit your target?Bedrooms you could create vs the rooms you're aiming for
Sensible halls, stairs and landings?Circulation space that won't fail fire/amenity standards

4Condition red flagsβ€”

The items that move the refurb budget by thousands. Mark each as you see it β€” be honest, a "serious" here is far cheaper to find now than after you've offered.

Damp & mouldTide marks, musty smell, peeling paint, black mould in corners
RoofSagging ridge, missing/slipped tiles, daylight or water stains in the loft
StructureStepped cracks, bowing walls, sloping floors, signs of subsidence
ElectricsOld fuse board (not a modern RCD unit), cloth/rubber wiring, scorch marks
Heating & boilerBoiler age and type, radiator coverage, condition of the system
WindowsSingle glazing, rotten frames, failed (misted) double-glazed units
Japanese knotweedCheck the garden and boundaries β€” it can block mortgage lending
Flat roofs & existing extensionsAge and condition of any flat roof, lean-to or previous extension

5HMO practicalitiesβ€”

The things a standard buyer ignores but an HMO lives or dies on β€” and that planning and licensing will ask about.

Bin & refuse storageSpace for the bins a 5–7 person house generates, off the street frontage
Cycle storageSecure space for bikes β€” required by many councils' HMO standards
Outdoor amenity space retained?Usable private/shared outdoor space left after any extension
Means of escape / fire layoutA protected stair and escape windows β€” or an obvious route to create one
Sound between roomsSolid walls insulate sound far better than stud β€” matters for room lets

6On the doorstep

Things you can only judge by being there β€” use them to confirm (or puncture) the desk research from your Market Scorecard.

Street & kerb appealWould your target tenant want to live on this street?
Other HMOs on the streetA few signals demand; a glut may trip the council's concentration rule
Parking pressureHow hard is on-street parking β€” for tenants and for you on works days?
Anything else worth noting?
Your viewing verdict

Work through the house

Fill in each section as you walk round. At the end you'll get a quick read on condition and whether you've captured everything the Potential Checker needs.

Your gut read as you leave?
Assess it in the Potential Checker
Don't rely on a viewing alone: it flags the obvious, but always commission a proper survey (and an electrical and damp/timber report) before you exchange. A viewing tells you whether it's worth the survey β€” not whether it's safe to buy.
HMO BlueprintFast Track Toolkit
Viewing Notes

Property viewing

Β·
β€”

Measurements captured

Condition

Layout & practicalities

Next step

  • Run the captured measurements through the Potential Checker to confirm it can become your target HMO.
  • Commission a RICS survey, plus electrical and damp/timber reports, before exchange.
  • Get refurb quotes against the red flags above to firm up your budget.
  • Confirm Article 4, licensing and concentration with the council before you offer.

Saved runs

Save your current work β€” every tool's answers for this area β€” so you can come back and keep editing it, or start another area.

Loading a run or starting fresh replaces what's on screen now across every tool β€” save first if you want to keep it.