30 November 2001
The move, announced by housing and planning minister Lord Falconer on November 26, delighted local authorities and registered social landlords, especially in London and parts of eastern England.
They claimed many tenants would unfairly bear the brunt of the new national rents formula, based on local earnings and property values, which is being phased in over ten years from next April.
Some RSLs had threatened to defy the Housing Corporation and refuse to raise rents in line with the formula.
Maximum rents will depend upon the size of property: £100 per week for a four-bedroom home; £95 for three bedrooms; £90 for two bedrooms and £85 for a one-bedroom home or bedsit.
The caps will be raised by inflation plus 1% each year during the period of rent reform. Elsewhere, the maximum increase for any household would be £4.20 per week, although only a 'tiny proportion' of rents would go up by anywhere near this sum, said Falconer.
Liz Potter, director of policy at the National Housing Federation, praised the government for listening to landlords. 'An end to uncertainty will help housing associations to build on progress already made towards restructuring,' she said.
PFnov2001