Flat 8, 146 Middleton Hall Road, Birmingham B30 1DN
Condition: Second-floor converted flat lacking central heating (individual room heaters), with dated furniture and in need of some repair/refurbishment.
Evidence considered
- Landlord provided a market report showing average asking rent for comparable one-bedroom units of £850 pcm, and proposed a reduced rent of £700-£724 pcm based on comparables.
- Tenant submitted photographs of the flat, communal hallway, cellar access, exterior and garden to show poor condition and lack of security, and argued online comparables were for newer/refurbished properties with gas central heating.
- Tribunal relied mainly on its own expert knowledge of local rental values alongside the landlord's comparable evidence, giving limited specific weight to tenant's general condition complaints beyond heating/furniture/condition adjustments.
Tenant submitted evidence: yes. Landlord submitted evidence: yes.
Tribunal's reasoning
The tribunal started from a market rent of £750 pcm for the property if modernised, in good order, with central heating, carpets, curtains and white goods, based on its own expertise and the landlord's comparable evidence. It then deducted £175 in total to reflect the actual condition requiring repair/refurbishment, the lack of exclusive white goods, and the lack of an adequate heating system, arriving at a determined rent of £575 pcm, below both the landlord's proposed £750 and higher than the tenant's suggested £500.
Read the original decision (PDF, GOV.UK)
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