Local Housing Allowance

(asked on 14th January 2020) - View Source

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Written Statement of 13 January 2020, Welfare Update, what estimate he has made of the proportion of properties in each broad rental market area that will be affordable to local housing allowance claimants from April 2020.


Answered by
Will Quince Portrait
Will Quince
This question was answered on 5th May 2020

In response to COVID-19, this Department has increased Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates to the 30th percentile of local market rents from April for Universal Credit and Housing Benefit claimants, giving additional financial support for private renters.

This means that 30% of properties in each broad rental market area (BRMA) in England, Scotland and Wales are within the LHA rate with the exception of 15 rates in central and inner London where the national maximum caps continue to apply. The national caps have also been increased and are now based on the Outer London LHA rate plus 20%.

The proportion of properties in central and inner London that are within the LHA rate are set out below:

BRMA

Room

1 Bed

2 Bed

3 Bed

4 Bed

Central London

30%

less than 5%

less than 5%

less than 5%

less than 5%

Inner East London

30%

15%-20%

25%-30%

15%-20%

30%

Inner North London

30%

15%-20%

20%-25%

15%-20%

20%-25%

Inner South East London

30%

30%

30%

30%

30%

Inner South West London

30%

25%-30%

30%

25%-30%

20%-25%

Inner West London

30%

30%

30%

25%-30%

30%

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