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Information for landlords

 
Housing Benefit awarded to a tenant may be directly paid to their landlord.

Any landlord who receives benefit payments on behalf of a tenant must help to ensure that the award granted is correct.

Local Housing Allowance

The goverment has introduced new rules, known as the Local Housing Allowance, that limits the circumstances under which benefit is paid direct to landlords.

The rules only affect new claims or tenancies.

If you have a tenant who is having their Housing Benefit paid direct to you, it will continue to be paid direct until the tenant stops claiming.

The landlord's responsibility

If you are a landlord, you must tell the housing benefits office if your tenant’s circumstances change. These include:

  • changes to the amount of rent charged
  • changes in services included within the rent
  • changes to the number of people living in the property (this includes the number of people who have moved into the property as well as those who have moved out)
  • changes in circumstance or income of people living at the property, if known
  • if your tenant is eight or more weeks in arrears with their rent
  • any circumstance resulting in rent payments being withheld
See receiving benefits for information on payments.

You can also download our Landlord information - local housing allowance leaflet.

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