Higher Earnings Rent - An Alternative to Pay to Stay?

A new report from the Centre for London suggests that social tenants pay on average around half the market rent that their homes would command, amounting to a benefit worth around £5,000 a year. Yet around 16 per cent of London households living in social housing earn above the median average London wage (around £27,000).  House–keeping: a fair deal for London’s higher earning social tenants proposes a new rental policy, which would be fairer than the coalition's Pay to Stay proposals which require tenants earning over £60,000 a year to pay a market rent. Instead, author Pete Redman suggests that rents should increase gradually as incomes rise, and fall back to target social rent levels if households’ incomes fall. The new 'Higher Earnings Rent' would kick in once household incomes exceed £5,000 a year more than the Housing Benefit eligibility limit, with gradual rent increases applying until the market rate is paid.  Download a copy of the report from the Centre for London website.