Council leasing by council › Waltham Forest

Let your house to Waltham Forest council

What Waltham Forest 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. Waltham Forest runs "Letting your property through the council".

An established private rental scheme offering vetted tenants, tenancy support and cash incentives; the landlord grants a 24 month AST at LHA rent and the council pays the incentive and insurance. Contact the Accommodation Procurement Team on 0208 496 5777 or Accommodationprocurement@walthamforest.gov.uk.

SchemeLetting your property through the councilTypelandlord incentives: cash, deposit guarantee or rent in advance to house a council nomineeTerm24 months Assured Shorthold Tenancy (periodic tenancies after 1 May 2026)RentRents set at Local Housing Allowance (LHA) levelsIncentivesUp to £10,000 cash incentive; payment for annual insurance against rent loss and tenant damage; free property inspection, inventory and advice; council pays for the property licence if one is requiredWhat they wantFamily-sized accommodation in good condition and decorative order, furnished or unfurnished, across Waltham Forest, wider London and beyondCouncil pagewww.walthamforest.gov.uk/housing/private-sector-housing/guidance-landlChecked2026-09-28

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