First-tier Tribunal Sets Fair Rent for Property

OUTCOME: Allowed

Case Reference : CAM/26UD/F77/2024/0009 P:PAPERREMOTE Property : 4 [ADDRESS] [POSTCODE] Applicant : [redacted] : Savills (UK) [RESPONDENT] Respondent : [redacted] : - Date of Application : 7 February 2024 Type of Application : Determination of the registered rent under Section 70 Rent Act 1977 Tribunal : Mrs [NAME] and venue of : 8 April 2024 Hearing remote on the papers after an inspection _______________________________________________

DECISION ____________________________________ This has been a hearing on the papers which has not been objected to by the parties. A face to face hearing was not held because it was not practicable and no-one requested the same. The documents that I was referred to were in a bundle the contents of which I have recorded. The registered rent with effect from 8 April 2024 is £180 per week. © CROWN COPYRIGHT FIRST - TIER TRIBUNAL PROPERTY CHAMBER (RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY)

Background 1. On 14 November 2023 the landlord applied to the rent officer for registration of a fair rent of £195 per week for the above property.

2. The registered rent at the date of the application was £180 per week which had been registered by the Tribunal on 15 November 2021 with effect from the same date.

3. On 11 January 2024, the rent officer registered a fair rent of £186 per week with effect from the same date.

4. The landlord objected to the registered rent on 7 February 2024.

5. The tribunal issued Directions on 9 February 2024. The landlord made written representations, no representations were made by or on behalf of either the landlord or the tenant. However details of the telephone consultation with the rent officer were provided.

6. The tenant has been in occupation since 1978. The Inspection 7. I inspected the property on the morning of 8 April 2024. The property is a two storey terrace house situated down an unmade road off the main road through the village. The structure is in fair condition although the external decorations are poor. However the timber framed single glazed windows, except for the rear bedroom where the window is double glazed, are all in poor condition. The front door is in poor condition and difficult to open or close since the lock is misaligned with the keep and rain water enters the porch below the door which has damaged the floor covering.

8. The accommodation comprises a porch with wc off, there was no wash basin downstairs. The tenant has replaced the door from the porch into the kitchen and fitted floor and wall units plus an extractor fan above the range cooker. A door led from the kitchen into the living room with patio doors providing access to the rear garden. The seals had failed in one of the patio doors in the living room, the step to the patio door was loose and the external cill in poor condition. The tenant had provided central heating however the landlord replaced the central heating boiler several years ago.

9. Steep stairs in the kitchen with winders at both ends lead to the two small double bedrooms. The bathroom with bath and wash basin is accessed via the front bedroom. The bath itself is worn and does not have a side panel. The bottom rail of the window frame in the bathroom has fallen off resulting in the stay not being able to be used if the window is opened.

The Evidence 10. A telephone consultation had been held by the rent officer and both the tenant and the landlord’s agent on 11 January 2024.

11. The tenant told the rent officer that she was concerned about the condition of the windows and also the front door. In windy conditions the front door had blown open, leaving the house insecure.

12. The landlord’s agent accepted that the windows required replacement and explained that several quotations had been obtained to replace the windows however the cost was considered excessive. A cheaper quote was being sought. The Law 13. When determining a fair rent the tribunal, in accordance with section 70 of the Rent Act 1977, must have regard to all the circumstances including the age, location and state of repair of the property. It also must disregard the effect of any relevant tenant’s improvements and the effect of any disrepair or any other defect attributable to the tenant or any predecessor in title under the regulated tenancy, on the rental value of the property. The Tribunal is unable to take into account the tenant’s personal circumstances when assessing the fair rent.

14. In [COMPANY] v Chairman of the Greater Manchester etc Committee (1995) 28 HLR 107 and [NAME] v [NAME] (1999) QB 92 the Court of appeal emphasised: That ordinarily a fair rent is the market rent for the property discounted for scarcity i.e. that element, if any, of the market rent, that is attributable to there being a significant shortage of similar properties in the wider locality available for letting on similar terms to that of a regulated tenancy, and That for the purposes of determining the market rent, assured tenancy market rents are usually appropriate comparables; adjusted as necessary to reflect any relevant differences between the comparables and the subject property. Valuation 15. In the first instance I determined what rent the landlord could reasonably be expected to obtain for the property in the open market if it were let today in the condition and on the terms considered usual for such an open market letting. As no evidence had been provided by either party I relied on my own general knowledge of rental values of cottages within a radius of about five miles of the subject and concluded that the likely market rent for the property would be £325 per week.

16. However, it was first necessary to adjust the hypothetical rent of £325 to allow for the differences between the terms and condition considered usual for such a letting and the condition of the actual property at the valuation date, ignoring any tenant’s improvements, (disregarding the effect of any disrepair or other defect attributable to the tenant or any predecessor in title). I determined that the hypothetical rent should be reduced by £125 to reflect the difference in the terms of the tenancy, the condition of the property, the poor layout, unmodernised kitchen and bathroom and the tenant has provided the carpets, curtains and white goods which are usually provided by the landlord on the open market.

17. This leaves an adjusted market rent for the subject property of £200 per week. I am of the opinion that there is substantial scarcity for similar properties in the commuter towns and villages in Hertfordshire and neighbouring counties and therefore made a deduction of 10% from the adjusted market rent to reflect this element. The uncapped fair rent is £180 per week. Decision 18. The uncapped fair rent initially determined by me, for the purposes of section 70, is below the maximum fair rent of £227.50 per week calculated under the Rent Acts (Maximum Fair Rent) Order 1999.

19.

Accordingly, the sum of £180 per week will be registered as the fair rent with effect from 8 April 2024 being the date of my decision. Chairman: [NAME]: 8 April 2024 ANNEX - RIGHTS OF APPEAL By rule 36(2) of the Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Property Chamber) Rules 2013, the Tribunal is required to notify the parties about any right of appeal they may have. If a party wishes to appeal this decision to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber), then a written application for permission must be made to the First-tier Tribunal at the Regional Office which has been dealing with the case. The application should be made on Form RP PTA available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-rp-pta-application- for-permission-to-appeal-a-decision-to-the-upper-tribunal-lands-chamber The application for permission to appeal must arrive at the Regional Office within 28 days after the Tribunal sends written reasons for the decision to the person making the application.

If the application is not made within the 28-day time limit, such application must include a request for an extension of time and the reason for not complying with the 28-day time limit; the Tribunal will then look at such reason(s) and decide whether to allow the application for permission to appeal to proceed, despite not being within the time limit. The application for permission to appeal must identify the decision of the Tribunal to which it relates (i.e. give the date, the property and the case number), state the grounds of appeal and state the result the party making the application is seeking. Please note that if you are seeking permission to appeal against a decision made by the Tribunal under the Rent Act 1977, the Housing Act 1988 or the Local Government and Housing Act 1989, this can only be on a point of law. If the First-tier Tribunal refuses to grant permission to appeal, a further application for permission may be made to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber).