Let your house to Lewes council

Q: Does Lewes council work with private landlords?

Yes. Lewes runs "Direct Lets" (landlord incentives). Rent: rents that are at, or slightly above, the Local Housing Allowance rate. Source: the council's own page, checked 2026-09-28.

What Lewes offers private landlords who want the council as their tenant or their letting agent, in the council's own words, with the page to apply on.

Yes. Lewes runs "Direct Lets".

A comprehensive tenant finding service run jointly by Lewes and Eastbourne Councils; under normal circumstances we will not pay rent during void periods. Many clients are single people or working families on low incomes. Email direct.lets@lewes-eastbourne.gov.uk.

SchemeDirect LetsTypelandlord incentives: cash, deposit guarantee or rent in advance to house a council nomineeRentrents that are at, or slightly above, the Local Housing Allowance rateIncentivesFinancial assistance to update safety certificates or carry out minor repairs (terms and conditions apply); landlord incentives; NRLA approved rent guarantor (subject to eligibility and affordability); no commission or finders' fees; free tenant referencing; direct rent payments for the first 12 months via a DWP Alternative Payment ArrangementWhat they wantproperties within Eastbourne or Lewes district areas meeting health and safety standards, secure and in a reasonable state of decoration, with gas, safety and fire checks and EPC E or aboveCouncil pagewww.lewes-eastbourne.gov.uk/directletsChecked2026-09-28

New: How council schemes compare, what you give up, and a ready-to-send email to your council

How these schemes work

Councils have a duty to house people they accept as homeless and a shortage of their own stock, so many lease or manage private landlords' houses instead. The common shapes are a lease of three to five years where the council becomes your tenant and pays rent whether the house is occupied or not, a management arrangement where the council lets and looks after it for you, or a one-off incentive (a cash payment, a deposit guarantee, rent in advance) for taking a council-nominated tenant on a normal tenancy. Terms, rent levels and what they want vary by council and change with demand, so treat every page here as a pointer to the council's own page, not a quote.

Before you sign

Check the same things you would for any let: whether the address is inside an HMO Article 4 area if the council plans to house more than one household, which licensing applies, and what the LHA rate is, since many schemes pay at or just under it. The free HMO Article 4 checker tests any postcode; Kerbio shows all three on the Rightmove listing before you buy.

See this on every Rightmove listing.Kerbio puts the Article 4 answer, licensing, the council's HMO register and sold prices on the Rightmove, Zoopla or OnTheMarket page itself. Free for 7 days, then £39 a month.

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Source: Lewes council, read 2026-09-28. Schemes open and close with demand; confirm with the council before relying on any figure.