Important information about your rent from April 2025
The following information provides you with details about changes in your rent and charges. Customers will receive a letter from us at the beginning of March informing them of the new rent and charges, which will see an increase by up to 2.7% from Monday 7th April 2025.
The letter is your notification of the increases including the new weekly rent amount and charges (if applicable to you). It’s very important that you read the letter carefully as the information included will show an increase in your new weekly payment to us.
We know that any increase in costs can be difficult, and we are committed to supporting our customers who may be worried about paying their rent or charges. If you are concerned about money or having difficulty in paying your rent or charges, we have a dedicated team who is on hand to provide support and advice. Please view the Customer Support section below for ways we can help and support you.
Why are rents being increased?
Like most similar organisations, Magenta Living faces increased costs each year and by increasing the rents we charge, this enables us to:
- Cover these costs and maintain the services we offer to our customers
- Allows us to invest in new and existing homes
The cost of delivering repairs, wider services and developing new homes has increased due to the rising cost of materials, supplies and labour. Rent payments keep the housing service running and it allows us to invest in new and existing homes and enhance the services we provide and how we provide them.
How is the rent review decided?
Rent increases are set using a national formula of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) in September 2024, plus an additional 1% for all housing associations. We are regulated and governed by the Government, which means Magenta Living must set its rents in line with their Rent Standard.
Service charges
We have recently carried out a review of our service charges and consulted with over 5,000 customers who are subject to service charges. The purpose of the review was to ensure our service charges are clear, consistent and transparent for all customers, and to better reflect the scope of services provided and the costs of providing those services and utilities.
Charging accurately means we can continue to reinvest back into our communities and build more homes in Wirral.
During 2025/26, we are committed to investing £81 million directly into homes. This significant investment includes:
- £37 million in new homes - we are committed to providing new homes for those who need them most.
- £44 million in our current homes - we are dedicated to ensuring our homes are warm and safe. This includes compliance work, new cladding for high-rise buildings, and reactive repairs, all of which will truly benefit our customers.
We received some very helpful feedback, and we would like to thank everyone who contacted us. We have listened to all the feedback we received and made key changes as a result. Based on the feedback, we have introduced key support for those customers most impacted by the changes.
Garage Rent
The increase in rent is due to the rising costs of services and materials for us to maintain the garages.
We understand that any change in costs can be worrying we understand if you decide that you no longer wish to rent a garage from us. You have the right to terminate your agreement with us as follows:
- You will need to provide one week’s notice in writing to us
- Your garage account will be closed once all keys have been returned to our Partnership Building office
- We will provide you with a receipt for the returned keys
- The garage must be emptied of all items before returning the keys
- Any outstanding rent must be paid in full (high arrears may result in us ending the agreement and removing access to the garage)
Customer Support
Income Advice Team
Our Income Advice Team can provide you with support and advice on maximising income and claiming benefits. The team have recently helped over 900 customers claim £2.67million in additional benefits and grants that they didn’t know they were entitled to. We are aware of the current financial pressure’s customers are facing with increases in fuel, food and household bills and we’re here to help.
Try using our ‘Benefit Calculator’ to provide you with information about benefits that you may be entitled to claim and find out more about the widest possible range of support. You can access the ‘Benefit Calculator’ and other support information here.
Will Housing Benefit cover the increase in rent and service charges?
If your personal circumstances haven’t changed, then housing benefit will be increased in line with rent and eligible service charge increases. We will inform the Local Authority of the new charges – you do not need to do anything.
Our Income Advice Team can help with claiming housing benefit or click here to find out more.
Will Universal Credit cover the increase in rent and service charges?
If your personal circumstances haven’t changed, then Universal Credit (Housing Element) will change to cover the increase in rent and eligible service charge increases. Please note:
- You will need to inform the DWP (Department for Work and Pensions) of the increase in rent – you can do this by logging into your Universal Credit Journal by clicking here.
- Please be aware that any delays in reporting changes to your rent may cause incorrect amounts being paid for the housing element and may cause rent arrears
If your circumstances have changed and you need to claim Universal Credit, you can do this by clicking here.
Remember to inform us if you intend to make a Universal Credit claim.
I pay my rent by Direct Debit, what should I do?
If you pay your rent Direct Debit, you don’t need to do anything – we will amend the payment amount to reflect your new rent total. You should receive a confirmation of the new Direct Debit amount from our payment provider’s ‘ALLPAY’ advising you of the change to your Direct Debit payment.
If you don’t already pay by Direct Debit and you would like to, please contact our Income Team who can set up a Direct Debit for you. You can do this by calling us on 0808 100 9596.
I pay my rent by Standing Order, what should I do?
If you pay your rent by Standing Order, you will need to amend the amount to ensure the new rent amount is covered. You will need to do this by contacting your bank to make the changes before Monday 7th April 2025.
I pay my rent by using a Paypoint Card, what should I do?
If you pay your rent by using a PayPoint card, you will need to adjust your payments to reflect your new rent amount from Monday 7th April 2025 and continue to pay as you currently do.
Coming soon...
We’ve been making some improvements to MyMagenta, our customer portal which means you can securely make a payment, check your rent balance and soon you will be able to book your own repairs and choose your own appointment time.
Look out for more updates coming soon or click here.