Newcastle tenants are getting back over £100,000 after being overcharged on rent since 2017. The council is addressing the issue after a housing regulator’s review.
This all started when the housing regulator pointed out some serious issues. The council discovered that 84 properties had been affected. They’ve already refunded about £36,000 to 30 tenants. The rest went back to the Department for Work and Pensions for those on housing benefits.
Last summer, the council took control of its social housing from Your Homes Newcastle. They’ve been working to fix various problems, including damp issues and overdue repairs. The regulator gave them a C3 grading, highlighting the need for improvement.
The council explained that the overcharges happened due to a process failure. They didn’t update the market rent valuations when some affordable properties were re-let. On average, tenants were overcharged by about £1,220. The highest overcharge was over £2,300.
A spokesperson for the council said they’ve looked into the issue thoroughly. They found that while most rents were accurate, some affordable properties were charged too much. They’ve refunded the overpaid rent plus interest to those affected.
The council is now confident that their rent assessments are correct. They’re working hard to ensure everything meets the regulator’s standards.
