Local Housing Allowance

Local Housing Allowance, is a new type of Housing Benefit that anyone renting accommodation from a private landlord can claim to help towards paying their rent. It comes into effect on 07 April, 2008.

If you are a new claimant and wish to claim help to pay your rent from this date forward, you will have to be assessed under the new Local Housing Allowance rules. You will also have to claim it if you are already getting Housing Benefit but you: 

• Move address to another property rented from a private landlord (even if you have the same landlord).
• Have a break in your Housing Benefit entitlement of a week or more.

NB. If you live in a property owned by a Registered Social Landlord (e.g an Housing Association Property), these new rules will not affect you.

For more information, please click on the links below:

• Customer Information Pack (for Housing Benefit claimants)
• Landlord Information Pack
• Local Housing Allowance Rates
• Basic Bank Accounts Leaflet
• Safeguard Procedure

• Housing benefit payment to Landlord request form