Landlords and tenants can have plenty of questions. At Finefair Ltd we try to offer info about as many of them as we can, including our specialities like guaranteed rent. In addition we can give details about local housing allowance in Ealing. It can be important for all sides to know about it.
Understanding LHA
In the UK people can claim financial help if they struggle to pay for housing. If you rent from the council, you can receive housing benefit. However, if you rent from a private landlord you may need to claim local housing allowance. It can be an option for people in England, Scotland, and Wales.
LHA was introduced in 2008 as a way of calculating housing benefit for people renting privately. The scheme has three crucial goals in mind. Firstly, it aims to make it fairer. It works to ensure that households in similar circumstances get paid the same amount. It is worked out based on the values of properties in an area with the same number of bedrooms.
Secondly, LHA aims to improve transparency. The rates of LHA will be available for tenants and landlords to view. You can do that on the VOA website. As a result, both sides can know the situation before agreeing tenancies.
Finally, the local housing allowance can improve both responsibility and financial inclusion. In many cases the council will pay LHA to the tenants. They then need to ensure they pay their rent with it.
Claiming local housing allowance in Ealing
There are plenty of fantastic details about LHA on Ealing Council’s website. You can find out who is and isn’t affected, how it is calculated, categories, caps, payment, and more. It is definitely worth having a look if you are a landlord or a private tenant.
A crucial thing to look at is the calculation. As we said, it ensures people with similar circumstances can claim the same level of allowance. It works according to number or people in the household, the area, income, your savings, and details like disabilities. Most crucially, it is based on the number of bedrooms you need.
The rates for LHA have a cap at four bedrooms. As a result, if a household needs five or more, they can only claim for the rate for four.
What you can receive will also depend on the area. The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) calculates rates based on the cost of renting privately in different locations known as BRMAs. It ensures the allowance factors in the cost of living in the area. In Ealing there are 4 of them.
Do you want to learn more?
At Finefair Ltd we appreciate the importance of having the right information. Landlords need to know about LHA, especially if they take on tenants who will be claiming it to help pay the rent. Tenants also need to know so they can get any financial assistance they are due. It can make it easier to access housing.
The information above should give you some of the most important details about local housing allowance in Ealing. You can also use the links to go to the council website and VOA office to check rates.
If you still need more advice, we can help. We support all kinds of landlords, delivering guaranteed rent, portfolio management, and more. So, contact us now.
