LHA is for people on a low income living in private rented accommodation.
Who cannot get Local Housing Allowance?
You cannot get LHA if:
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you are a council or housing association tenant;
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you have a tenancy that started before 1989; or
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you live in a caravan, mobile home or house boat.
But you may still be able to get Housing Benefit to help with your rent. If you are in board and lodging or charity-supported accommodation you also may not get LHA.
How much Local Housing Allowance can I get?
The amount of LHA you can get depends on:
LHA does not depend on how much rent you pay. Rates are assessed in Broad Market Rental Areas (BMRA ) of which there is only one for the Gateshead Council area. These rates are set by an independent rent officer, based on local rents and will be published monthly from April 2008. These rates are the maximum amount of LHA you may get. You may get less than the maximum rate depending on your circumstances.
See our Working out LHA| page for more information.
What's different about Local Housing Allowance?
You will usually get any LHA paid to you and you will have to pay your rent to your landlord.Knowing the amount of LHA will let you work out what rent you can afford. So when you go looking for somewhere to live you can work out how much money you will have.Then you can choose a place that suits you.
Some properties will have a rent lower than the amount of LHA you can get. If you take the tenancy of such a property, you can still get the same amount of LHA your circumstances allow and you can keep the difference up to a maximum amount of £15 per week.This will not affect any other social security benefits you get.
When can I claim local Housing Allowance?
All private tenants claims made on or after 7th April 2008, will be treated as a claim for Local Housing Allowance.
What happens if I already receive Housing Benefit?
If you already get Housing Benefit your claim will be transferred to one for LHA if you change address or have a break in your entitlement.
How will Local Housing Allowance be paid?
In most cases the council will pay LHA directly to you.You cannot choose to have your LHA paid direct to your landlord.The easiest way is to have it paid into a bank or building society account.
If you have a bank or building society account you can arrange for your bank or building society to pay your rent direct to your landlord.If you don't have an account you should obtain information on how to do so. Information on doing so and the types of accounts available can be found at www.moneymadeclear.fsa.gov.uk| or a booklet is available from Benefits & Revenues at Gateshead Civic Centre.
In some exceptional cases we may be able to pay your Local Housing Allowance directly to your landlord.There are strict qualifying conditions and any decision rests with the Council.