Rents for the majority of homes owned and operated by Bassetlaw District Council will see a below inflation rise from April this year.
At a meeting of Cabinet on Tuesday 3rd January 2023, Councillors approved a recommendation for a below inflation rent increase of 7% for 6,368 Council homes from April 2023. The rent increase comes against a backdrop of a 10% rise in the cost of maintenance, labour and materials experienced by the Council over the last 12 months and predicted rises of up to 15% for the next year.
With benefits also set to rise in line with inflation (10.1%) including Housing Benefit, the rent increase should only affect around 30% of Council tenants who do not receive additional support.
In real terms, the lowest change in rent will be an increase of £3.56 per week for a small property and the highest an increase of £8.02 per week for a large property. This will mean that the average rent for social general needs housing in Bassetlaw will be £83.40 per week or £361.40 per month. In comparison the average monthly private rent in Worksop is £707, whilst Retford is £704.*
The changes will take effect from Monday 3rd April 2023 and have been set in accordance with the Government’s National Social Rent Policy.
All rent collected by Bassetlaw District Council is reinvested back into its Housing Service and funds Decent Homes improvements including new kitchens, bathrooms, windows, doors, energy-efficient heating systems and maintaining internal and external communal areas. This is in addition to routine repairs to its homes and essential safety measures such as gas and electrical servicing.
Cllr Steve Scotthorne, Cabinet Member for Housing, said: “While the rent increase is higher than we would have liked, the Council is not insulated from inflation and the spiralling costs of maintaining and investing in our tenants’ homes.
“The Council has absorbed cost increases over recent months but with some predictions suggesting that costs could rise by up to 15 per cent in the next 12 months, the Council has acted now to ensure more drastic measures aren’t required in the future.
“The nationwide increase in mortgage, private rent and social rent costs reflects a lack of investment in housing in this country over successive years. This is a crisis largely of the Government’s own making, made worse by the disastrous consequences of the mini budget.
“Tenants can be assured that their rents continue to represent good value for money compared to the private sector, and that we will continue to invest in their homes. We will also continue to provide important support services to tenants such as our Money Advisor service which helps with debt management, provides information and advice, and ensures that tenants are receiving all of the support that they are entitled to.”
Tenants with any queries regarding rents or who are experiencing difficulties paying their rent, should telephone our Customer Services team on 0800 590542.
* Figures as of 06/01/2023 from Home.co.uk Home.co.uk conducts rental analysis based on advertised rents for homes to let right now.
The BCIS (Building Cost Information Service) is predicting increases as high as 15% over the course of the next 12 months.
Supported Housing properties are exempt from the 7% cap for rent increases, of which there are a total of 139 homes. These properties will rise by 11.1%, in line with the Government’s National Social Rent Policy which says that rents should rise in tandem with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) plus 1%. These tenants benefit from a number of additional free of charge communal services and facilities. The rent increase will help the council offset some of the increased cost of providing these services.
Last Updated on Tuesday, February 21, 2023