Flat 7, 9 Trobridge Parade, Grahame Park Way London NW9 4AP LON/00AC/MRA/2026/0016
REASONS
[1]A landlord’s notice dated 1 May 2026, was served under Section 13(2) Housing Act 1988 proposing a new rent of £2300 pcm in place of the passing rent of £2100 pcm to take effect from 7 July 2026.[2]On 2 June 2026 under S.13(4)(a) Housing Act 1988 the tenant referred the landlord’s notice proposing a new rent to the Tribunal for determination via a completed MR1.[3]The assured tenancy is now calendar monthly periodic. Allocation of Repairs between Landlord and Tenant[4]As per S.11 Landlord and tenant Act 1985. Landlord’s Service Charges and Furniture provided and costs.[5]Landlord provided space and water heating as part of district heating system within the block the cost of which is included in the rent. Liability for Council Tax[6]Tenant. Other relevant terms of tenancy[7]None Inspection and Hearing[8]An inspection is not routinely carried out. The Tribunal is content that it has sufficient information on the Property, its condition and on comparables, from a combination of the written and/or photographic representations received and from its own knowledge and specialist expertise. Property[9]There was no inspection. The Property is a single level purpose built flat in a low rise Building of flats on 4No. levels dating from around 2020. (Google Streetview September 2024). There is off-road parking. There is on-street parking is restricted. The Building is located among similar buildings composed of very similar residential flats.[10]The Building is of modern reinforced concrete construction, with brick fair faced walling infills, with double glazed windows and doors. The main roof appears to be flat. It is set within the a street of very similar, small modern buildings, on a larger estate of the same all dating from around 2020. The estate is immediately west of the M1 motorway.[11]The Property has two bedrooms to the third floor with two bathroom/WCs, living room/ kitchen and two open sided balconies and a floor area of over 900ft2. There is central heating, with full double glazing, floor finishes and white goods are all apparently provided by the landlord. Evidence[12]The Tribunal received completed Form MR1 and Form 1b from the tenant. The Tribunal received a Form 1a from the landlord. The Tribunal is grateful for such information as was received from the parties. Tenant[13]The tenants referred the Tribunal to some equally modern but smaller flats with one bedroom. The tenants suggested that the rent should be lower than it currently is, down to between £1800 to £2000 pcm for the Property at the valuation date.[14]The tenant referred the Tribunal to links to properties said to be listed on available websites but did not provide copies of the material itself. It is not the role of the Tribunal to research and assemble either parties’ case documents but receive them as presented in the bundle. There were no details provided by the tenants. Landlord[15]The Tribunal received representations from the landlord in Form 1a. They listed a dozen or so two bedroom, two bathroom/WCs, living room/ kitchen, very modern flats, in very similar blocks nearby. These comparables were marketed at rents of between £2200 pcm to £2450 pcm. By contrast with the Property these were if anything smaller with floor areas from around 70m2 to 90m2. Law[16]In accordance with the terms of S.14 of the Act we are required to determine the rent at which we consider the property might reasonably be expected to let in the open market, by a willing landlord, under an assured tenancy, on the same terms as the actual tenancy; ignoring any increase in value attributable to tenant’s improvements and any decrease in value due to the tenant’s failure to comply with any terms of the tenancy. Thus the Property falls to be valued as it stands; but assuming that the Property to be in a reasonable internal decorative condition. Validity[17]The tenant did not challenge the validity of the notice. Valuation[18]From the tenant’s comparables and from the Tribunal’s own general knowledge of market rent levels in and around LB Barnet it determines that the subject Property would let on normal Assured Periodic Tenancy (ASP) terms, for £2300 pcm, fully fitted and in good order. This is the rent we would expect the Property to let for in the open market if it was in the same condition as comparable properties including landlord’s white goods carpets and curtains.[19]The Tribunal did not find any defects or other shortcomings at the Property. It did however note the provision of heating and hot water by the landlord was included in the agreement and if this remained the case the market rent should be £2400 pcm. However the Tribunal’s rent is now capped at the figure in the landlord’s initial notice of £2300 pcm. The new rent is therefore £2300 pcm. Undue Hardship[20]A new rent used to take effect from the date in the landlords notice, but now the effective date is the later of this and the next rent period after determination. In cases of undue hardship the Tribunal had discretion to fix a later effective date up to the date determination but, this discretion has been recently extended to allow up to a further two months beyond. The tenant did not provide sufficient information to show undue hardship from the rent. Decision and effective start date[21]The Tribunal sets the starting date of the new rent of £2300 pcm from the start of the next rent period being 30 July 2026.[22]Although the landlord is not obliged to charge this rent and may charge a significantly lower rent as a result of their own choice, policy, or governmental regulation; they may not charge more than this figure. Chairman N Martindale FRICS Date 22 July 2026 Rights of appeal By rule 36(2) of the Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Property Chamber) Rules 2013, the tribunal is required to notify the parties about any right of appeal they may have. If either party is dissatisfied with this decision, they may apply for permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) on any point of law arising from this Decision. Prior to making such an appeal, an application must be made, in writing, to this Tribunal for permission to appeal. Any such application must be made within 28 days of the issue of this decision to the person making the application (regulation 52 (2) of The Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Property Chamber) Rule 2013). If the application is not made within the 28-day time limit, such application must include a request for an extension of time and the reason for not complying with the 28 day time limit; the tribunal will then look at such reason(s) and decide whether to allow the application for permission to appeal to proceed, despite not being within the time limit. The application for permission to appeal must identify the decision of the tribunal to which it relates (i.e., give the date, the property, and the case number), state the grounds of appeal and state the result the party making the application is seeking. If the tribunal refuses to grant permission to appeal, a further application for permission may be made to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber).