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Local Housing Allowance

The Local Housing Allowance scheme was introduced in Salford on 25 July 2005 and changed the way Housing Benefit is paid for tenants and landlords of privately rented accommodation.

The Local Housing Allowance is based on the rent levels for the area as determined by the Rent Officer and how many people there are living in the household, not the actual rent charged for the property. This means that tenants with the same circumstances are entitled to the same rate of Local Housing Allowance. It is intended to give tenants the choice to trade between quality and price of their accommodation.

In most cases payment of the LHA will be made direct to the tenant and it is the tenant’s responsibility to pay the rent to the landlord. We recognise that some people may struggle with this responsibility and help is available if required.

There are no changes to the Housing Benefit entitlement rules; this is still based on the person’s financial circumstances and proof of a valid tenancy agreement.

Local Housing Allowance does not apply to you, if:

• The accommodation is rented from the council
• The accommodation is rented from a housing association
• The tenancy is excluded from rent restrictions
• The tenancy includes the provision of care, support or supervision and is provided by local authorities, social landlords, charities or voluntary organisations
• The tenancy includes substantial board and attendance, such as hotel accommodation
• The accommodation is a caravan, mobile home or houseboat

The Local Housing Allowance scheme is currently in operation in 18 pilot authoriities nationwide, including Salford and the scheme will be rolled out out nationally on 7 April 2008.

Changes to the Local Housing Allowance scheme from 7 April 2008

The national scheme introduces some changes to the one currently being used in the pilot authorities, and these include:

• Local Housing Allowance rates will be based only on the number of bedrooms a family needs, not bedrooms and living rooms
• the Rent Service will set the LHA rates using a median rent in an area as opposed to an average. This means they will pick the middle value in a list of rents within an area, rather than using all values to calculate an average.
• if the Local Housing Allowance rate that applies to a tenant is more than their rent, the maximum amount of benefit they can get is their rent plus £15.

Anyone who makes a claim for Housing Benefit on or after 7 April 2008 will have their benefit entitlement calculated under the new rules

How do the changes from 7 April affect existing claimants of Local Housing Allowance?

Existing tenants whose benefit was calculated using the Local Housing Allowance rates before 7 April 2008 will have their current level of benefit protected for up to one year. This means they will:

• get more benefit under the new scheme if the Local Housing Allowance rate has increased
• be no worse off than before and will get a protected amount of benefit if the Local Housing Allowance rate has decreased
• not be affected by the cap on the amount of benefit they can get if it is more than their rent until 7 April, 2009, unless their circumstances change.

If you would like more information  on Local Housing Allowance or the changes from 7 April 2008 please write to us or email your enquiries to lha@salford.gov.uk.

For more detaied information on the Local Housing Allowance scheme, please visit the Department for Works and Pensions website Government’s website.

This page was last updated on 19 March 2008

• Benefits
• LHA room rates

See also

• Press Release