We charge social or affordable rent across our tenancies. Rent levels are based on the value of the property and average earnings in Norfolk. Rents are set in line with the Policy Statement on Rents for Social Housing, the Rent Standard and any other guidance released by the Regulator of Social Housing.
Social Rent
Under government guidelines a 'target rent' is calculated, and rents are adjusted yearly until they reach the ‘target rent’.
During your tenancy, rents are raised in line with the Rents Standard, which is the government criteria for setting social and affordable housing rents. This is usually within 1% of inflation, although for 2023/24 this was capped to 7%. During a financial crisis, Government may cap rents to a certain level. We may decide to set a different rate, but not above the capped level. We give notice of the rent raise before the new financial year, which starts in April.
You may need to pay service charges for some communal items. This can include charges for window cleaning, premises management, landlords’ supply of electricity, grounds maintenance, and caretaking.
Some homes benefit from a communal district heating supply. Such costs are passed on within the weekly service charges, although a new government scheme known as Heat Metering and Billing has introduced direct billing to individual residents in certain heat networks. Individual water rates are passed on and paid weekly, and added separately so you can pay these directly.
Rents for “Passivhaus” properties are set at 5% above ‘formula rent’ in accordance with the Rents Standard. This helps to pay the extra cost of developing energy efficient homes. It also reflects the savings you get from lower energy bills.
Affordable Rent
Government policy allows Registered Providers (RPs) nationally to charge ‘Affordable Rent’ which must not exceed 80% of gross market rent (inclusive of serve charges) where certain conditions apply.
For existing affordable rent tenants, the rent may not be increased by more than CPI + 1% in a year, subject to such weekly rents not increasing by more than 7% in any year for a rent period that begins in the 12 months from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.
The council is committed to ensuring that rents are as affordable as possible to its tenants. Therefore, it will set ‘Affordable Rent’ in line with Government guidance and by taking into account the type of property being rented. This means that the council may exercise its discretion when setting 'Affordable Rent’ for certain types of properties.
Conversion of Types of Rent
Once a property is set at Social Rent, the council cannot convert the property to an Affordable Rent property, unless agreement is in place with Homes England or the Secretary of State, as appropriate. However, from time to time, the council may, on review of its Housing Stock and the housing demands of the area, convert properties from Affordable Rent properties to Social Rent properties.
