Local Housing Allowance

Local Housing Allowance is usually paid to the tenant. Under LHA a tenant cannot simply request that payment is made to a landlord to cover their rent.

DWP Guidance

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have provided guidance on when direct payments to the landlord may be appropriate, where a tenant cannot pay or is unlikely to pay their rent. In most cases the council decides whether it is appropriate to pay the landlord, however, LHA must be paid to the landlord where:

• The tenant is 8 full weeks or more in arrears with their rent
• The tenant is having deductions made from their Income Support or Jobseekers Allowance to pay for rent arrears

An application to make direct payment to your landlord can be found here.