THE Housing Executive has announced that it is increasing its rent by almost eight per cent.
Starting from April 1, rents will rise by 7.7 per cent. This equates to an average increase of £5.72 in weekly rents and will bring the average rent for a Housing Executive home to £79.96 a week, excluding rates.
Most tenants will be protected from the increase as 79 per cent of Housing Executive tenants receive full or partial Housing Benefit support or Universal Credit towards their rent.
Grainia Long, Chief Executive of the Housing Executive, said: “Rent pays for customer and neighbourhood services as well as all maintenance of our homes and improvement work.
“It has never been more important that we continue to invest in our homes and provide services to tenants. The rent increase will go straight back into our houses and our customer services.
“This year we are spending £204m maintaining and improving our homes for our tenants and this increase will enable an increase in investment to approximately £288m next year.
Chief Executive, Grainia Long
“We are very much aware of the ongoing financial pressures faced by our tenants, and have increased the size of our financial inclusion team to ensure we have the right support in place.
“We encourage any tenant who is having difficulty paying their rent, to contact us immediately for assistance and advice. We would also reassure tenants that we will only take legal action in circumstances where rent is not fully paid and a tenant refuses to engage with us."
If tenants are concerned about their rent payments they can contact their Patch Manager by phoning 03448 920 900. They will provide advice and support and can make referrals to the Financial Inclusion Managers.
