The distribution of housing association rents within local authority areas in the first year of rent restructuring

This Briefing Paper describes the spatial pattern of housing association rents across England in the first year of the rent-restructuring regime. It examines the extent to which housing associations' current average rents for given property sizes differ within each local authority area; whether there is a geographical pattern in these differences across the country; whether rents within each property size are converging; and whether the observed pattern of rents is directly related to a number of other factors unaffected by the rent restructuring formula. • The general pattern is of moderate variation in average rents between housing associations (HAs) within local authority areas (LAs). • In over 70% of all LAs the difference between the highest rent and the lowest rent, within each property size, is less than half of the average rent. • The extent of variation is not the same within each property size. Average rent variations for bed-sits and four-plus bedroom properties tend to be less than for other sizes of dwelling. Thus: o In approximately half of all LAs the difference between the highest and lowest rent for bed sit and four-plus bedroom properties is less than a quarter of the average rent; o In approximately a quarter of all LAs the difference between the highest and lowest rent for three bedroom properties is less than a quarter of the average rent; and o In fewer than 15% of all LAs the difference between the highest and lowest rent for one and two bedroom properties is less than a quarter of the average rent. • Variation in average rents is greatest in London. Across the rest of England there is no clear geographical pattern-LAs with high variations are scattered across the country. • Data for the period 1999/00 to 2001/02 for two bedroom properties suggest that rents are converging in many areas. For England as a whole, in each year the range of rents decreased in 61% of LAs (but not necessarily the same LAs). In just over a third of LAs the range of rents decreased for two consecutive years, compared to 13% of LAs that experienced an increase. • Data show that changes are not consistent year on year within each region. However between regions there is a pattern. During the period 1999/00 to 2 2000/01 high proportions of LAs in the northern regions experienced a reduction in the range of rents. Over the …