Rent Act 1977

91 Special rent limit: procedure on application

(1) An application under section 90 of this Act shall be in such form as the Secretary of State may direct either generally or in any particular case, and the applicant shall give notice of the application to the rent officer, and shall take all reasonable steps to give notice of the application to the tenant of each dwelling-house which would be affected by a direction given on the application.

(2) The Secretary of State in entertaining the application—

(a) shall take into consideration the information about the finances of the applicant given to him on the application, and any further information given by the applicant at his request, and

(b) shall not give a direction unless he is satisfied that the direction is necessary having regard to the applicant's normal sources of income, and to the expenditure (including loan charges) which in his opinion it is reasonable for the applicant to incur in the exercise of housing functions.

(3) The Secretary of State shall give notice in writing of his decision on the application to the applicant and to the rent officer and, where the decision is to grant the application, the notice shall include particulars of the direction given on the application.

(4) The rent officer shall note in the register—

(a) any application notified to him by the applicant, and

(b) any direction given and the period for which it is effective, and

(c) any decision of the Secretary of State not to grant an application.

(5) The applicant shall take all reasonable steps to notify the tenant of each dwelling-house affected of any case where the Secretary of State decides to grant or not to grant an application and, where the decision is to grant the application, the notice shall include particulars of the direction given on the application.

(6) In this section—

• " housing functions " means constructing, improving or managing or facilitating or encouraging the construction or improvement of dwellings, the provision of dwellings by conversion and the acquisition of dwellings, and includes functions which are supplemental or incidental to any of those functions,

• " loan charges " includes any loan charges made by a housing association (including charges for debt management) whether in respect of borrowing from any capital fund kept by the housing association, or in respect of borrowing between accounts kept by the housing association for different functions, or otherwise.