Customer rent increase

The new rent standard for 2022 comes into force in April and as a result, rents will increase by 4.1% from then onwards. For a customer paying £85.50 per week, their new rent would be £89.01 per week, an increase of £3.51 per week.

We’ve written to customers to let them know about the change so they can speak to us if they think they might have any difficulties paying, meaning we can act early and identify any financial help or support that might be available to them. Lots of our customers will be protected from the increase because the benefits they receive, such as universal credit and housing benefits, will be revised to take into account the change.

For customers that might struggle to pay their rent, the support available includes things like discretionary payments, maximising benefits and helping customers with their budgeting. We can also let customers know about other organisations that may be able to help too.

The rent increase is happening for a number of reasons, but ultimately the rent we receive is reinvested into providing homes and services, so we can pay for repairs and improvements to homes and services that meet our customers’ needs. It means we can do much more for our customers and in our neighbourhoods.

We'll be writing to customers again at the end of February to tell them exactly how much their rent will be going up by and what this means for them, but in the meantime, we’re here if customers would like to talk to us about how we and other organisations may be able to help.

Alongside the letter we also sent to an information sheet to customers and you can read it here: