Rent pay changes planned

North Lanarkshire Council is proposing to restructure the way it sets housing rent levels.

Tenants are currently receiving a newsletter outlining the plans and are being asked to complete an opinion survey on the plans.

It outlines that changes would be phased in over a seven-year period; and asks whether residents agree with the new rent levels, and with the use of property size and type as the main determining factors.

The local authority’s aim is to simplify the current charging system, which consists of “192 different variations across [ the council’s] 36,500 homes” by taking into account windows, heating and age of property, with new builds attracting a premium.

Head of housing solutions Stephen Llewellyn said: “The way we currently work out rental charges is difficult to follow – we want to make this system much fairer and easier to understand.

“The changes won’t increase the overall amount we collect and every penny will continue to be spent improving council houses.

“Our proposed structure aims to be easy and straightforward to understand, set the same rent for same house type and size right across North Lanarkshire, and be fair and consistently applied for all residents.

“Housing standards and investment have improved significantly,. and we need a structure which accurately reflects this.”

North Lanarkshire officials add: “Rents charged by the council will remain the second-lowest in Scotland this year, and significantly lower than those charged by other local housing providers.”

The survey can be completed at www. surveymonkey. co. uk/ r/ rentrestructure or by visiting First Stop Shops.