Continuing Use for Flats - Question

[Nase]

Hi All,

So I have a typical 2-bedroom terraced house (where stairs go up the middle of the property), extended on the Ground Floor into the garden, to create an additional room and bathroom.

Upstairs, I have 2 x studio flats.

That leaves the downstairs area (which I'd describe as a 2-bed flat). However, the Studio flat tenants, need to go through the same front door, and part of the hallway (to reach the stairs going up), that it also used by the downstairs 2-bed flat, to access their front room (which would be the front living room in a converted house).

Recently though (approx 1yr), I have closed the door opening from the front room, to the hallway, and created an entrance from under the stairs, within the flat itself. This has made the flat truly self-contained as they can access the front room from within the flat, without having to go into the hallway.

So my question is that if I made an app for "continuing use", would the downstairs be considered a flat, or something else?

Hope this makes sense!

 

[tony1851]

If you made an application for a LDC, how the council would view the downstairs accomodation is probably irrelevant.
What you are describing seems more akin to an HMO rather than a two-storey house in flats.
Do the tenants upstairs share a bathroom?

 

[^woody^]

So I have a typical 2-bedroom terraced house

Upstairs, I have 2 x studio flats.

That leaves the downstairs area (which I'd describe as a 2-bed flat).

Hope this makes sense!

It makes no sense.

It sounds like you have some sort of unlawful HMO.

 

[Nase]

The upstairs Studios are both self-contained (with their own kitchen and bathroom).
I've drawn the downstairs plan and uploaded it - hopefully will make more sense! I guess the downstairs, could be defined as an HMO (though with only 2-rooms)

 

[tony1851]

Broadly speaking, an HMO is a house occupied by up to 6 unrelated persons, who share facilities such as kitchen and bathroom,
ie living together as a household.
Your definition of the ground floor as an HMO would therefore be incorrect.
What you appear to have is a house split into three flats - one downstairs and two upstairs?
Whether or not all this is compliant with regard to Building Regs, Planning and Housing is another matter entirely.