If you have any questions that haven’t been answered below, please contact us. You can call on 0800 014 15 45 or email housing@soha.co.uk.
How much is the rent increasing by?
Rent will be increasing by 4.8% for tenants and 5% for shared owners.
When will the increase take place?
All social housing landlords increase their rents once a year. The increases take effect from Wednesday 1 April 2026.
How are rent increase levels set?
Soha’s Board set rent increase levels each year in line with the government’s rent increase formula. The Government set a rent increase cap each year, which is CPI (Consumer Price Index) in September the previous year plus 1% for those renting. For shared owners, this formula is RPI (Retail Price Index) plus 0.5%, as set out in the leases. Both are based on annual September inflation measures.
That means rents will rise by 4.8%, or up to Local Housing Allowance levels, whichever is the lower of the two numbers.
Shared Owners will see a rise of 5%.
We have complied with this guidance to make sure we can continue to maintain the quality of our homes and services.
If you’d like to see how the government calculates the increase it wants Housing Associations to apply, you can read more about it here.
What support is available?
If you’re concerned or struggling with finances, please contact us. We can help you:
- get the benefits you’re entitled to and access funding if available
- set up a Direct Debit to manage your payments
- fill in a budget planner to manage finances
- access free specialist advice to manage debt or money coaching to help you avoid getting into debt.
If you’d prefer to seek independent advice, you can contact Money Helper or Citizens Advice.
I’m in receipt of Housing Benefit, what should I do?
Soha will tell the council that pays your Housing Benefit about the change in your rent, but do check that they have implemented it. You can find your local council here.
I’m in receipt of Universal Credit, what should I do?
You should not update your claim until the 1st April. If you still receive Universal Credit payments on 1st April, please check your ‘to do list’ as you may have been requested to confirm whether your rent has changed. If so, please follow the on-screen instructions to update them with your new rent charges.
If you have not received a ‘to do’, you should report the change in rent. To report the change:
- Log into your Universal Credit account here. (Have your Soha letter confirming your rent charges for April with you, as you will need to confirm the new rent amount.)
- Go to the home screen and click on ‘Report a change of circumstances’
- Select ‘housing and what it costs’ and follow the on-screen instructions
If you are not able to access your account, you should call 0800 328 5644 (Freephone).
I pay by Direct Debit, does it change automatically?
Yes, the Direct Debit instruction set up with your bank is not for a set amount. When your rent changes, we can ask your bank to automatically increase your Direct Debit to cover it. We will write to you to tell you exactly how much your new payments will be.
Does this apply to garages too?
Yes, there will be a 4.8% rent increase for garages.