30% rent increase?

kten

HouseHuntingAmy says:"…they can set it higher than what the landlord proposed…"

Fortunatally this is no longer allowed, a key change under the Renters' Rights Act 2025. Although to many renters' dismay it (the Act) stops short of making a rental price cap like in the energy sector. There're people pointing out many MPs are themselves landlords, which could explain why.

anselld

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82164387#Comment_82164387

The energy price cap is set by observation of energy market rates. The Tribunal also caps the rent based on market rate. So they are near enough achieving the same results.

kten

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82164488#Comment_82164488

Good point. But then the energy cap is across the board, whereas the Tribunal is a rather individual cap. and you don't know it until you make the appeal. What many renters would like to see is a cap based on, eg., ONS' data. For example, currently the rent inflation is 4% in England. So an increase of 30% is out of the question. Anyway after you stay in the property for 8 yrs how come it'd suddenly become 30% more expensive without any material enhancement in itself? It's immoral to say the least.

silvercar

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82164540#Comment_82164540

Mortgage rate increases, the landlord may have had a fix rate mortgage that has recently expired. Also maintenance costs have risen over the last few years. It could be that the landlord has held off making rent increases for a few years and that is now unsustainable. It may be that the landlord’s circumstances have changed and previously they were happy for the property to wash its own hands, but that is no longer the case.

There is an unintended consequence that a tribunal can’t increase the rent above what a landlord demands. It means that if a landlord feels the tenant is likely to go to a tribunal, they may as well ask for a big increase.

DGDG

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82164139#Comment_82164139

we have had our rent increased several times over the past eight years, in line with inflation

DGDG

thank you everyone. Very helpful to understand how the tribunal works. What we feel is our strongest argument - the comparison between the two flats- clearly won’t interest them. Initially the landlord based their increase on what their other flat achieved, which is what we based our counter offer on. Interestingly the other flat is now on its seventh tenant in eight years so it’s clear that renters don’t find they are getting good value, and the flat has been empty for 18 months in total between tenancies with refurbishing every time, so we feel our flat must have been the more profitable of the two, but that is another story.

saajan_12

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82164668#Comment_82164668

Why is that one flat any stronger of a comparable than all other similar flats in the area? It doesn't matter that they have the same owner nor how the LL initially phrased the increase, that was just waffle.

I'd look at 'For Rent' ads in your area and pull some examples which seem like comparable space / location / condition. Propose a new rent in line with those.