Rent at the 30th percentile
3.—(1) The rent officer must determine the rent at the 30th percentile in accordance with the following sub-paragraphs.
(2) The rent officer must compile a list of rents.
(3) A list of rents means a list in ascending order of the monthly rents which, in the rent officer’s opinion, are payable at the date of the determination for accommodation let under an assured tenancy which meets the criteria specified in sub-paragraph (5).
(4) The list must include any rents which are of the same amount.
(5) The criteria for including an assured tenancy on the list of rents in relation to each category of accommodation specified in paragraph 1 are that—
(a)the accommodation let under the assured tenancy is in the broad rental market area for which the local housing allowance for that category of accommodation is being determined;
(b)the accommodation is in a reasonable state of repair; and
(c)the assured tenancy permits the tenant to use exclusively or share the use of, as the case may be, the same number and type of rooms as the category of accommodation in relation to which the list of rents is being compiled.
(6) Sub-paragraph (7) applies where the rent officer is not satisfied that the list of rents in respect of any category of accommodation would contain sufficient rents payable at the date of the determination for accommodation in the broad rental market area to enable a local housing allowance to be determined which is representative of the rents that a landlord might reasonably be expected to obtain in that area.
(7) In a case where this sub-paragraph applies, the rent officer may add to the list rents for accommodation in the same category in other areas in which a comparable market exists.
(8) Where rent is payable other than monthly the rent officer must use the figure which would be payable if the rent were to be payable monthly by calculating the rent for a year and dividing the total by 12.
(9) When compiling the list of rents for each category of accommodation, the rent officer must—
(a)assume that no-one had sought or is seeking the tenancy who would have been entitled to housing benefit under Part 7 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992(1) or universal credit under Part 1 of the Welfare Reform Act; and
(b)exclude the amount of any rent which, in the rent officer’s opinion, is fairly attributable to the provision of services performed or facilities (including the use of furniture) provided for, or rights made available to, the tenant and which would not be classed as service charge payments.
(10) The rent at the 30th percentile in the list of rents (“R”) is determined as follows—
(a)where the number of rents on the list is a multiple of 10, the formula is—
where—
P is the position on the list found by multiplying the number of rents on the list by 3 and dividing by 10; and
P1 is the following position on the list;
(b)where the number of rents on the list is not a multiple of 10, the formula is—
where P2 is the position on the list found by multiplying the number of rents on the list by 3 and dividing by 10 and rounding the result upwards to the nearest whole number.