What is Local Housing Allowance (LHA)?

If you're a private tenant renting property or a room from a private landlord and you're on a low income - you may be able to get Local Housing Allowance (LHA).
Local Housing Allowance is a national scheme to assist people in the private sector meet the rent of reasonably priced accommodation.

Local Housing Allowance is a new way of working out new claims for Housing Benefit for tenants renting accommodation from a private landlord. It also affects tenants already getting Housing Benefit who move into accommodation rented from a private landlord. If you live in council accommodation or other social housing Local Housing Allowance will not affect you.

With Local Housing Allowance, your benefit is not usually based on the property you live in. It is usually based on:

 • Who lives with you
 • Which area you live in
 • How much money you have coming in
 • What savings you have

In some cases the amount of benefit you are entitled to will be affected by other things. These can include:

 • How much your rent is
 • Whether anyone living with you is expected to contribute to your rent

You can get an idea of how much benefit we can pay before making a claim by checking the Local Housing Allowance rates below for the Broad Market Rental Areas for South Oxfordshire. To check which Broad Market Rental Area any individual property may come under you should check the Local Housing Allowance website.