Rents charge review management overview

As part of the normal operating procedures of a housing organisation, the rent charges being levied against customer accounts will be reviewed on a periodic basis. For rented dwellings this has traditionally been conducted on an annual basis; more commonly this is now undertaken at different intervals in response to the introduction of new tenancy types and sundry charges. Different review dates can be set against each element charge to meet local circumstances. For instance, a review of rent charges may be timed to coincide with the start of the new financial year, whereas service charge components may be reviewed at a point later in time. The end user has complete control over which charge elements are included in a specific review, as unique review dates are held for each.

Reviews are conducted through the creation of rent review models (or cycles). A review model is defined with review date boundaries, ensuring that only those charges with a matching next review date are included. Additional attributes of the model also control the types of charges to be included: asset-based, agreement-based or fixed. Any number of models may be created to reflect different scenarios of possible charge increases. These can be applied in advance to assess the projected revenue outcome and likely impact of a review, with the results being maintained in parallel for each model. The current and projected uplift values are then displayed in summary for comparative purposes and can also be exported to allow further detailed analysis.

A rent review model focuses on two key components: Asset Charges and Agreement Charges. Any number of asset charge types and frequencies can exist, with each charge comprising a number of elements (components of the overall charge). An agreement can be made up of both asset-based charges and other sundry charges that relate directly to the agreement e.g. insurance. The review process allows the end user to uplift all standard charges by a variety of methods, such as percentage or fixed amount, with the option to set a maximum increase threshold. A charge element can be configured as a fixed charge (e.g. garage rent, heating, satellite TV, etc.), which would usually be considered as outside the scope of a rent review. Typically all fixed charges would be reviewed independently at the discretion of the housing organisation and in line with published policy, but can be included in an 'all encompassing' review model, if required.

The results of a review can be applied live to the accounts at any time, with the resulting increased charges being active only once their effective date is reached. The outcome of a finalised review is also supported by the generation of customer-focused communication templates.

Separate help articles have been created for each key aspect of rents charge review management, including:

• To create a new rent charge review cycle
• To add rent charge elements to a review cycle
• To add asset charges to a rent review cycle
• To add agreement charges to a rent review cycle
• To set the rent review dates for a charge category
• To set the uplift values for a rent charge element
• To calculate element charges using a rent review model
• To apply the results of a rent charge review

In addition, separate help articles focus on the customer notification aspects of a rent review, specifically:

• To assign a communication definition to an agreement type
• To generate notifications for a rent charge review