Finefair Ltd works to give its clients the best possible services. At the same time, we strive to offer everyone information on the fields we specialise in. They include guaranteed rent, property management, and council leasing. Also, we can aid you with understanding local housing allowance in Hounslow. Come to us and we will get you the necessary help.
Your guide to LHA
Local housing allowance (LHA) arrived in 2008, issued by the UK Government. It exists to give an easier, fairer way of calculating Housing Benefit entitlement. This is for people living in private accommodation within England, Wales, and Scotland.
The shift to LHA resulted in a massive change with the ways councils can pay housing benefits. Also, it changed how restrictions work. Among these changes, the clearest was the swap to entitlement being on the 30th percentile of rental accommodation in the local community. Before, it was the median, the equivalent of the 50th percentile.
LHA uses private market rental rates to control what everyone in the region receives. This is what we call BRMA. It looks at rent levels for the same number of bedrooms in the home. The goal is to ensure that tenants living somewhere with similar properties can claim similar amounts. So, local housing allowance in Hounslow will be fair.
When do LHA rates go into effect?
Every January the rent officer will create the LHA rates for the coming year. There will be a rate for each BRMA. In each area there will be different rates for properties from one to four bedrooms. They then come in from April.
Every local authority needs to publish LHA rates. It is their job to ensure they are visible to all eligible parties, including landlords.
Local housing allowance in Hounslow
Because LHA rates and rules differ with every borough, you must look locally to find out about housing benefit. There are important things to take note of in Hounslow. You can visit the council’s website for more details. To get you started, we are also going to discuss some vital information here.
If someone is renting a room or property from a private landlord, the LHA gets used to determine the housing benefit they gain. The amount depends on who lives with them and where they live. Payments usually get made to the tenants, who then pay the landlord.
Another fact is that safeguards get established to protect tenants that could struggle with paying their rent. The council has the power to make payments straight to landlords. They do so where they can give evidence to support such action.
One of these circumstances is if the tenant will probably have difficulty sorting out their own affairs. Examples may include vulnerable tenants, like ones with disabilities.
Another situation is if the council thinks the tenant isn’t likely to use their benefit for paying rent. The authority might know that the tenant has a history of poor money management.
The final situation is if the tenant has arrears exceeding eight weeks. They will then opt to make payments straight to the landlord.
We give nothing less than the best
At Finefair Ltd we work hard to make sure the services we supply are the number one option for our clients. This is the case with our management and guaranteed rent services, as well as the others. If you need us to, we’d be more than happy to help with local housing allowance in Hounslow. Landlords may need to know all about it if their tenants will be claiming to pay part or all of their rent.
So, please let us know if there is anything we can do for you.
