Rent and other charges
Rent is the amount of money that you have to pay, to live in your home. When you sign your tenancy agreement with us, you will be told how much rent you have to pay. You must pay your rent on time.
Rent is a priority debt, and priority debts are the most important bills to pay.
Your responsibilities as a tenant
When you sign your tenancy agreement, you are committing to pay your rent in full and on time.
If you are having difficulties, please contact us as soon as possible so that we can help you. Early contact will avoid the need for court action, and the possibility of you losing your home.
We may be able to:
- provide you with advice about money or debt management, via our Financial Inclusion Officers
- help you claim any benefits that you may be entitled to
- set up an affordable repayment plan for you
If you continue to not pay your rent, we will have to take action. We may have to take you to court and - in extreme cases - evict you from your home.
Joint tenants
If you are joint tenants, you are each responsible for paying the rent. If one of you stops living at the property, you are still responsible for any rent owed whilst your name remains on the tenancy agreement.
Housing Benefit and Universal Credit
Housing Benefit is a benefit you may receive to help you pay your rent, if you are on a low income. If you receive Housing Benefit, you must make sure that it is claimed and paid to us.
If you receive the housing cost element of Universal Credit, this will be paid directly to you. You are responsible for using your Universal Credit payment to pay your rent.
In some circumstances, you or we may request that your Universal Credit payment is paid directly to us. If you would like to learn more about this, please speak with your rent officer.
Other charges (including service charges)
The total amount of rent that you pay may include other charges for additional services. These are known as 'service charges'.
If any of these charges apply, they will be listed within:
- your tenancy agreement
- your tenancy offer letter
- any other letters you receive from us, regarding changes to your rent
We may (after consulting with you, and other tenants affected) increase, reduce or change the services we provide. This might include adding services that you have not previously paid for before.