Of 1,480 homes advertised to rent in Watford in the six months to 31 October 2026, 59 (4%) could be let within the Local Housing Allowance for their size.
Of 1,053 homes for sale at the end of October 2026, 28 would return 7% gross or more a year if let at the LHA.
Each size against its own LHA rate.
| Size | Homes to rent | Within the LHA | Gap at the 30th percentile | For sale | Work at 7% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 bed and studios | 629 | 52 (8.3%) | £250 | 225 | 22 |
| 2 bed | 628 | 5 (0.8%) | £400 | 422 | 6 |
| 3 bed | 178 | 1 (0.6%) | £375 | 284 | 0 |
| 4 bed | 45 | 1 (2.2%) | £360 | 122 | 0 |
| All sizes | 1,480 | 59 (4%) | £300 | 1,053 | 28 |
A dash means too few homes to give a figure (a share needs 10 judged homes, a gap 20); the count is still shown. Studios are read as one bedroom; homes of five bedrooms or more are not read, as the LHA has no rate for them. 4 homes were counted but not judged because their rental market area or rate was not known.
Month by month, as published.
Each point is one completed month, read over the six months before it. A month's figures are published once and never changed.
| Month | Homes to rent | Within the LHA | 2-bed gap | 3-bed gap | For sale | Work at 7% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 2026 | 1,480 | 4% | £400 | £375 | 1,053 | 28 |
| September 2026 | 1,376 | 4.3% | £350 | £350 | 1,012 | 24 |
| August 2026 | 1,375 | 4.8% | £350 | £375 | 773 | 15 |
| July 2026 | 1,523 | 4.7% | £350 | £381 | 769 | 16 |
| June 2026 | 1,408 | 4.6% | £350 | £375 | 802 | 17 |
| May 2026 | 1,325 | 4.5% | £350 | £398 | 799 | 20 |
| April 2026 | 1,254 | 4.1% | £350 | £395 | 825 | 17 |
| March 2026 | 1,275 | 4.5% | £325 | £395 | 754 | 13 |
| February 2026 | 1,273 | 4.6% | £301 | £395 | 675 | 11 |
| January 2026 | 1,118 | 4.7% | £300 | £395 | 511 | 9 |
| December 2025 | 1,211 | 4.9% | £300 | £395 | 481 | 8 |
| November 2025 | 1,302 | 4.8% | £300 | £400 | 501 | 9 |
| October 2025 | 1,439 | 5.2% | £325 | £400 | 542 | 12 |
| September 2025 | 1,367 | 5.3% | £350 | £400 | 586 | 11 |
| August 2025 | 1,352 | 4.2% | £350 | £400 | 538 | 10 |
| July 2025 | 1,362 | 4.6% | £345 | £400 | 576 | 9 |
| June 2025 | 1,346 | 4.7% | £350 | £350 | 587 | 9 |
| May 2025 | 1,243 | 4.4% | £345 | £350 | 566 | 6 |
| April 2025 | 1,184 | 3.5% | £300 | £350 | 443 | 5 |
| March 2025 | 1,220 | 3.5% | £345 | £350 | 438 | 3 |
| February 2025 | 1,233 | 3.3% | £345 | £350 | 506 | 3 |
| January 2025 | 1,271 | 3.2% | £308 | £350 | 537 | 2 |
| December 2024 | 1,255 | 3.3% | £300 | £350 | 536 | 3 |
| November 2024 | 1,325 | 4.2% | £300 | £350 | 590 | 5 |
| October 2024 | 1,375 | 4.6% | £300 | £350 | 849 | 3 |
| September 2024 | 1,311 | 5% | £300 | £350 | 811 | 3 |
| August 2024 | 1,275 | 5.7% | £300 | £350 | 767 | 2 |
| July 2024 | 1,237 | 5.8% | £300 | £350 | 751 | 1 |
| June 2024 | 1,237 | 6.5% | £250 | £300 | 735 | 2 |
What these numbers are, and are not.
- Advertised, not agreed. Asking rents and asking prices as the portals showed them. Rents finally agreed usually sit below advertised rents, so the true gap is likely to be smaller; prices paid sit below asking, so slightly more homes may work.
- Each home against its own rate. The LHA for the home's size in its own broad rental market area, in force at the month's end. Where Watford spans more than one area, each home is read against the right one.
- A screen, not a return. "Work at 7%" is twelve months at the LHA divided by the asking price, before service charges, voids, repairs or purchase costs. It says which homes are worth looking at, not what they would earn.
- Counted, never modelled. No figure on this page is estimated or produced by AI. The full method, the floors below which a figure is withheld, and the sources are on the index page.
Cite as: Viiyoo, Where the LHA reaches: Watford, October 2026, www.viiyoo.com/lha/watford. If Watford holds achieved rents and would like them shown beside these figures, labelled as the council's, write to us.
Behind the counts
The 28 homes themselves
The index counts the homes for sale in Watford that would work at LHA rents. A Viiyoo buying plan names them, costs each one after grant, checks its lease, flood risk and licensing, and comes back as a pack a cabinet can follow. The first brief is free, for up to 25 homes.