Rent rising by around £78 a year for Sandwell council tenants
Charges for other services such as cleaning and CCTV will also increase, say Sandwell Council.
People face paying more to rent council homes in Sandwell from April with charges up around £78 a year.
Sandwell Council says the rise will help provide cash to invest in properties and build more new homes.
A proposed two per cent increase will be introduced from April. A subsequent two per cent rise could follow in 2021 and 2022 respectively.
There are currently 28,765 council tenancies in Sandwell and, while tenants are charged rent for 52 weeks, their rent is currently collected over 48 weeks.
The new report proposes that from April, rent is collected over 52 weeks instead of the current 48.
But, tenants will still be able to pay over 48 weeks if they choose.
From April 2020, the average annual rent over 52 weeks would increase from £75.72 a week to £77.23 – an increase of £1.51 a week.
The cabinet report also recommends increases in some service charges with a 1.7 per cent increase – 8p a week over 52 weeks – for cleaning in high-rise blocks, which is in line with the Consumer Price Index.
With charges for cleaning in low-rise blocks increasing by three per cent – 12p a week over 52 weeks.
Service charges for providing concierge, CCTV and control room services will also increase by 1.7 per cent, again in line with the current Consumer Price Index.
Councillor Joanne Hadley, Sandwell Council's cabinet member for housing, said: “It is with great reluctance that we are having to look at introducing these increases in rents and some service charges.
“However, the rent cap imposed by the government during the last four years has left us with no alternative if we want to continue investing in and maintaining our existing council homes, keeping tenants safe and building new council properties.
“Under the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government guidelines we could have brought in rent increases of up to 2.7 per cent but we have kept them as low as we could at 2 per cent.”
The report on the proposed council tax increases will be discussed at Sandwell Council's cabinet meeting on January 8.
