Housing Benefit Tenants

We at Anthea lettings have examined the advantages of letting a property to tenants in receipt of housing-related benefits. The information on this page is designed to help Landlords to understand how we can help them, and how housing benefits can work for them.

The introduction of Local Housing Allowance in 2008 was the catalyst for the number of private landlords offering tenancies to people claiming income-related benefits shrinking to an estimated 100,000.

Unlike the previous arrangements, where money was paid from councils direct to landlords, LHA payments now go direct to tenants. Many landlords withdrew from this area of the market at this point, according to the National Landlords Association. More recent limits and benefit caps on housing-related benefits and the introduction of Universal Credit have spooked other buy-to-let investors to follow suit. The commercial opportunities this market offers to landlords is increasing with over 1.4 million housing-related benefit recipients living in privately rented accommodation, but this does not mean the claimants are not working.

London is the only part of Britain where working households claiming benefits for private rented housing eclipse those where no-one is working, according to a report by think-tank.  London Councils also found the number of people receiving help with their rent has fallen in inner London since May 2011, while in outer boroughs the number has increased.

Housing Benefit is a social security benefit administered by the Housing Executive. It is designed to help people on a low income meet their housing costs. A person who receives state benefits or is in part time employment or receives a low wage may be entitled to an award of Housing Benefit. Research shows that people on housing benefit regard the place they live as a permanent rather than a short-term let. Landlords should put their prejudices aside and ask themselves the question: can I continue to ignore such a substantial part of the private rented sector?”

A growing number of the UK’s private landlords are increasing their exposure to the risk of void periods by refusing to let their property to tenants claiming benefits. Anthea lettings echoes those views, particularly as landlords can alleviate their concerns about non-payment of rent by signing up to our rent guarantee scheme that not only takes the stress out of managing your property but we can ensure you receive fixed monthly payments in advance for up to five years, with no void periods, and minor maintenance at no cost to the landlord. We have been running this scheme for 10 years now and we are members of The Property Ombudsman and supporters of SAFEagent, which means we have recognised client money protection in place.

We would be happy to give you a quote for how much your property could achieve on our market-leading Guaranteed Rent service. Anthea Lettings is a leading supplier of Guaranteed Rent, giving landlords complete peace of mind that their rent will be paid each and every month.