Rent costs for council houses in Ipswich likely to increase by 7%
If approved, the average social and affordable rents would rise from £87 to around £93 per week
Rent costs for social and affordable council houses in Ipswich are likely to increase by seven percent.
Ipswich Borough Council’s executive voted for the increases yesterday, which would see average social and affordable rents increase from £87 to an estimated £93 per week.
Average private property rents in Ipswich were £261.50 a week at the end of November 2022.
The increases will be subject to a vote at full council before they can be implemented from April.
Cllr Neil MacDonald, portfolio holder for housing, said: “In the last year, the housing revenue account has been hit by significant cost increases outside our control.
“Although it’s good to see a decent pay rise for staff, funding this required a rent increase of 6.8 percent on its own.
“Costs for building work and materials have increased by 15.5 percent in the last year and borrowing costs are massively increasing.
“The average council rent is much cheaper than the average market rent.
“We will ensure the housing revenue account finances are on a sustainable footing, which will enable us to continue to provide a strong service for tenants.
“Managing arrears and helping tenants through the cost-of-living crisis will be a focus of the coming year.”
Cllr MacDonald also explained the council’s housing team is doing 25 percent more repairs than pre-Covid.
Affordable rents are typically higher than social rents, at up to 80 percent of the local market rent.
Under the proposals, garage rents would be unchanged and sheltered home service charges would be capped at £2 per week.
The autumn 2022 budget by government allowed the seven percent rent increase cap for next financial year.
In response to a question by Cllr Ian Fisher about whether smaller increases had been modelled, an officer explained they had – with the seven percent option coming out as the best one to keep the account running effectively in the long term.
Cllr Carole Jones said: “Any council would wish their rent increases to be as low as possible, but limited government support has contributed to our need to make these increases.
“Not only do our council tenants have lower levels of rents than private tenants but they also have our network of housing officers who support them.
“And they have security of tenure, which is massively important for any family or individual.”
Leader of the council Cllr David Ellesmere stated that the inflation causing rent increases was partly down to the “shoddy trade deals the government has made since Brexit” and Liz Truss’ “trashing” the economy.