Does your tenant claim Housing Benefit?
Does your tenant claim Housing Benefit?The industry news has been full of stories regarding LHA rates, with headline like:-
Nine out of Ten Landlords owed rent by LHA tenants
Nine out of Ten Landlords owed rent by LHA tenants
Almost nine out of ten (87%) landlords who accept housing benefit tenants have had problems with rent not being paid on time, with one in ten (11%) saying they have had tenants who stopped paying their rent altogether.
The astonishing results emerge from a survey of over 1,000 UK landlords, conducted by flat and house share website Spareroom.
The majority of buy-to-let landlords (86%) surveyed were against the change to the benefit system which now automatically pays Local Housing Allowance direct to the tenant.
The majority of buy-to-let landlords (86%) surveyed were against the change to the benefit system which now automatically pays Local Housing Allowance direct to the tenant.
The change came into force in 2008, and 51% of landlords who take housing benefit tenants said they had mainly experienced rent issues since then.
According to the poll, problems caused by benefit tenants included late payments, not paying at all, issues arising from the suspension of benefit payments and damage to the property. More than half (58%) of respondents said they had experienced more than one of these problems.
Three-quarters (74%) of those landlords questioned said they would not take a tenant on housing benefit even if the tenant had a guarantor.
One-third (34%) of landlords surveyed currently have housing benefit tenants in one or more of their properties, and a further 45% said they had previously taken in this type of tenant.
My advise would be to use an agent that offers a rent protection warranty, that way you can be sure of a regular income, without rejecting Housing Benefit applicants totally.
According to the poll, problems caused by benefit tenants included late payments, not paying at all, issues arising from the suspension of benefit payments and damage to the property. More than half (58%) of respondents said they had experienced more than one of these problems.
Three-quarters (74%) of those landlords questioned said they would not take a tenant on housing benefit even if the tenant had a guarantor.
One-third (34%) of landlords surveyed currently have housing benefit tenants in one or more of their properties, and a further 45% said they had previously taken in this type of tenant.
My advise would be to use an agent that offers a rent protection warranty, that way you can be sure of a regular income, without rejecting Housing Benefit applicants totally.
Sali Brown
Managing Director
Managing Director
