Local Housing Allowance - A Guide for Landlords

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This page is designed to let you know:

what Local Housing Allowance is;
how we work out Local Housing Allowance;
if Local Housing Allowance will affect you as a landlord;
which landlords Local Housing Allowance will not affect; and
how we will pay Local Housing Allowance.

Local Housing Allowance

The Government introduced Local Housing Allowance on 7th April 2008 as a new way of working out how much benefit people are entitled to if they are on a low income and rent their home from a private landlord. This scheme applies to all new claims for Housing Benefit and people who change their address after 7th April 2008. Local Housing Allowance is based on the number of bedrooms people are allowed, not just on how much rent they pay. The number of bedrooms someone is allowed in their home depends on who they live with.

How we work out Local Housing Allowance

The Rent Registration Service set rates for Local Housing Allowance for individual areas (these rates areas are known as Broad Rental Market Areas or BRMAs). Once they have set these figures they will remain in place for 12 months and we will use them to set the amount a tenant is entitled to claim to help them pay their rent and this amount will be valid for 12 months.

Dundee has only one BRMA and therefore one set of rates of Local Housing Allowance. The Rent Registration Service base Local Housing Allowance on the number of bedrooms that a tenant is allowed. The list below explains how many bedrooms a tenant is entitled to, allowing one bedroom for each of the following :-

Every adult couple (an adult is someone aged 16 or over),
Any other adult,
Any two children (a child is someone under 16 years old) if they are both boys or both girls,
Any two children under 10 years old no matter whether they are boys or girls,
Any other child

The number of living rooms, kitchens and bathrooms a property has does not affect the rate of Local Housing Allowance.

The Local Housing Allowance rates start with a rate for one-bedroom in a property with shared facilities and upwards. (By shared facilities we mean where someone has their own bedroom but shares some or all of the other parts of the property, such as a kitchen or bathroom, with another person or people.) The maximum rate that can be awarded is the four bedroom rate.

From 1 January 2012, if a tenant is under 35 years of age and lives alone, the one bedroom with shared facilities rate will apply. This rate also applies to couples and people over 35 who choose to live in shared accommodation. Previous to 1 January 2012, this only affected claimants that were under 25 years of age.

Joint tenants will be entitled to a rate of Local Housing Allowance based on each individual tenant's family, plus any non-dependants, subtenants or boarders they share their home with. This means that joint tenants in the same property may qualify for different rates of Local Housing Allowance.

Local Housing Allowance depends on people's income, and we work out a person's entitlement in the same way as Housing Benefit.

Will Local Housing Allowance affect me as a landlord?

Local Housing Allowance will affect any landlord who has entered into a deregulated private tenancy agreement with a person who makes a new claim or changes their address after 7 April 2008. (A deregulated tenancy is a private tenancy that started after 2 January 1989.)

Are any landlords not affected by Local Housing Allowance?

Local Housing Allowance will not affect the following:-

Registered social landlords (housing associations)
Protected cases such as landlords who provide supported housing (including certain local authorities, social authorities, charities and voluntary organisations)
Landlords who provide tenancies in caravans, houseboats and hostels
Tenancies where the rent officer decides that a large part of the rent is for board and lodgings, such as providing meals
Tenancies which the current rent restrictions do not apply to (such as tenancies that started before 1989)

Who will you pay Housing Benefit to under the Local Housing Allowance scheme?

Under the regulations for Local Housing Allowance, we will normally pay Housing Benefit to the tenant. A tenant can no longer tell us to pay their benefit to their landlord. We will encourage tenants to have their benefit paid straight into their bank account and then pay their rent to their landlord by either a direct debit or standing order.

However, in certain circumstances we can decide to pay Housing Benefit direct to you, the landlord. These circumstances are as follows:-

Vulnerable tenants
If a tenant is classed as 'vulnerable', for example, is not able to manage their own finances.

When a tenant owes rent
If a tenant owes you eight weeks' rent or more.

If a tenant has a history of not paying their rent
If a tenant has a history of not paying their rent we can decide to pay their Housing Benefit direct to their landlord.

If any of the above applies to one of your tenants and they claim Housing Benefit, we will decide whether to pay their benefit direct to you or not. However, if your tenant owes you eight weeks' rent or more, we will always pay their benefit direct to you.

Where can I find out more about Local Housing Allowance?

If you want to talk about anything to do with Local Housing Allowance, you can phone us on (01382) 431205. Calls may be recorded for quality and training purposes.

You can visit us at one of our Benefit Enquiry Offices.

You can also write to us at :-
Dundee City Council
Revenues Division
PO Box 216
Dundee
DD1 3YJ.

Please also see our 'Local Housing Allowance, Frequently asked questions'.

Getting independent advice

If you would like advice from someone outwith the Revenues Division, you can contact any of the organisations below:-

Citizens' Advice Bureau
Central Library
The Wellgate
Dundee
DD1 1DB
Tel: (01382) 307494

Dundee North Law Centre
101 Whitfield Drive
Dundee
DD4 0DX
Tel: (01382) 307230
Fax: (01382) 504332

Shelter Housing Aid Centre
1 Courthouse Square
Dundee
DD1 1NH
Tel: 0808 800 4444

Welfare Rights
Suite A, Market Mews
Market Street
Dundee
DD1 3LA
Tel: (01382) 431167

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