Your Rent And Service Charges This section tells you: • • • • • • •
How we set your rent. About service charges and how they are set. About the ways you can pay your rent. About Housing Benefit. About your rent statement. What to do if you are having difficulties paying your rent. Where you can get specialist money management and debt counselling services. • What will happen if you don’t pay your rent and service charges.
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How We Set Your Rent The rent paid to us by tenants covers the cost of providing and maintaining our houses. This includes paying for staff, paying for repair and maintenance work on our homes, and repaying money borrowed to finance the building of new properties. We are a nonprofit organisation and therefore we set our rent at the lowest possible level. The amount of rent you pay for your home will vary depending on the size and type of your home, where you live and whether you have a Secure or Assured tenancy. Before we change your rent we have to give you a month’s written notice.
Secure Tenancies If your tenancy started before 15 January 1989, the amount of rent you pay is fixed by the Rent Officer at Cardiff County Council. The Rent Officer is a public employee, and is completely independent of the Association. Every 2 years we can apply to the Rent Officer for your rent to be reassessed. The Rent Officer will consult with you before making a decision. If you disagree with the Rent Officer’s decision, you must appeal within 28 days to the Rent Assessment Committee. We can assist you in doing this. The Rent Assessment Committee’s decision is final, and is binding upon you and us. We can ask for your rent to be reassessed within the 2-year period if there have been any changes to your home, for example, any major improvements.
Assured Tenancies If your tenancy started after 15 January 1989, you will have an Assured or Assured Shorthold tenancy. Your rent is fixed by the Association, although for some property types the rent is restricted to a certain level by the Welsh Government. Your rent is reviewed every year, and we must give you at least one month’s notice in writing of any increases. If you think we have set your rent too high you can appeal to the Rent Assessment Committee. They will look at all the facts and set a rent. This may be higher than the rent we want to charge you. You can ask for advice about your rent from the Citizen’s Advice Bureau, the Law Centre or a solicitor. 2
About Service Charges And How They Are Set We may also charge you a service charge. This is a charge on top of your rent, and covers the cost of additional services we provide. The services we charge for include: • • • •
Providing an Estates Assistant. Gardening. Cleaning and lighting communal areas. Servicing door entry systems.
If you are required to pay a service charge, you will have received a service charge schedule with your tenancy agreement. This sets out all of the services we charge you for, and how much they are. Your service charges are based upon what it actually costs us to provide the service. Service charges are reviewed annually. We are required to give you at least 28 days’ notice if we intend to increase your service charges, and we will consult you before changing them. This will give you the opportunity to give us any feedback on the services you receive, and to see how your charges are calculated. There is further information about service charges in the ‘Tenants’ Guarantee’.
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About The Ways You Can Pay Your Rent Your rent is payable every Monday in advance for that week. This is a condition of your tenancy agreement. If you pay your rent after Monday, your payment may not show on your rental account for that week, and your account will show in arrears. If you wish to pay your rent monthly, it should be paid in advance for the forthcoming month. If you need any assistance with calculating your monthly payments, please contact your Rents Officer or Customer Service Advisor on 029 2025 9100. If you would like to pay your rent at any other frequency, please contact your Rents Officer or Customer Service Advisor, on 029 2025 9100, for advice. There are several ways that you can pay your rent:
Rent Card You can pay using your rent card at any Post Office, or any outlet displaying the Pay Point or Payzone logo. Please contact your Customer Service Advisor on 029 2025 9100, for a list of all the outlets in your local area. If you need a new rent card, please contact your Customer Service Advisor on 029 2025 9100.
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Direct Debit We can arrange to debit your rent directly from your bank account, at a frequency agreed with you. This takes all of the hassle out of paying your rent, as we do the work for you! Please contact your Customer Service Advisor or Rents Officer to set up your direct debit over the telephone on 029 2025 9100. Don’t forget that it takes up to 14 days to set up, so please allow enough time for the commencement of your direct debit. We will always inform you in advance of any changes in the amount of rent we will be collecting, and you can cancel your direct debit at any time by informing your Customer Service Advisor and your bank. Remember, you must ensure that you have enough money in your bank account.
Standing Order This is an instruction that you give to your bank to pay us on a regular basis. This differs from a direct debit, as you will be responsible for informing your bank of any changes in payments that are required, for example, when your rent increases. If you would like to pay by standing order, please ask your Customer Service Advisor for a Standing Order Mandate. Remember, you must ensure that you have enough money in your bank account.
Counter Payments You can now make counter payments at our offices, by using a chip and pin facility in reception. You can pay by using debit or credit cards and you will be given a receipt upon payment. This saves you carrying cash, as payment will come directly from your card.
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Debit/Credit Card on the Internet You can now pay your rent over the phone or on-line, using your debit or credit card. It couldn’t be easier... both services are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You will need to have the following information to hand: • Your allpay.net card number. This is displayed on the front of your rent card. If you do not have a rent card please telephone our Customer Service Advisors on 029 2025 9100. • Your debit/credit card number. • The expiry date of your debit/credit card. • The issue number of your debit/credit card (for Switch cards only). • The amount you wish to pay.
Debit/Credit Card over the telephone or in the office You can now pay your rent in reception via our chip and pin machine, all you need is your debit/credit card and your pin number. To pay over the telephone, please call our rents team on 029 2025 9100 during office opening times. To pay on line, please follow the link on our website www.taffhousing. co.uk to Allpay. You will receive full instructions on-line. Again, please keep the authorisation code for your payment in a safe place. To make payment direct to Taff, simply ring our offices on 029 2025 9100 and make sure you have your debit/credit card available. This is a quick and easy method to make payments direct to your rent account.
Cheque Your cheque should be made payable to ‘Taff Housing Association’. You can send or bring your cheque to our office at: Alexandra House, 307 – 315 Cowbridge Road East, Canton, Cardiff, CF5 1JD. Please remember to put your name and address on the back of the cheque.
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About Housing Benefit If you are entitled to Housing Benefit to assist you with the payment of part or all of your rent, you can arrange for this to be paid directly to us by the Housing Benefit Department. For advice on this option, or to obtain an application form, you can contact your Rents Officer or Customer Service Advisor on 029 2025 9100, or the Housing Benefit Department, on 029 2087 2087. An officer from the Housing Benefit Department holds a surgery at our offices every Tuesday afternoon from 9.30am. If you have any queries about your Housing Benefit claim, please call in to see them. Housing Benefit evidence can be handed into our offices, or you can go directly to Marland House to produce all documents, using their fast track service. There are several very important things to remember if you claim Housing Benefit: • It is your responsibility to ensure that your Housing Benefit is paid to us on time. Please do not forget that the responsibility for payment of rent remains with you, not the Housing Benefit Department. • If you receive Housing Benefit for only part of your rent, you must make arrangements for paying the remainder. • You must tell the Housing Benefit Department and your Rents Officer if your circumstances change, for example, if a child reaches the age of 18, someone moves in or out, or you start work. If you do not inform the Housing Benefit Department of any changes, you may receive benefit which you are not entitled to, and you will be asked to repay it. • You must answer all letters you receive from the Housing Benefit Department, even if you think they already have the information. If you do not, your benefit may be cancelled, and you will have to pay the rent yourself. • You must fill in and return a new Housing Benefit form when you receive one. If you do not, your benefit may be cancelled, and you will have to pay the rent yourself.
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• If your benefit stops, for any reason, you will have to pay the rent yourself. • If you need any help or advice with your Housing Benefit claim, please contact your Rents Officer on 029 2025 9100. • If you are in dispute with the Housing Benefit Department regarding your claim, we can refer you to our Welfare Rights Officer, who will be able to assist you with claims for backdated benefit or appeals.
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About Your Rent Statement We will send you a rent statement every 3 months. This shows all the rent we have charged you, and all the payments you have made. You should check this statement carefully to ensure that all your payments are there. If you have any questions about your rent statement please contact your Rents Officer or Customer Service Advisor on 029 2025 9100.
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What To Do If You Are Having Difficulties Paying Your Rent If you are experiencing any difficulties in paying your rent, please contact our Rents Team, on 029 2025 9100, as soon as possible. We will do whatever we can to assist you in maintaining your rent payments. If you would like advice on what benefits are available to you, or require support to deal with debts, we can refer you to our Tenancy Support Team. If you would like further information about Tenancy Support please contact the Taff Tenant Support Team on 029 2025 9100.
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Where You Can Get Specialist Money Management And Debt Counselling Services If you think you need specialist advice about your financial affairs, you can contact: Riverside Advice Centre
029 2034 1577
The Citizens Advice Bureau
0870 126 4028
National Debtline
0808 808 4000
Cardiff Law Centre
029 2049 8117
Housing Benefit
029 2087 2087
Consumer Credit Counselling Service
0800 138 1111
The UK Insolvency Helpline
0800 074 6918
Taff Housing Association has a specialist in-house Welfare Rights Officer. You can reach this service on 029 2025 9193.
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What Will Happen If You Don’t Pay Your Rent And Service Charges The rent you pay us is our main source of income. We need it to carry on providing homes to people who need them. This is why we are quick to remind you when you owe us rent. If you do fall behind with your rent, we can help you by: • Giving you benefits advice and helping you claim any benefits you might be entitled to. • Making an affordable repayment arrangement with you if you can’t afford to pay the money back straightaway. • If you are more than 4 weeks in arrears, and are in receipt of Income Support or Income Based JSA, we can apply to the Department of Work and Pensions to have some money deducted from your weekly benefit to pay off your arrears. If you don’t keep to an arrangement with us, or fail to contact us about your arrears, we will issue you a Notice of Seeking Possession. This is the first step towards taking you to court to regain possession of your home. If we have to take you to court, you not only risk losing your home, but you will also incur additional court fees. Remember, we don’t want anyone to lose their home, but if you don’t pay your rent we will have to ask you to leave. If you lose your home because you haven’t paid your rent, it is unlikely that the Council or another housing association will re-house you. If you fall into arrears please follow this advice: • Carefully read any letters you receive from us. They will explain what you need to do, and what your rights are. • Contact us immediately – we can help. • Come to an agreement to pay off your arrears in a way you can afford, and stick to it. • Take independent advice.
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