Your social rent

How your social rent is set

If your tenancy started after 15 January 1989 you will have an assured or assured shorthold tenancy, and your rent is set using the policy below.

Since April 2002, the government has taken a major role in setting rents for tenants of housing associations and local authorities. The aim of this has been to ensure that rents for similar properties in similar areas are consistent. The Regulator of Social Housing’s Rent Standard 2020 outlines requirements and guidance for landlords in setting rent.

The guidance says that for a property:

• 20%-40% of the rent will be based on property value
• 60%-80% of the rent will be based on relative local earnings
• The number of bedrooms will have an impact on the rent
• The landlord can add 5% if required for its general needs accommodation and 10% for its supported housing
• Individual rents increase annually by inflation (i.e. Consumer Price Index, or CPI) + 1% from April 2020

CPI for the year was 3.1%, which means that your rent may increase by up to 4.1% from April 2022.

Rent reviews

We give all tenants at least one month’s notice of any rent increase. Rents for assured tenants go up most years in April (or May in some cases).

Service charges

In addition to the basic rent, many tenants are required to pay a service charge. This will cover items such as estate grounds maintenance, communal lighting, caretakers’ costs, communal cleaning, lifts, furniture, carpets, cooking facilities, decorating, night staff, etc. It also includes the administration costs that relate to those services. Metropolitan Thames Valley undertakes to provide the services in the most cost-effective way that can reasonably be expected. The annual increase in service charges reflects the inflation associated with the cost of providing estate and/or block services, unless we were previously under-charging you or there has been a significant change in the services provided.

Appeals about your rent

If you are not happy with the increase in your rent, most tenants can appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber). This is an independent body that will recommend a market rent based on the rents charged by private landlords in the area. The appeal must reach the First-tier Tribunal before the rent increase is due. More details are available on www.gov.uk/housing-tribunals.

Contact us if you’re having difficulty paying

If you’re having difficulty making payments and would like to find out more about financial support options, the easiest way to contact us is through this online form.