Uptake of s257 HMO Licenses vs Mandatory HMOs vs Additional s254 HMOs?

HMO Licensing

Does anyone have a handle of the uptake of Section 257 HMO licenses vs. the uptake of Mandatory HMOs and Additional License 254 HMOs?

It appears to me that the London councils that have the ‘catch all’ nature of the current s257 HMOs license criteria (even the ones with the smallest communal entrance hallway and two self-contained flats ,50% owner/occupier, on two storeys)! The councils are either raising awareness to Landlords to apply or use intelligence gathering to seek out our properties that need licensing but with this much variation for s257HMOs in London it is confusing for all!

Eg One London Council is saying on s257 HMOs..
If is a building converted into self-contained flats but does not meet the standards of conversion required by the Building Regulations 1991, and where less than two thirds of the flats are owner occupied to which Section 257 of the Housing Act 2004 applies where: the building or part of a building is of three or more storeys that have been converted into three or more self-contained flats and where both the building and self-contained flats it contains are under the same ownership or considered by the council to be effectively under the same control.

Another London one is saying…
• any building that has been converted into self-contained flats and where the standard of conversion does not meet the Building Regulations 1991 and where all of the flats are tenanted and under one single ownership (commonly known as S257 HMOs)

Another one…

• Own a converted block of flats which comprises entirely of self-contained flats where the standard of the conversion did not meet Building Regulations 1991 (or later) and less than half of the flats are owner-occupied. The block of flats can be the whole building or part of a building. These are known as ‘section 257