1B Eastwood Boulevard, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, SS0 9XL
Condition: Ground floor flat with central heating and double glazing, but tenant reported a 40-year-old kitchen and bathroom, damp and mould, and general need for modernisation.
Evidence considered
- Landlord provided three local estate agent rental estimates for one-bed flats: £1,000-£1,100 pcm, £825-£850 pcm, and £950 pcm
- Tenant provided no rental comparable evidence but supplied photographs of disrepair (damp, mould, dated kitchen/bathroom)
- Tribunal relied on its own expert knowledge of local rental values alongside the landlord's comparables
Tenant submitted evidence: no. Landlord submitted evidence: yes.
Tribunal's reasoning
The tribunal accepted the landlord's proposed rent of £850 pcm (£196.15/week), finding that a fully modernised property in good condition would command around £900 pcm based on the landlord's agent estimates and the tribunal's own market knowledge, but discounted this to reflect wear and tear and the dated condition of the kitchen and bathroom after a long tenancy since 2017. The tribunal noted it had no jurisdiction to condition any rent change on repair works being carried out, so took the property as it stood.
Read the original decision (PDF, GOV.UK)
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