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NIHE rents to rise for first time in five years from April

Northern Ireland’s housing authority will increase its rents for the first time in five years from April.

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The NIHE’s head office in Belfast (picture: Nathaniel Barker)
The NIHE’s head office in Belfast (picture: Nathaniel Barker)
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@nihecommunity rents to rise for first time in five years from April #ukhousing

A five-year freeze on @nihecommunity rents will end in April #ukhousing

The Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE), which owns the majority of the region’s social housing stock with around 84,000 homes, will increase rents by 2.7% for 2020/21. This mirrors the level of rent rise in England which will come into effect in April.

Gripped by a severe funding crisis, the landlord has previously warned it may need to start “de-investing” in around half its huge housing stock from this year if a solution is not found – risking tens of thousands of homes falling into disrepair.

Its rents were kept at 2015/16 levels by then-social development minister Lord Morrow for 2016/17 and have not been increased since.

Tenants will see their rents increase by £1.79 a week on average, up to £68.27 excluding rates.


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NIHE rents are around 25% lower than housing associations in the region and lower than council rents in comparable parts of England and Wales.

Since 2015/16, it has collected around £290m a year in rents while its housing stock is estimated to need around £300m of annual investment.

Management and debt costs of £130m a year mean the NIHE was facing a funding gap of well over £1bn over the next decade without a boost to its income.

Inside Housing previously revealed that the number of repairs left outstanding by the landlord have more than doubled over the past three years.

A spokesperson for the NIHE said: “Our rents continue to remain much lower than local housing associations in Northern Ireland and close to £30 [per] week less than the average rent for social housing accommodation in England.

“Given the Consumer Price Index has risen by around 8% since our last rise in 2015, this lift of 2.7% is relatively modest and will go directly to support our services.

“Tenants are being informed of their new rent levels this month – approximately 75% of our tenants receive full or partial housing benefit support or Universal Credit towards their rent.”

NIHE rents rose by an average of £2.77 a week, or 4.6%, each year between 2011/12 and 2015/16.

In late 2017, Northern Ireland’s Department for Communities suggested an annual NIHE rent increase of Consumer Price Index plus 3% – around 4.7% – to help balance the organisation’s books.

Northern Ireland’s new government, formed last month after three years of political stasis, has agreed a plan to “tackle the maintenance backlog” at the NIHE, helped by considering wiping the body’s historical debt, exclude it from paying corporation tax, and setting a “sustainable” and “affordable” long-term rent policy.

Justin Cartwright, director of the Chartered Institute of Housing Northern Ireland said: “Over the past few years Housing Executive rents have been kept artificially low to help keep rents affordable.

“While this has helped low income families to maintain a home, it has resulted in housing stock falling below the standard of a decent home which tenants deserve.

“We have been clear that with 38,000 households on the social housing waiting list, and 24,000 of those households living in housing stress, if Northern Ireland’s largest landlord cuts it maintenance spending, this will have a desperate impact on those waiting for a social home.

“This modest increase in rents will allow the Housing Executive to maintain its stock, deliver higher standards of accommodation and bring empty properties back into use, meaning less waiting for those in need.”

Ben Collins, chief executive of the Northern Ireland Federation of Housing Associations (NIFHA), said: “NIFHA recognises the need for significant investment in Housing Executive stock, so that tenants can continue to live in good quality homes.

“The Housing Executive have stated themselves that £3bn is needed over the next 11 years to avoid them de-investing from up to half their properties. After five years with no uplift, this increase is a sensible step towards ensuring the continued use of these much needed homes.”

Update: at 11.06am 21/02/20 a comment from Justin Cartwright was added to the story.

Update: at 12.04pm 21/02/20 a comment from Ben Collins was added to the story.

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