If your landlord is increasing your rent or you’re worried about going into rent arrears or your landlord is selling up and you need to find somewhere new, this guide helps you find support to cover the costs.
Get help to pay your rent
Help if your rent is increasing
Find out about your rights and responsibilities as a tenant if your landlord increases your rent, how to challenge or reduce rent increases and get extra help to pay your rent.
Follow these steps to work out what you need to do
Check your tenancy agreement
Landlords must follow certain rules if they want to raise rent. Rules around rent increases depend on:
how much the rent increase is
whether you live in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales
whether you’re in a fixed term tenancy or a rolling contract.
Your tenancy agreement should include how and when the rent will be reviewed. It’s important to read through your tenancy agreement and check what type of tenancy you have.
Check Citizens Advice for EnglandOpens in a new window ScotlandOpens in a new window or WalesOpens in a new window, or Housing RightsOpens in a new window for Northern Ireland for more information.
Talk to your landlord
When your landlord gives you notice that your rent is going up, you can try and talk to them to make the increase more affordable.
They might be willing to compromise to keep you as a tenant. For example, if they asked to increase your rent by £100 a month, you could meet in the middle and agree to a £50 increase. It’s worth looking at similar properties nearby to see what the ‘market rate’ rent is, if you think what they’re asking for is unfair.
In Scotland, most tenants are covered by the rent capOpens in a new window which means your rent usually can’t increase by more than 3% a year, this lasts until at least the end of September 2023.
If your landlord won’t come to an agreement with you and you think the increase is unfair you might choose to take the rent increase to a tribunal.
Find out how this works on the Citizens Advice websiteOpens in a new window
Renting rules have changed if you live in WalesOpens in a new window Find out more at Citizens Advice.
Do a budget
You'll need to take a good look at your household budget to work out where you can cut back to see if you can absorb the increase.
Our living on a squeezed income section is packed with tips to help you find ways to cut back on household bills and other living costs, as well as how you can boost your income.
Use our Budget Planner to help you get a better overview of your spending, so you can see where you could make savings.
Find benefits to help pay your rent
If you’re struggling to pay your rent, there are things you can do to get help.
Follow these steps to work out what you need to do
Do a benefits check
If the cost of living increases are squeezing your household finances, it’s worth checking what benefits you can get to help with housing costs. You might be able to get extra money to help you pay your rent.
Our Benefits Calculator only takes a few minutes to complete.
Apply for a Discretionary Housing Payment
If you already get benefits but your rent isn’t covered by what you receive, you might be eligible for Discretionary Housing Payments from your local council.
What you’ll receive will depend on your circumstances. These payments can be claimed for several months and don’t need to be repaid.
Check if you qualify for grants or funding
If you’re on a very low income, you might be able to get extra money from local charities and organisations, which you won’t have to pay back.
You can use the Turn2Us Grants SearchOpens in a new window to find funding that doesn’t need to be paid back.
Apply for the Household Support Fund
Local councils can also provide help with the Household Support Fund. Depending on your situation, the Household Support Fund can help you get:
essentials to keep warm and clean
appliances such as fridges, freezers, ovens or slow cookers
energy efficiency measures or insulation installed
your broadband or phone bills covered
essential transport costs, such as car repair or paying for petrol
food vouchers to families during the school holidays.
Help if you’ve got rent arrears
If you’ve missed a rent payment or fallen behind with payments, it’s important to quickly act.
Follow these steps to work out what you need to do
Check how much rent you owe
Make sure the rent your landlord says you owe is the right amount. Have a look at your:
bank statements, or
receipts.
If you get any benefits paid directly to your landlord, check with your local councilOpens in a new window to find out how much your landlord has been paid.
If you’ve kept a record of all your rent payments, make sure they add up correctly. If you haven’t kept a record, ask your landlord for a statement of how much rent you’ve paid.
Talk to your landlord
If you’re behind on your rent, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll be evicted. Speak to your landlord to:
explain your situation
say what you’re doing to address the problem
suggest a new date to pay your outstanding rent or a repayment plan
get any agreement confirmed in writing.
If you live in social housing or are a housing association tenant, your tenancy officer can help with managing payments, budgeting and checking you’re getting everything you’re entitled to. If paying your rent is likely to be a long-term problem, you might be offered a smaller property to help make your monthly rent more affordable in future.
Find out what to do if you’re experiencing problems when paying your rent in our guide Help with rent arrears and problems with paying your rent.
Find your nearest Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service
The Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service can help you if you live in England or Wales and are at risk of being evicted from a rental property.
This means you’re entitled to get free legal advice and representation in court from the moment you receive a written notice from your landlord.
A housing expert funded by the government will work with you to find solutions. They may be able to give you free legal advice on:
- illegal eviction
- disrepair and other problems with housing conditions
- rent arrears
- welfare benefits payments
- debt.
You can find your nearest Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service provider by typing in your postcode and ticking the box ‘Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service’ at GOV.UKOpens in a new window
Get debt advice
If you’re behind on your rent, there might be other bills you’re struggling with too.
A debt adviser can help you make sense of what you owe and go through your options with you confidentially.
Debt advice is free and can help you manage your repayments and talk to your creditors.
Have you missed more than one payment? Use MoneyHelper's Debt Advice Locator to find an adviser.
What to do if you must move
Find out your rights about getting your deposit back, getting help with finding somewhere else to live and there's advice if you're worried about becoming homeless.
Follow these steps to work out what you need to do
Make sure you get your deposit back
When your tenancy has ended, you should have your deposit returned to you unless you damaged the property, or you owe rent to your landlord.
Ask your landlord when they plan to return your deposit.
It's a good idea to take photos of the condition of the property before you leave just in case there’s a disagreement about how much deposit you should get back.
Citizens Advice has more information about how to get your deposit backOpens in a new window and what to do if you landlord won’t pay it back to you.
Check you can get extra money
If you need help getting a deposit to find somewhere to live, you can apply for a Discretionary Housing Payment from your local councilOpens in a new window These payments are specifically for housing costs and you don’t have to pay it back.
If you’re already getting benefits including Universal Credit and other means-tested benefits, you can apply for a Budgeting Advance or Budgeting Loan to help with your deposit. These are interest-free and repayments are taken out of your benefits.
Find out how it works, if you’re eligible and how to apply in our guide Budgeting Loans and Budgeting Advances.
Get help finding somewhere to live
If you can’t find accommodation that you can afford that's suitable for you or your family, your local council might help. Find more about getting a council home on the Citizens Advice websiteOpens in a new window
If you want to rent privately you may be able to save money if you rent directly from a landlord rather than through a letting agent.
If there are rental properties you can afford and want to apply for but can’t because the advert states that they won’t accept people on benefits, this is housing discrimination.
Find out if you can claim it’s discrimination on the Citizen’s Advice website.Opens in a new window
If you’re worried about becoming homeless
Contact your local council to:
check if you can get emergency housing from your local council
ask for contact details of hostels, night shelters, refuges and bed and breakfasts.
Shelter has some guides about what the council can do in EnglandOpens in a new window WalesOpens in a new window and ScotlandOpens in a new window and you can find support if you live in Northern Ireland on the Housing Rights websiteOpens in a new window
Citizens Advice can help with applying for homeless help from the councilOpens in a new window including making an application.
Check your rights if you're being evicted
There are things your landlord must do to formally serve notice. They must:
give you a section 21 or section 8 notice
get a possession order from court if you haven't left by the date on the section 21 or section 8 notice
apply to the court for a warrant of possession if you haven't left by the date on the possession order.
It usually takes a few months from getting your notice and having to move out. The timeline depends on what type of notice you receive.
If your landlord is seeking possession, they might be happy to let you out of your tenancy earlier than your contract allows if you find somewhere else to live.
If you think your eviction might be illegal, there are ways of challenging it. Find out how you can do this on the Shelter site for EnglandOpens in a new window ScotlandOpens in a new window or WalesOpens in a new window and on Housing Rights for Northern IrelandOpens in a new window
Have you missed a payment?
If so, now is the time to get debt advice
-
It’s free and confidential
-
Gives you better ways of managing your debts and money
-
Ensures you’re claiming all the right benefits and entitlements