Question 1

What is the London 90-day rule for short-term lets?

Accepted Answer

Section 44 of the Deregulation Act 2015 amended the Greater London Council (General Powers) Act 1973, which had previously made it a planning breach to let a residential property in Greater London for any period as "temporary sleeping accommodation" without planning permission. The 2015 change created an exemption: a residential property in a Greater London borough can be used for short-term letting (temporary sleeping accommodation, e.g. Airbnb-style lets) for up to 90 nights total in a calendar year without needing planning permission for a change of use. Beyond 90 nights in that calendar year, the property is treated as if it has changed use away from a single private dwelling, and the owner needs planning permission from the local planning authority to continue letting it short-term. This rule applies only in Greater London — it does not automatically apply to the rest of England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, where short-term letting is governed by ordinary "material change of use" planning principles instead of a fixed statutory day count.

Question 2

Does the 90-day limit apply per property or per owner?

Accepted Answer

The 90-night limit applies per dwelling (the individual residential unit), not per owner or per platform. If an owner has several flats, each flat has its own separate 90-night allowance in the calendar year. The count resets each calendar year (1 January to 31 December), not on a rolling 12-month basis. The 90 nights refers to nights the property is actually let as temporary sleeping accommodation — nights it sits empty or is used by the owner do not count towards the limit. Multiple short bookings within the year are added together: for example, six separate 15-night lets equal 90 nights and the property would need planning permission for any further short-term letting that calendar year.

Question 3

What happens if a landlord lets a property short-term for more than 90 days without permission?

Accepted Answer

Exceeding 90 nights without planning permission is a breach of planning control, not a criminal offence in itself, but it exposes the owner to enforcement action by the local planning authority: the council can serve a Planning Contravention Notice requesting information about the use, and if the breach is confirmed, an Enforcement Notice requiring the owner to stop the unauthorised use. Failure to comply with an Enforcement Notice is a criminal offence and can result in an unlimited fine. Local authorities also increasingly rely on data-sharing arrangements with platforms and land registry checks to identify properties let above 90 nights. Separately, exceeding a lease covenant that restricts short-term letting (common in many leasehold flats) is a breach of contract with the landlord/freeholder, independent of the planning position, and can lead to forfeiture proceedings or an injunction regardless of whether the 90-night planning threshold has been exceeded.

Question 4

Do leasehold flats have extra restrictions beyond the 90-day planning rule?

Accepted Answer

Yes, and this is the restriction that most often catches leaseholders out. The 90-day planning rule is a public law limit set by the local planning authority; it says nothing about what a lease itself permits. Most residential leases in blocks of flats contain a covenant restricting the use of the flat to a "private residence" only, or expressly prohibiting subletting for holiday or short-term purposes. A landlord or freeholder can enforce this lease covenant against a leaseholder even if the leaseholder has stayed within the 90-night planning allowance — the two rules operate independently. Leaseholders must check both: (1) the planning position (90-day rule, or full change of use if outside London or beyond 90 days), and (2) the specific wording of their lease and any restrictions imposed by the management company or freeholder. Many RTM Companies and resident-managed blocks have introduced additional house rules restricting or banning short-term lets entirely, which they are entitled to do through the lease enforcement mechanism even where the planning use itself would be lawful.

Question 5

What is an Article 4 direction and how does it affect short-term lets?

Accepted Answer

An Article 4 direction is a mechanism under the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order that allows a local planning authority to withdraw permitted development rights in a specific area — meaning changes that would normally be allowed automatically now require a full planning application. Several London boroughs facing particular pressure from short-term letting (for example areas with high tourist demand or housing shortage concerns) have considered or implemented Article 4-style restrictions or supplementary planning guidance specifically targeting short-term lets, on top of the general 90-day rule. Where an Article 4 direction or local planning policy applies, the borough can require planning permission for short-term letting from day one, regardless of the 90-night allowance under the Deregulation Act 2015. Owners and managing agents operating in Greater London should always check the specific local planning authority website for the borough in question, since restrictions are not uniform across all 32 boroughs plus the City of London.

Question 6

What can a community, resident-managed company or neighbour do about a breach?

Accepted Answer

Several routes are available depending on who is affected: (1) Other leaseholders or a residents' management company can report a suspected lease covenant breach to the freeholder or managing agent, who has standing to enforce the lease (forfeiture or injunction proceedings) — this does not depend on proving a planning breach. (2) Any person, including a neighbour, can report a suspected planning breach (exceeding 90 nights, or short-term letting outside London without permission) to the local planning authority's enforcement team, which has discretion to investigate and, if satisfied a breach has occurred, can issue a Planning Contravention Notice or Enforcement Notice. (3) If nuisance, noise or antisocial behaviour is the underlying concern rather than the letting itself, this can separately be reported to the council's environmental health or noise team, and is often the faster practical remedy since planning enforcement can take months. Communities should keep a dated log of specific incidents (arrival/departure patterns, noise complaints, visible listings) as evidence, since planning authorities and freeholders both require concrete proof of the pattern of use before acting.

Question 7

How does IgeraFincas help managing agents and RTM Companies with short-term let issues?

Accepted Answer

IgeraFincas gives property managers, RTM Companies and resident-managed blocks an AI assistant trained on the building's actual lease documents and house rules: it can answer owner questions about whether their specific lease permits short-term letting, what the applicable local planning position is for their borough, and what the escalation process looks like if a breach is suspected — always citing the exact clause or policy relied on rather than giving a generic answer. This reduces the volume of individual queries the managing agent or RTM directors have to field, and gives a consistent, documented answer every time a leaseholder or neighbour raises a short-term letting question.

UK Short-Term Lets 90-Day Rule: London Guide

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