Condition and improvements: what the tribunal disregards (s.14(2))
The tribunal values the home as it is let, but ignores the tenant's own improvements and any damage the tenant caused. Record both on the review.
- Reviewed
- Read
- 3 min
When it sets a market rent, the tribunal looks at the home as it stands and the terms of the tenancy. Section 14(2) of the Housing Act 1988 tells it to leave certain things out, so the condition record on a review matters.
Who this is for: letting agencies and landlords.
What you are deciding
What to record about the home's condition and improvements, so the comparison the tribunal makes is a fair one.
Your options
- Improvements the landlord made. A new kitchen or better heating paid for by the landlord counts. Record what was done, when and what it cost.
- Improvements the tenant made. Work the tenant did at their own expense, which the tenancy did not require, is disregarded: the tenant does not pay rent on their own work. Record it so nobody relies on it.
- Damage or neglect by the tenant. Where the home is worse because the tenant broke the tenancy's terms, the tribunal disregards that too: the rent is not lowered for it. Record what and when.
- Disrepair the landlord is responsible for. Not disregarded. A home in poor repair lets for less, and the tribunal will see that.
How to do it
- Open the rent review and find Condition.
- Record whether the home is let furnished, part furnished or unfurnished, and a short note on its condition.
- Add each improvement with who paid for it, when it was done and the cost.
- Note any damage the tenant caused. You can update the condition record after the notice is sent, and doing so does not reset the landlord's approval.
A worked example
On Thursday 12 November 2026 an agent prepares a review for a three-bedroom house at £1,350.00 a month. The landlord fitted a new boiler on 9 March 2026 for £3,200.00; the tenant laid new flooring in the living room in 2025 at their own expense; and a bedroom door was broken by the tenant last winter. The agent records all three. A tribunal could take the new boiler into account, would leave out the tenant's flooring, and would not reduce the rent for the broken door. Comparable lettings are adjusted the same way.
What Abide.Rent does for you
- Keeps the condition record, landlord improvements, tenant improvements and tenant damage with the review.
- Lets you change the condition record at any point until the review is cancelled, without resetting approval.
- Carries the record into the evidence for a referral.
If something goes wrong
- “This review has been cancelled.”
What to do: A cancelled review's condition record cannot change. Start a new review if you still need one. - The tenant's improvement appears under disregards
What to do: That is right: the tribunal ignores improvements a tenant made and damage the tenant caused when it sets the rent. They print separately in the evidence pack.
Common mistakes
- Pricing in the tenant's own improvements. The tribunal disregards them.
- Leaving out disrepair you are responsible for. The tribunal will see the home.
- Recording damage without a date or a photo. The tribunal needs to see it was the tenant's breach.
What to do next
More in Rent reviews
Comparable lettings: the evidence that wins at the tribunalThe tribunal sets the rent from lettings of similar homes nearby. Achieved rents count far more than asking rents; three strong lettings make a case.
The tribunal can set a rent below today'sA referral can end with a rent lower than the tenant pays now, if the evidence shows the market is lower. Check before you propose.
What the tribunal can and cannot doThe tribunal decides the market rent. It cannot set more than the landlord proposed, cannot backdate, and can delay the start for hardship.