Rent Increase 2024-25

Southend-on-Sea City Council (SCC) agreed to implement the increase for the 2024/25 rent year in line with the Government’s revised limit and rents were increased by 7.7% from Monday 1st April 2024.

We fully understand that any increase in rent will not be good news, and it will have a significant impact on some of our tenants.  We are here to help. Please contact us for advice and support on budgeting for the rent increase, by emailing sehcustomerservices@seh.southend.gov.uk. 

Service charge costs are set to cover the cost of providing a particular service to you and are not calculated using the rent calculation outlined above.  Any change in your service charge will be a direct result of whether the cost of providing the service has increased, decreased, or stayed the same.  We can provide you with a full breakdown of your service charges upon request.  

We aim to provide efficient well managed services and purchase services from other providers at the best rates possible so that any increases are kept to a minimum .

To help give residents a clearer understanding of the decision, how the rent will be used and the support available for tenants we have developed some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) below.

What is the Government's approach to setting social housing rent?

In October 2017, the Government announced its intention to set a long-term rent deal for local authority landlords and housing associations from 2020/21 onwards.  

The long-term rent deal which was confirmed by the ‘Policy statement on rents for social housing’ (February 2019), allows local authority landlords to increase rents on an annual basis by the rate of inflation, known as the Consumer Price Index (CPI) plus 1% from 2020, for a period of at least 5 years.  

The Government policy only applies to the net rent element. 

How much is my rent increasing by?

Rents increased by 7.7% — which is the maximum permitted by the Government for the rent year 2024/25.

When does the new rent start?

The new rent took effect from Monday 1 April 2024. The Rent Notice letters were sent out to all tenants prior to 4th March 2024.

Will the rent increases affect my Universal Credit payments?

If you already claim Universal Credit, you will not need to complete a brand-new claim with the Department for Works and Pensions (DWP).  Once we write to inform you of your new rent you will need to inform the DWP of the change in rent using your online Universal Credit Journal after the rent increase has been applied.

You need to inform the DWP on or just after the start of the new financial year as we cannot do this for you.  We will then be asked by the DWP to verify the increase.

I claim Housing Benefit, will this cover the rent increase?

If you are in receipt of Housing Benefit the amount you receive will automatically be amended when the new rent year starts.

SCC Housing Benefit department will notify you directly of any change to your entitlement.

Do I have to adjust my Direct Debit mandate, or will you do this?

If you pay by Direct Debit you will not have to do anything as they will be automatically adjusted by South Essex Homes.  You will be notified separately of the revised payment amounts.

Do I need to amend my Standing Order with my bank?

If you pay your rent by Standing Order you will need to contact your bank to amend the payment to the new amount advised in your Rent Notice.  Please ensure your Standing Order is set-up for the correct amount as shown in your rent notice to prevent your rent account falling into arrears.

Do you have to increase my rent?

No, we don’t have to increase your rent. It is up to each local authority to decide if they want to implement the increases.

The increase in rent enables us to continue to deliver the high-quality services to tenants. If we didn’t increase the rents, we would have less money to invest in maintaining your home, the upkeep of the surrounding area and in developing new homes.

I pay a service charge; will that increase the same as my rent?

Service charges are not calculated in the same way as the rent increase.  Any change in your service charge will be a direct result of whether the cost of providing the services has increased, decreased, or stayed the same. Upon request we can provide you with a full breakdown of your service charges.