1.6 Rent and Income Review

• 1.6.1 Policy
• 1.6.2 Procedure
  • 1.6.2.1 Market Rent
  • 1.6.2.2 Rebated Rent
  • 1.6.2.3 Failure to Supply Details
  • 1.6.2.4 Change in Household Income
  • 1.6.2.5 Notification to Tenants
  • 1.6.2.6 Effective Dates
  • 1.6.2.7 Self-Employed People
  • 1.6.2.8 No Income
  • 1.6.2.9 Income from Wages and Salaries
  • 1.6.2.10 Fluctuations in Income
  • 1.6.2.11 Checking Assessments
  • 1.6.2.12 Documentation
  • 1.6.2.13 Appealing Decisions

1.6.1 Policy

Bridge Housing charges a rebated rent to ensure housing is available at a cost which tenants are able to pay. Bridge Housing's rebated rents are set according to the NSW Community Housing Rent Policy. Under this policy:

• Community housing providers (Bridge Housing) charge market rent for their dwellings
• People who cannot afford this rent (based on assessable income) can apply to be granted a rental rebate of approximately 25% of income. This varies by program. Tenants in the Social Housing Subsidy Program can pay up to 30% of income according to their income band. Tenants in the affordable housing program pay 74.99% of the market rent.
• The tenant pays the rebated rent to Bridge Housing. This equates to the tenant’s contribution to rent
• Where a tenant is assessed as eligible for Commonwealth Rent Assistance the level of rebated rent will be adjusted to take into account 100% of this additional income.

Bridge Housing will conduct regular rent reviews to ensure that tenants are paying the correct rent. Rent reviews will be undertaken at least annually.

Tenants who fail to supply details of and verification of household income by the due date for return of the required information will no longer be eligible for a rental subsidy and will be required to pay market rent.

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1.6.2 Procedure

1.6.2.1 Market Rent

Market rent is the maximum rent payable for a property. This will represent the actual rent payable for properties leased from the private rental market. In relation to capital properties, market rent will be calculated as the median rent for a property of the same type and bedroom size in the Local Government Area. This information will be derived from the Rent and Sales Report produced by Housing New South Wales at www.housing.nsw.gov.au.

Market rents on capital properties are updated annually on Bridge Housing's Tenant Management System (TMS).

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1.6.2.2 Rebated Rent

The NSW Community Housing Rent Policy sets out the information needed to calculate the amount of rent a tenant will be required to pay.

Rent Reviews
Bridge Housing will undertake a general income and rent review of all tenants at a minimum every twelve (12) months.

The standard package of forms to be provided to the tenant during a rent review will include:

• Rent review letter
• Authority to Access Centrelink income details on-line
• Tenant Declaration Form.

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1.6.2.3 Failure to Supply Details

Tenants who fail to supply details and verification of household income by the due date for return of the required information will no longer be eligible for a rental subsidy and will be required to pay market rent.

In such circumstances, the tenant will receive a final warning, in writing, and the warning will advise:

• The rent will be increased to the market rent value effective at the earliest possible date, bearing in mind the tenant must get 60 days' notice in writing of an increase in the market rent
• Market rent will continue to be charged until proof of income and the required details have been provided
• That should the ultimate provision of the required information result in the tenant being eligible for a rental subsidy Bridge Housing will be unable to backdate the rental subsidy for more than 14 days prior to the receipt of the required information.

Where the tenant has a bona fide reason for being unable to provide the required information within the period specified above, Bridge Housing can give further consideration to such circumstances.

1.6.2.4 Change in Household Income

Bridge Housing tenants need to supply details of any change in household income within 14 days.

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1.6.2.5 Notification to Tenants

Tenants will be notified in writing of any changes in their assessed rent and such notification will include a copy of the rental assessment. Where the assessed rent results in an increase in the rent payable by the tenant, Bridge Housing will ensure that any action taken to increase the tenant's rent does not conflict with the relevant provisions of the Residential Tenancies Act.

1.6.2.6 Effective Dates

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Where the tenant has a bona fide reason for having been unable to or having not provided the required information immediately at the time of the decrease in assessable household income, consideration can be given to backdating the decrease in rent to the time of the change in assessable household income. Such approval can be given by the Manager Housing Services.

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1.6.2.7 Self-Employed People

Tenants who are self-employed will need to supply proof of their income which independently verifies and level of income stated.

The income of self-employed persons is calculated on a current profit and loss statement or the most recent tax return. A tax assessment notice is not acceptable. This is consistent with the NSW Community Housing Rent Policy.

16.2.8 No Income

Where a household member who is older than 18 years is not in receipt of any income, Bridge Housing will, for the purposes of rent assessment, assume that the household member is in receipt of the standard Centrelink rate of pension of benefit.

Migrants – some new migrants have no income because they are not eligible for Commonwealth Government Assistance through Centrelink within two years of arriving in Australia. They may have no income at all and are therefore assessed as such. In this case refer to the NSW Community Housing Rent Policy.

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1.6.2.9 Income from Wages and Salaries

The required verification will be stated in the rent review documentation.
If you are a full or part-time employee pay slips showing your gross wage (ie. before tax) covering the last 4 weeks or a letter from your employer confirming your gross salary.

If you are a casual employee pay slips for the past 12 weeks or a letter from your employer confirming total gross income over the past 12 weeks.

1.6.2.10 Fluctuations in Income

Where a tenant's income varies, and it is not considered feasible to consistently change the tenant's rent assessment, it is possible to average the tenant's income over a 3 or 6 month period for the purposes of rent assessment.

1.6.2.11 Checking Assessments

The assessor should ensure that where a rent changes by $30.00 or more per fortnight, the assessment is checked by a second, qualified worker. Verification by a second worker will be noted on the copy of the assessment retained by Bridge Housing.

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1.6.2.12 Documentation

All documentation concerning rental assessment and rent reviews will be retained on the tenant's personal file.

The required documentation for each change in rental assessment will be:

• Written proof of all household incomes
• A copy of the rental assessment; and
• A copy of the notification to the tenant.

Where the assessment has resulted from a general rent review the following documentation will also be provided (in addition to the above):

• Letter notifying of rent review, current market rent and rent review details; and
• A signed declaration of household members and their incomes.

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1.6.2.13 Appealing Decisions

If a client believes we made the wrong decision they should ask for a formal review of the decision. To do this a client needs to complete an appeals form stating why they disagree with the decision. An appeals form and copy of Bridge Housing's Appeals and Complaints Policy is available from Bridge Housing's office or they can be downloaded from our website www.bridgehousing.org.au.

If a client is unhappy with the outcome of an appeal to Bridge Housing they can lodge a second level appeal with the Housing Appeals Committee. The Housing Appeals Committee is an independent agency that reviews certain decisions made by staff of Community Housing organisations and Housing NSW. For information on the Housing Appeals Committee call 1800 629 794 or go to www.hac.nsw.gov.au.

Applicants can appeal about the following Bridge Housing decisions under this policy:

• Rental Subsidy Assessment
  • Calculation, changes to or cancellation of a rental subsidy
• Capital Properties only
  • If a tenant considers that the market rent exceeds the level of rent applied in the private market they can apply for a rent determination.

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