Events & training
News
Leaflets & Publications
Careers
Investor relations
MyAccount
Search for:
Menu
Finding a home
Buying a home
Rent from us
Student and Short Stay
Homes for keyworkers
Independent living for older people
Options when moving home
Moving checklist
Buying the home you rent
Preserved Right to Buy
Renting a garage
Garage enquiry form
Garage application form - Kent
Garage application form - London
Garage application form - Sussex
Ending your garage rental agreement
Commercial properties to lease
Tenant Fees Act
Managing your home
Repairs & home improvements
Making a payment
Making comments & complaints
Fire safety & cladding
Safer communities
Leaseholder & Shared Owners
Living in your home
Options when moving home
Coronavirus: Repairs service update
Essential electrical safety inspections
Fire safety inspections
Repair responsibilities
Fence responsibilities and standards
Home improvements
Adaptations in your home
Problems making a payment?
Rent and Service Charges
Our self-assessment against the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code
FAQs about cladding and fire safety remediation costs
Fire safety advice
Fire safety – robust procedures in place
Our commitment
Anti social behaviour
Safeguarding
Domestic abuse
Crime
Homeowners living in apartment blocks
Fire safety
Dealing with pests
Asbestos
Fly tipping
Your tenancy agreement
Changing your tenancy agreement
Support for Ukraine
Water
Drains and blockages
Water hygiene
Estate and neighbourhood services
Lifts
Our lift refurbishment programme
Support we offer
Events, courses & activities
Money & benefits guidance*
Employment support
Digital skills
Wellbeing service
Volunteering
Our community centres
Saving money on your bills
The Money Planner
Job skills and training
Virtual Course in Hospitality - Online Form
Ways To Work
Setting up an email account
Becoming a business mentor
Volunteering opportunities at Optivo
Get involved
Our approach to co-creation
Ways to get involved
Our involved residents
What's going on
Our Resident Ambassadors
About us
Who we are
What we do
Investor relations
Careers
Sustainability
Transparency
Our policies
Leadership and governance
Our history
Our culture
Building new homes
Our social impact
Fresh Visions Charity
Support to tackle homelessness
Strategic goals
Our sustainability performance
Energy efficiency for residents
Reduce your energy bills
Water efficiency advice
Priority Service Register
Biodiversity and green spaces
Our resources
Partners
Contact us
Home
News & Events
Charging Rent over 52 weeks from April 2021
Charging Rent over 52 weeks from April 2021
18 January 2021
For some residents in Sussex and Kent, we have charged rent over 48 or 50 weeks ever since those homes came into management of Optivo or its predecessors, including:
Rother Homes
1066 Housing
Swale Housing
Other Kent local authority stock transfers
These rent accounts show ‘rent-free weeks’. The annual total rent for these homes is the same as an equivalent home charged for 52 weeks of a year. The difference is that in these homes, we’ve charged the rent over 48 or 50 weeks (the total annual rent would be the same).
From April 2021, we’re aligning all our rent accounts and we’ll charge each resident their annual rent over 52 weeks.
Why we're making the change
To help support residents who receive Universal Credit as this is paid monthly
Residents who receive UC will no longer need to notify the DWP (Department of Work and Pensions) about rent-free weeks (this can often lead to confusion and inaccuracies)
It simplifies how we set rents and makes managing accounts more efficient.
You can still be flexible
You can still over-pay your rent each week and build up credit if you'd like to. If you’re paid monthly, you can still pay your rent every month. We can help you work out what you need to pay each month.
How might this may affect you from April 2021?
Example 1: Ex-Rother Homes or 1066 home with four ‘rent-free’ weeks
Your current rent will (in most cases) increase by 1.5% in April (although some may have a lower increase). Your new service charges will be at the new estimated cost
Weekly
Yearly
Current rent charged over 48 weeks
£115.76
New rent charged over 48 weeks with 1.5% increase at £1.74
£117.50
£5,640.00
New rent charged over 52 weeks with 1.5% increase at £1.74
£108.46
£5,639.92
In the above example, your weekly rent seems like it’s reducing by £9.04 a week but, over the 52 weeks, you can see it’s almost identical. New rent in this example is 8p less over the 52 weeks
Example 2:
Weekly
Yearly
Current rent charged over 50 weeks
£103.88
New rent charged over 50 weeks with 1.5% increase at £1.56
£105.44
£5,272.00
New rent charged over 52 weeks with 1.5% increase at £1.56
£101.38
£5,271.76
Your weekly rent seems like it’s reducing by £4.06 a week but, over the 52 weeks, you can see it’s almost identical. New rent in this example is 24p less over the 52 weeks
It’s possible your rent may be slightly more over the year. The range of difference (due to rounding) will be between £0.26 more and -£0.26 less over a year.
Events near you
Latest news
Press enquiries