24 Roman Road, Chelmsford CM2 0HA
Condition: Dated mid-terrace house with an unfitted basic kitchen, mismatched bathroom with no shower, no central heating (only night storage heaters, none in bedrooms), and extensive unresolved damp and disrepair including rotten skirting and water-damaged ceiling.
Evidence considered
- Landlord submitted five comparable two-bedroom property rents in Chelmsford ranging from £1,250-£1,600 pcm (£288-£369 per week), said to reflect open-market achieved rents in August 2024.
- Tenant disputed relevance of three comparables as fully modernised and of different configuration (semi-detached/end-terrace).
- Tribunal used its own knowledge plus the comparables to find £300/week as the rent for a similar mid-terrace in good condition, then deducted 30% for condition.
- Tenant submitted photographs of damp, cracking, rotten skirting, and dated bathroom/kitchen fittings; findings corroborated by an earlier 2022 tribunal decision on the same property after inspection.
Tenant submitted evidence: yes. Landlord submitted evidence: yes.
Tribunal's reasoning
The Tribunal identified comparable two-bedroom terraced/semi-detached properties in the locality ranging from £288 to £369 per week, finding that a mid-terrace property of similar age/character in good condition would command about £300 per week. It then applied a 30% deduction (£90) from this figure to reflect the Property's poor condition—dated unfitted kitchen, mismatched bathroom with no shower, night storage heating with no heating in bedrooms, and extensive unresolved damp/disrepair documented by photographs and an earlier 2022 tribunal inspection—arriving at a market rent of £210 per week. The new rent was ordered to take effect from the date of determination rather than backdated, to avoid tenant hardship.
Read the original decision (PDF, GOV.UK)
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