First-tier Tribunal Sets Market Rent at £230 per Week

OUTCOME: Allowed in Part

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FIRST - TIER TRIBUNAL [NAME] CHAMBER ([NAME])

Case Reference

BIR/00CN/MNR/2025/0830 [NAME] 14 Northgate Harborne Birmingham [POSTCODE]

Tenant

[COUNSEL] Tenant’s [APPELLANT]

Landlord’s Address

Citygate St James’s Boulevard Newcastle upon Tyne [POSTCODE] Landlord’s [COUNSEL] ([RESPONDENT]) [COMPANY] of Application 2 November 2025

Type of Application Determination of a Market Rent sections 13 & 14 of the Housing Act 1988 Tribunal Members [NAME] – [NAME] of Decision

18 June 2026

Rent Determined

£230 per week

Date the new rent takes effect

18 June 2026

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REASONS FOR THE DECISION

Background

1. The Landlord served a notice dated 24 September 2025 under Section 13(2) of the Housing Act 1988 which proposed a new rent of £240 per week in place of the existing rent of £230 per week to take effect from 17 November 2025.

2. On 22 October 2025, under Section 13(4)(a) of the Housing Act 1988, the Tenant referred the Landlord’s notice proposing a new rent to the Tribunal for determination of a market rent.

3. The assured tenancy commenced on 6 April 1992. The rental period is weekly.

Allocation of Repairs between Landlord and Tenant

4. As per section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985.

Services Charges or furniture provided by Landlord (other than carpets and curtains and white goods specified below) and the costs relating to the same.

5. None.

Liability for Council Tax

6. The Tenant is responsible for the payment of Council Tax in respect of [NAME].

7. The rent determined is exclusive of Council Tax.

Any other terms of the tenancy taken into consideration in determining the rent

8. None.

Inspection/Hearing

9. Neither party requested an inspection or a hearing.

10. The Tribunal considered this case on the basis of the papers provided by the parties and its own knowledge and specialist expertise.

[NAME]

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11. [NAME] is a terraced house and provides the following accommodation:

Internal: Living room, dining room, kitchen, bathroom (shower only), and 3 bedrooms and 1 toilet.

Outside: Front and rear garden.

[NAME] has central heating and single glazed windows. The Tenant has provided all the carpets and curtains and white goods.

Evidence

12. Both the Tenant and the Landlord completed and returned the Tribunal’s Reply forms.

The Tenant

13. The Tenant submitted written representations including various photographs opposing the Landlords proposed rental increase.

14. In the Tenant’s representations it detailed the construction of [NAME] and its accommodation. Prior to the Tenants occupation [NAME] was a 2- bedroom house which has subsequently been converted to form 3 bedrooms. However, the Tenant considers the third bedroom is only suitable for a single bed with no bedside furniture.

15. The Tenant stated they carried out various improvements including installing new medicine cabinets, flooring, light switch, door, door furniture, gas services door, garden fence, fitted wardrobes and a radiator.

16. The tenant advises [NAME] has a gas fire in the front living room but it does not give out sufficient heat to warm [NAME] and as [NAME] is single glazed and has no cavity walls with minimal loft insulation is cold.

17. The Tenant also stated the windows leak when it rains and requires replacement.

18. The kitchen was dated and in need of modernisation with a storage cupboard having fallen off the wall and the worktops were ill fitting and the sink was leaking. As a consequence, the Tenant has installed a new kitchen at a cost of approx. £8,000

19. The Tenant also stated [NAME] had not been externally decorated since 2020 and the first-floor front elevation window ledge is now rotten and the

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workmanship below an acceptable standard. The Tenant supplied various photographs concerning the poor standard of workmanship carried out by the Landlord including in relation to the gas supply pipe.

20. The Tenant therefore considered [NAME] is in need of modernisation and an increase in rent to £240 per week was unreasonable and would cause financial hardship.

The Landlord

21. The Landlord submitted a written statement setting out details of [NAME]’s location and accommodation.

22. In the statement the Landlord considered [NAME] to be in a sought-after location close to various local amenities and transport links. In the Landlords opinion [NAME] was in a fair condition but not necessarily up to modern standards.

23. In support of the Landlords rental proposal the following comparable evidence was referred to:

1 North Gate Harborne – Furnished 3 bed end terrace at £404 per week 12 West Pathway Harborne – Furnished 3 bed end terraced at £404 per week Determination and Valuation

24. The Tribunal had regard to the submissions and evidence and to its own expert general knowledge of rental values in the area.

25. From the details provided by the Landlord, 1 North Gate appears to have been extended to the rear and has a large modernised kitchen and 12 West Pathway has a large kitchen with an island unit.

26. The Tribunal considers that the market rental of the subject [NAME] modernised and in good order would be in the order of £350 per week on an unfurnished basis.

27. This is the rent we would expect [NAME] to let for in the open market if it was in the same general condition as other properties that are offered to let in the market.

28. The Tribunal then made adjustments for the tenant’s improvements referred to above and the condition of [NAME] amounting to £120 per week. 29. The Tribunals full valuation is shown below:

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Starting Rent

£350 per week Less Adjustments for tenant’s improvements

£120 per week and condition

Market rent

£230 per week

Undue hardship

30. The new rent takes effect from the date specified in the Landlord’s Notice of

Increase unless that would cause undue hardship to the tenant. In cases of

undue hardship, the Tribunal has a discretion to fix a later starting date up to

the date a Tribunal makes its determination.

31. The Tenant made an application in this respect. The Tenant stated the proposed increase would cause financial hardship and would be unaffordable.

32. As a result of our decision the rent will increase by £10 per week. The date specified in the landlord’s notice was 17 November 2025 however given the Tenants request the Tribunal sets the starting date for the new rent as at the date of this decision, being 18 June 2026.

Decision

33. Therefore, the Tribunal determines the market rent at £230 per week month with effect from 18 June 2026.

APPEAL PROVISIONS If either party is dissatisfied with this decision, they may apply for permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) on any point of law arising from this Decision. Prior to making such an appeal, an application must be made, in writing, to this Tribunal for permission to appeal. Any such application must be made within 28 days of the issue of this statement of reasons (regulation 52 (2) of The Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) ([NAME] Chamber) Rules 2013) stating the grounds upon which it is intended to rely in the appeal.