The Local Housing Allowance (LHA) is a calculation used to work out the Housing Benefit entitlement for private tenants.
The LHA rate for your household is the maximum amount of Housing Benefit you are entitled to. To find out the LHA rate for your household you can use the LHA rate calculator.
LHA rates from 1 April 2024
| Number of bedrooms | Weekly | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| Shared Room Rate | £142.99 | £621.33 |
| 1 Bedroom Rate (self contained) | £253.15 | £1,100.00 |
| 2 Bedrooms | £310.68 | £1,349.98 |
| 3 Bedrooms | £386.63 | £1,680.00 |
| 4 Bedrooms | £483.29 | £2,100.01 |
A shared room means exclusive use of one room with shared use of at least the kitchen, bathroom and toilet.
We decide which LHA rate is applicable to your household by looking at:
- the number of people in your household
- the ages of the people in your household
- the size of your property
Who the LHA rate does not apply to
The LHA rules do not apply to:
- local authority tenants
- tenants with registered social landlords such as Housing Associations
- protected cases such as supported housing provided by:
- certain local authorities
- social landlords
- charities
- voluntary organisations
- tenants who have a registered or 'fair' rent
- tenancies which commenced before January 1989
- tenancies for caravans, houseboats or hostels
- tenancies where the Rent Officer decides that a substantial part of the rent is for board and attendance such as hotel accommodation
How to work out your LHA rate
To find out the LHA rate for your household you can use the LHA calculator. Alternatively you can use the information below.
One bedroom will be allowed for each of the following:
- a single adult (different rules apply for single people under 35 years - see below)
- every adult couple (same or opposite sex)
- any other person aged 16 or over
- any two children of the same sex aged under 16
- any two children regardless of sex under age 10
- any other child
LHA is capped to the four bedroom rate. The rule applies regardless of your household size. If you need, or live, in a property with more than four bedrooms, you're only entitled to the four bedroom LHA rate.
Single people under 35 years
If you are single and under 35 years of age, you will only qualify for shared accommodation LHA rate except if:
- you're under the age of 22 and have been in care
- you're aged between 25 and 35 and have been in a homeless hostel (for at least three months) that provides support
- you're aged between 25 and 35 and are an ex-offender subject to a Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangement (MAPPA).
- you're receiving the care component of Disability Living Allowance at the middle or higher rate or the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment
- you require an overnight carer