Rent Adjustment for Furnished Assured Tenancy

OUTCOME: Allowed

First-tier Tribunal – Property Chamber File Ref No. LON/00AG/MNR/2022/0119

Notice of the Tribunal Decision and Register of Rents under Assured Periodic Tenancies (Section 14 Determination)

Housing Act 1988 Section 14

Address of Premises The Tribunal members were [ADDRESS], [POSTCODE]

[NAME] [RESPONDENT] MA MRICS

Landlord [NAME] [ADDRESS], [POSTCODE]

Tenant [APPELLANT]

1. The rent is: £ 297.50 Per Week (excluding water rates and council tax but including any amounts in paras 3)

2. The date the decision takes effect is: 4 April 2022

*3. The amount included for services is/is

negligible/not applicable Negligible Per Week

*4. Service charges are variable and are not included

5. Date assured tenancy commenced 9th October 2007

6. Length of the term or rental period Weekly

7. Allocation of liability for repairs Tenancy Agreement repair obligations

8. Furniture provided by landlord or superior landlord None

9. Description of premises A one bedroomed 2nd Floor flat with the following accommodation, Kitchen/Lounge/diner, Bathroom/WC and one bedroom. It has central heating and all mains services.

[NAME] of Decision 24 January 2023

© CROWN COPYRIGHT

FIRST-TIER TRIBUNAL PROPERTY CHAMBER (RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY) Case reference : LON/00AG/MNR/2022/0119 Property : 1C [ADDRESS] [POSTCODE] Applicant: [redacted] Respondent : [redacted] : 4 April 2022 Type of application : Determination of the market rent under s.14 of the Housing Act 1988 Tribunal members : Mr I [NAME] RICS Registered Valuer 0079475 [NAME] MA MRICS Venue : 10 [ADDRESS] [POSTCODE]/ Remote Date of decision : 24 January 2023

DECISION

The Tribunal determines the rent payable from 4 April 2022 is £297.50 per week.

2 Background 1 The Tenant made an application to Tribunal on 22 July 2022 seeking a determination of the rent under s.14 of the Housing Act. The rent passing at the date of the application was £129.92 per week. The notice to increase the rent was served on April 4th 2022. 2 The Tribunal had made a determination on 26th October 2022 under reference LON/00AG/MNR/2022/0119 about the validity of a delayed s14 application to Tribunal. 3 The tenancy is an assured shorthold tenancy which commenced on 9 October 2007. 4 The Tribunal did not receive written representations from either the Tenant or the Landlord. 5 The Tribunal informed the parties of their rights to request an oral hearing. The Tenant requested a hearing but failed to attend on the morning of the hearing. He told the Tribunal he was sick and unable to attend at short notice. The matter was determined on written submissions. 6 Prior to the hearing, the parties were invited to submit relevant information on market rents in the area for similar properties. They were also invited to offer any details of dilapidation, repairs or improvements made to the property by either the Landlord or Tenant. 7 The parties were invited to provide a full description of the property on a reply form provided to them by the Tribunal. The Tenant provided a detailed description of the property. Property Description 8 The property is one bedroom flat. The accommodation comprises: First floor: Living room, bedroom, bathroom/WC, kitchen/diner. Reported defects and obsolescence 9 Both parties reported no specific and material defects to the property in their submissions. 10 The condition of the property is a material consideration when carrying out a fair rent determination. The Tribunal has also had regard for any dilapidation and obsolescence at the property. Market rental evidence 11 No details of comparable market rents of similar property in the locality were provided by either party.

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Inspection 14. The Tribunal did not inspect the premises.

15. The Tribunal is told the property is let unfurnished. The law 16. The Tribunal must first determine that the Tenant's notice under s.13(4) satisfied the requirements of that section and was validly served.

17. The Housing Act 1988 s.14 requires the Tribunal to determine the rent at which it considered that the subject property might reasonably be expected to be let on the open market by a willing landlord under an assured tenancy.

18. In so doing the Tribunal is required by s.14(1), to ignore the effect on the rental value of the property of any relevant Tenant's improvements as defined in s.14(2) of that Act.

19. A copy of the relevant legislation is at Appendix A. Valuation 20. The Tribunal has had regard to any relevant rental evidence supplied by the parties, together with the Tribunal's own knowledge and experience of rental levels in and around the locality of the property. On this basis, it was their opinion that if the flat were in the same condition and managed to the same standard as those available to let on the open market the rental value would be £350 per week.

21. The Tribunal are told the property exhibits no dilapidation or obsolescence.

4 23 Table 1 below provides details of the market rent calculation:

24 After careful consideration, the Tribunal determined that a deduction from market rent of 15% was appropriate and reasonable to reflect that the tenant has provided carpets, curtains, white goods and all furnishings. The Tribunal is cognisant of the contribution made by the Tenant through the provision of these items.

Decision 25. The Tribunal first determined that the rent Notice under s.14 satisfied the requirements of that section and was served in time.

26. In coming to its decision to the rent the Tribunal applied the relevant law appended at Appendix A.

27. The decision of this Tribunal has regard for the evidence provided either in the written submissions of the parties or that gathered at any inspection of the premises.

28. After careful consideration the Tribunal determine that a rent of £297 week is appropriate for this dwelling in present condition.

29. This rent will take effect from 4 April 2022.

Name: [NAME] of reasons: 21 February 2023

Flat 1 c [ADDRESS] [POSTCODE] Market rent calculation in accordance with Housing Act 1988 Section 13 Market rent £350.00 per week Amount per week Deduction as % Disregards Carpets , curtains white, goods, soft furnishing £52.50 15.00% Other matters No submission from either party on any other material matters £0.00 0.00% Adjustment total £52.50 15.00% Adjusted Market Rent £297.50 per week

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6 Appendix A

Housing Act 1988

14 Determination of rent, by rent assessment committee. (1) Where, under subsection (4) (a) of section 13, a tenant refers to a rent assessment committee a notice under subsection (2) of that section, the committee shall determine the rent at which, subject to subsections (2) and (4) below, the committee consider that the dwelling-house concerned might reasonably be expected to be let in the open market by a willing landlord under an assured tenancy: - (a) which is a periodic tenancy having the same periods as those of the tenancy to which the notice relates; (b) which begins at the beginning of the new period specified in the notice; (c) the terms of which (other than relating to the amount of the rent) are the same as those of the tenancy to which the notice relates; and (d) in respect of which the same notices, if any, have been given under any of Grounds 1 to 5 of Schedule 2 to this Act, as have been given (or have effect as if given) in relation to the tenancy to which the notice relates. (2) In deciding under this section, there shall be disregarded: - (a) any effect on the rent attributable to the granting of a tenancy to a sitting tenant; (b) any increase in the value of the dwelling-house attributable to a relevant improvement carried out by a person who at the time it was carried out was the tenant, if the improvement: - (i) was carried out otherwise than in pursuance of an obligation to his immediate landlord, or (ii) was carried out pursuant to an obligation to his immediate landlord being an obligation which did not relate to the specific improvement concerned but arose by reference to consent given to the carrying out of that improvement; and (c) any reduction in the value of the dwelling-house attributable to a failure by the tenant to comply with any terms of the tenancy. (3) For the purposes of subsection (2)(b) above, in relation to a notice which is referred by a tenant as mentioned in subsection (1) above, an improvement is relevant improvement if either it was carried out during the tenancy to which the notice relates or the following conditions are satisfied, namely: - (a) that it was carried out not more than twenty-one years before the date of service of the notice; and (b) that, always during the period beginning when the improvement was carried out and ending on the date of service of the notice, the dwelling- house has been let under an assured tenancy; and

7 (c) that, on the coming to an end of an assured tenancy at any time during that period, the tenant (or, in the case of joint tenants, at least one of them) did not quit. (4) In this section 'rent' does not include any service charge, within the meaning of section 18 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, but, subject to that, includes any sums payable by the tenant to the landlord on account of the use of furniture or for any of the matters referred to in subsection (1) (a) of that section, whether or not those sums are separate from the sums payable for the occupation of the dwelling-house concerned or are payable under separate agreements.

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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 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 (ie, 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. If the Tribunal refuses to grant permission to appeal, a further application for permission may be made to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber).