Pay your rent

Please use your tenancy number which starts with 900 and can be found on any rent correspondence.

You can also pay using internet banking or set up a direct debit.   

If you are experiencing any difficulty in paying your rent, please call the Rent Team as soon as possible.

We will work with you to reach a realistic agreement to pay off any arrears, considering your income and spending on essential items. Our policy is to adopt a firm but fair approach to recovering unpaid rent. If you don’t pay your rent and arrears, you could be evicted from your home.

MoneyHelper provides step-by step guides on how to set up a budget, make the most of your money, pay off debts and start saving.

53 week rent year

Every five to six years, the calendar makes it so we have 53 Mondays instead of the usual 52 and this financial year 2024/2025 is one of those special years. 

As your weekly rent is charged on every Monday in the year this means you will pay rent for 53 weeks instead of 52 weeks.

The extra Monday also affects Universal Credit payments. Universal Credit does not recognise a 53 week rent year. It will calculate your rent monthly based on a 52 week year. 

Here we explain how the extra week will impact you depending on how you pay your rent to us:

  • If you pay your rent weekly, there will be no change. Starting from 1 April 2024, you will pay your new weekly rent in advance every Monday.
  • If you pay by Direct Debit, we will automatically adjust the payments to cover the 53 week period. You do not need to do anything.
  • If you pay your rent monthly, but not by Direct Debit, you will need to calculate the payments you make to us differently this year.

This year, instead of paying for 52 weeks like usual, you will pay for 53 weeks. Let's say your rent is £100 each week. To find out how much you will pay for the whole year, we multiply £100 by 53. This equals £5,300. Now, to figure out how much you pay each month, we divide the total by the 12 months in a year. So, £5,300 divided by 12 equals £441.67 per month. 

  • If you pay your rent every four weeks, you will pay for 53 weeks instead of the usual 52 weeks.

Let's say your rent is £100 each week. First, we multiply £100 by 53, this equals £5,300. Then, because you pay every four weeks, we divide the total by 13 (since there are 13 sets of four weeks in a year). So, £5,300 divided by 13 equals £407.69. 

  • If you get Universal Credit, the Department for Work and Pensions will only pay for 52 weeks of your rent in a year. This means you have to plan for the extra weeks' rent yourself. 

Let's say your rent is £100 per week. You divide £100 by 53 weeks, which equals £1.89. This means you will need to pay an extra £1.89 each week, or £8.33 every month from your Universal Credit to cover your rent for the whole year.

  • If you receive Housing Benefit. We will recalculate your housing benefit and let you know if there are any changes.
  • If you pay your rent in any other way, please use our formula to calculate your new monthly amount and update your payments to us.

Below are some organisations which can give advice about managing debts, benefits and budgeting.

 

 

  • 1st Floor, Caterham Valley Library, Stafford Road, Caterham CR3 6JG. Tel: 01883 344777.
  • Oxted & District, 1st Floor Library Building, 14 Gresham Road, Oxted RH8 0BQ. Tel: 01883 715525.

Visit the website www.citizensadvice.org.uk

People facing eviction or repossession in England and Wales are now able to receive expert legal advice free of charge, helping them to keep their homes and avoid lengthy, costly court proceedings.

This advice is available from the moment a written notice has been received by a tenant. They will also be able to have legal representation in court, regardless of their financial circumstances. For further information on this scheme, please visit gov.uk website for more information.
 

Stepchange can give free information to people living in England and Wales. The easiest way to get started is online. It's free and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Debt happens, let's deal with it together. Visit the Stepchange website for more information.