16 Grasmere Road, Manchester, M27 5WR
Condition: Property was in basic condition at the start of the tenancy but has since been modernised by the tenant with a new kitchen, bathroom, flooring and decoration.
Evidence considered
- Landlord submitted a letter from a local estate agent valuing the property at £1,200 pcm, citing its excellent (improved) condition
- Landlord's comparable: a Zoopla listing for a three-bedroom semi-detached house in the same area asking £1,250 pcm, with only an exterior photo and no further details
- Tenant provided no comparables but asserted similar properties achieve £750-£800 pcm
- Tribunal applied its own knowledge/expertise to arrive at a base market rent, then discounted by ~7.5% to disregard tenant-made improvements
Tenant submitted evidence: yes. Landlord submitted evidence: yes.
Tribunal's reasoning
The tribunal found the landlord's comparable evidence (an estate agent letter and a Zoopla listing at £1,250 pcm) somewhat overstated, assessing the market rent of the property in its current, improved condition at £1,050 pcm. Because the kitchen, bathroom, flooring and decoration had been improved by the tenant during the tenancy, section 14(2)(b) of the Housing Act 1988 required these improvements to be disregarded regardless of whether landlord consent had been obtained, as there was no evidence of any reduction in value from tenant breach under s.14(2)(c). The tribunal therefore applied an approximate 7.5% deduction from the modernised market rent to reflect the property's original, unimproved condition, reaching £970 pcm. Changes in household composition since the tenancy began were disregarded as irrelevant to a hypothetical open-market letting.
Read the original decision (PDF, GOV.UK)
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