Every year we review how much rent you pay. We look at the money spent over the past year and calculate how much we will need to invest in our homes and run our services for the coming year, whilst making sure our rent remains affordable.
Cairn has traditionally used the Retail Price Index (RPI) of annual inflation as a measure when considering the annual increase in rents as per our policy and current Business Plan. Currently, this year’s RPI figure is 4.9%.
Consultation options for 2022/23
This year, the proposal is to use Consumer Price Index (CPI) for September 2021 (3.1%), as a measure when consulting on proposed rent increases for 2022/23. CPI is a government measure of inflation that aims to reflect the change in cost of living and is published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on a monthly basis.
We have considered what we need to do to keep our rents affordable whilst providing the necessary investment in the homes and services that we deliver in the context of the above-inflation increases in the cost of building materials and labour over the last year
Therefore, considering the financial challenges that many tenants are facing, we are consulting tenants for the 2022/23 rent review on two options.
Option 1 – A proposed inflationary only increase of 3.1% based on September 2021 CPI rate which was published on 20th October.
We want to continue to invest in our properties and provide excellent housing management and repairs for all tenants. To maintain our levels of investment and services we need to increase our rents by 3.1%.
Option 2 – A proposed inflationary increase of September 2021 CPI figure of 3.1% plus 0.5%. This will increase rents by 3.6%.
This proposed increase will allow us to deliver our priorities as detailed in Option 1, plus spend a further £78,000 on providing additional services and improvements to tenant’s homes.
We would welcome tenants’ views on Option 2 of increasing rents by CPI 3.1% plus 0.5%.
Please note that in April 2018 we introduced a new rent structure which continues to be phased in each year. Confirmation of whether your rent is aligned to the new rent structure, and your proposed new monthly rent under Option 1, is included in the letter that was posted to you.
If you pay a heating charge or service charge then your charges for 2022/23 will be confirmed in February before any changes are applied on 1 April 2022.
2021 has been an incredibly challenging year. If you are experiencing financial problems then our Tenancy Sustainment Team are here to help. The sooner we know, the sooner we can help. Please get in touch.
What do you think of these proposals? To have your say on the rent consultation, please email enquiries@cairnha.com or send us your comments through our feedback form. You can also call us on 0800 990 3405, or submit feedback through your My Cairn account. If you wish to give us feedback then please do so by 23 December 2021.
The Board will be meeting in January to look at your feedback to the rent review and make a final decision. We will write to all tenants to let them know the outcome. We will provide at least 28 days’ notice before the new rent is applied on 1 April 2022.
