Flat 1, 170 Stratford Rd., Sparkbrook, Birmingham, B11 1AG
Condition: Second floor self-contained Victorian flat lacking central heating and kitchen cabinets, with disputed damp and smoke alarm issues.
Evidence considered
- Tenant proposed £400 pcm (£92.30 pw) based on affordability and condition issues (damp, no central heating, single glazed bathroom window); given little weight as it was considered unrealistically low, even below the original 2015 rent.
- Landlord provided no comparable evidence but asserted market rents in the area were generally £650-£700 pcm.
- Tribunal relied on its own expert knowledge of local rental values rather than formal comparables, setting a baseline of £150 pw (£650 pcm) for a modernised property with central heating.
- Tribunal made deductions of £15 pw each for lack of central heating and lack of kitchen cabinets.
Tenant submitted evidence: no. Landlord submitted evidence: no.
Tribunal's reasoning
The Tribunal used its own expert knowledge of local rental values to set a baseline market rent of £150 pw (£650 pcm) for the property if modernised, in good condition and with full central heating. It then deducted £15 pw for the lack of central heating and £15 pw for the lack of kitchen cabinets (undisputed by the landlord), arriving at £120 pw (£520 pcm). The tenant's suggested rent of £400 pcm was rejected as unrealistically low, being even less than the original 2015 rent, and the landlord's unsubstantiated claim of £650-£700 pcm was not fully accepted either. The new rent took effect from the date in the landlord's notice as the increase was not found to cause undue hardship.
Read the original decision (PDF, GOV.UK)
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