17 Margaret Terrace Highfields Rowlands Gill NE39 2NG
Condition: An older mid-terrace house with recent damp-proofing and window works but unresolved issues including a leaking extension roof, an unlevel living room floor, and undecorated bare plaster.
Evidence considered
- Landlord submitted four letting agent particulars for similar-aged 2-bedroom mid-terrace properties (asking rents £600-£650 pcm) but none were in the same village, and some were refurbished to a higher standard, limiting their weight.
- Tenant submitted no comparable rental evidence, only general assertions the increase was unreasonable and above CPI inflation.
- Tribunal relied on its own knowledge and experience of market rents in the wider County Durham area.
- Deductions made for disrepair (roof leaks, unlevel floor, poorly refitted kitchen, undecorated plaster) offset partly by deduction for tenant's minor improvements and allowance for floor coverings/white goods, netting a £60 pcm reduction.
Tenant submitted evidence: no. Landlord submitted evidence: yes.
Tribunal's reasoning
The tribunal found the landlord's section 13 notice valid and determined a headline market rent of £600 pcm based on its own knowledge and experience of market rents in the wider County Durham area, informed by (limited-weight) landlord comparables of similar-aged terraces in nearby but different areas. It then deducted £60 pcm to reflect disrepair (persistent roof leaks to kitchen and bathroom, unlevel living room floor, poorly refitted kitchen units, undecorated bare plaster) net of minor tenant improvements and floor coverings/white goods, arriving at a final rent of £540 pcm.
Read the original decision (PDF, GOV.UK)
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