Upper Maisonette, 20 Hamilton Road, Brighton, East Sussex BN1 5DL
Condition: The property had significant disrepair including mould and damp, failed window seals, poor insulation, and structural noise from roof slates, contested by the landlord as tenant-caused.
Evidence considered
- Tenant-provided comparables of BN1 area properties ranging £1,350-£1,550 pcm, given significant weight
- A neighbouring one-bedroom property that let for £1,300 pcm, discounted as not a true comparable due to differing bedroom count
- Email correspondence between tenant and landlord's agent evidencing repeated repair issues, given weight
- EPC report (Band D) and video evidence of structural noise, given weight
- Landlord's inventory record, found to actually support tenant's case rather than landlord's
- Landlord submitted no comparable evidence
Tenant submitted evidence: yes. Landlord submitted evidence: no.
Tribunal's reasoning
The tribunal started from an open-market rent of £1,550 pcm for the maisonette in good condition, based on its own knowledge and the tenant's comparables (the landlord supplied none). It then deducted a total of £115 for disrepair issues substantiated by the tenant's evidence (poor insulation/failed windows, poor decorative condition, mould, and structural noise), reaching £1,435 pcm. The landlord's claims of premium condition and tenant-caused damage were rejected as unsupported by the evidence. Since the determined rent was below the current rent, no undue hardship extension to the effective date was granted.
Read the original decision (PDF, GOV.UK)
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