Rent and service charges: Scotland

Rent is our main source of income and helps us provide essential services such as maintenance, repairs, and housing management. It also enables us to continue investing in our Communities. The income we receive from rents ensures we can keep key services running and meet the demand for repairs. We’re also committed to delivering planned improvement works in homes and investing in both existing homes and new builds to address the growing need for affordable housing.

The rent you pay depends on the type of home and tenancy you have. We manage a variety of home and tenancy types with different start dates, even within the same areas. This sometimes results in differences in rent charges where properties and tenancy agreements are not the same. Your rent is reviewed in line with the terms set out in your tenancy agreement, but if you think something is wrong, please contact us.

Please visit our online portal where you can register to manage your account online. 

You will need your payment reference number for this which can be found on your letter.

Having an online account makes it even easier to manage your home with us. It's free, easy to register and you get all these great benefits:

• Manage your money: check your account, history, and payments.
• Access anytime: 24/7, 365 days a year.
• Safe and secure: protected with the latest security software and password protection.
• Cut down on paper: reduce post, save on filing and help the environment.
• Stay up to date: Easily update your personal details, such as phone numbers and email addresses.

If you need help setting up your account, you can email inclusion@placesforpeople.co.uk or request a call back by calling us on 01772 666246.

Service charges are for services provided to you that are not covered by the rent charge. These include charges for landscaping, communal cleaning, lighting, power and furnishings in common areas, care and support provided by other agencies as part of your agreement, personal heating where your development has a communal heating boiler and an administration charge for managing these services.

Service charges are based on the actual cost when known, or an estimated cost based on a budget where the actual cost is not known. There is no profit included in service charge amounts.

Last year we started to separate service charges from the rent to be transparent with you. You will now see a full list of the services you are separately charged for. This might include some charges you’ve not seen before; this is because we hadn’t split these charges out separately in previous years. These are not new services.

Your annual utility charges are based on current usage and take into account inflation as well as the contract prices set by utility companies. We have renewed our energy contracts for 2025 to ensure we keep charges as low as possible.

This charge covers at least one of the following: lightning protection, door servicing, electronic gate servicing, washer, or dryer ventilation servicing.

The administration charge covers costs of managing the services we provide. This includes our People’s time, the systems we use, and the offices needed to deliver these services effectively.

This charge helps cover the cost of wear and tear/replacement or provision of communal items such as carpets, furniture, grit boxes, washing machines or washing lines.

All service charges are assessed in line with Housing Benefit regulations to determine which charges, if any, can be covered by Housing Benefit.

We’ll provide a breakdown in your annual increase letter to show you what’s eligible. Services marked as “HBE” (Housing Benefit Eligible) can be paid, and those noted as “HBI” (Housing Benefit Ineligible) cannot. This is decided by Housing Benefit Regulations.

For those in receipt of Universal Credit (which includes a housing cost element) there may be some differences from Housing Benefit. If you have a query with your service charge eligibility, you should contact the Universal Credit helpline 0800 328 5644 in the first instance.

If you do not currently receive Housing Benefit or Universal Credit, you should check whether you are now entitled to it following the change to your charges. You can do so by visiting www.mygov.scot/benefits-support or by calling the Universal Credit helpline 0800 328 5644.

Your rent charge is calculated in accordance with the Places for People Affordable Housing Rent and Service Charge Policy. The amount you pay will depend on the type of agreement you have and the start date of the tenancy. If you do not know what type of agreement you have, your tenancy or lease agreement will tell you, or you can ask us.

Scottish Secure Tenancies (SST), Short SSTs and Occupancy Agreements

Our rent policy allows for a maximum increase of September’s CPI plus 1%. The CPI is the Consumer Price Index. This represents the increase in the cost of goods and services in the previous 12 months and is published each month by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The CPI figure in September 2024 was 1.7%, allowing for a rent increase of up to 2.7%.

Further information on rent setting, can be found in our Rent and Service Charge Policy, which is available on request. Just send us an email to pfpshousing@placesforpeople.co.uk or call us on 0131 657 0600.

Shared Ownership

Occupancy Charges for Shared Ownership are calculated using the rent policy noted above and deductions are made for property management, as Sharing Owners are responsible for their own property management. Please refer to your original sign-up documents for further details.

If your property is factored, your insurance charge and other factored services will be sent to you by your factor and are not included within this Occupancy Charge.

Universal Credit

If you claim Universal Credit, you will need to report this change using your online Universal Credit account or by using the Universal Credit helpline 0800 328 5644, quoting your new rent and service charge amounts.

Reporting the change needs to be done as soon as possible after the new charge starts.

Housing Benefit

Where this is paid directly to us, we will notify your local council of the change. If this is paid directly to you, please contact your local Housing Benefit department to inform them of this change.

For customers in the process of claiming Housing Benefit, where this has not been paid to us before 31 January 2025, you will need to contact your local Housing Benefit department to report the change.

Direct Debit

We recommend that you pay by Direct Debit, and we can arrange this easily for you over the telephone. This can be set up weekly, fortnightly, four-weekly or monthly. There are no extra charges, and you are guaranteed a refund from your bank or building society in the unlikely event that anything goes wrong. To arrange this please complete a direct debit mandate or call us on 0131 657 0600.

We want to support Customers who may need help if they are experiencing financial difficulty. If you would like to talk to us about the support available, please contact our Financial Inclusion Team on 0131 657 0600.

You can also find help and resources on our Cost of Living support page.

If you do not currently receive Housing Benefit or Universal Credit, you should check whether you are now entitled to it following the change to your charges. You can do so by visiting www.gov.uk/benefits-calculators or by calling the Universal Credit Service Centre on 0800 328 5644.

These are the questions asked most often by our Customers. If you have a question that is not listed above, or you would like to discuss a question further please:

• Send us an email to pfpshousing@placesforpeople.co.uk (please ensure you share your address so we can support you as soon as possible).
• Call us on 0131 657 0600. Lines are open Monday to Thursday 9am to 5pm and Friday from 9am to 4pm (excluding Bank Holidays).