Tenants of a social landlord in the region are facing a massive hike in service charges on top of a rent rise.
A Dumfries resident in a Loreburn Housing Association property contacted the Standard concerned about the increasing costs which will leave them nearly £700 a year worse off.
Communal cleaning charges have risen from £3.60 a week to £10.36 with fire alarm and emergency light upkeep costs of £3.55 a week being introduced.
The tenant’s weekly bill for rent and other housing charges has risen from £80.84 per week to £93.86, a difference of £13.02 or £677 a year.
“It’s completely shocking and totally unnecessary,” said the tenant, who did not wish to be identified.
“The rent increase is not that significant but what is significant are the other charges. The rise in communal cleaning charges by £7 per week is ridiculous.
“To go from £3.60 to more than £10 is phenomenal.
“They’re here for about 10 minutes of work a week. How do they justify that rise for a few minutes of work?”
In addition “service charge admin fees” have trebled from 50p to £1.54.
In total it’s a 16 per cent increase in the weekly bill and the tenant wants to see charges reviewed and to have costs properly explained by Loreburn.
There are concerns for how those living in social housing accommodation will be able to afford the increases.
The tenant said: “A lot of people are unhappy with these charges and the increases.
“I have only seen someone come and check and change the fire alarm lightbulb one time.
“I don’t know where a lot of people living in Loreburn homes are going to get this money from. Money is tight enough for a lot of people. These charge increase are going to make things worse.
“I keep wondering how people are going to pay for this.
“This hurts people that generally don’t have enough to get by and they still have to face these high charges.
“They should understand and handle this situation a lot better than they are.
“I’d like to see the fire alarm charge become the responsibility of the landlord and the cleaning charges need to be reviewed. Surely there is a cheaper way?”
The housing association provides more than 2,500 homes across Dumfries and Galloway.
A Loreburn spokesperson said a charge for emergency lighting has been applied following installation to comply with fire safety requirements and no charge is made for a fire alarm system.
Costs arise from being independently tested every six months.
The spokesperson added: “Revised charges have gone through a period of consultation with customers since later 2021, during which charges and the reasons for any changes have been explained and customer feedback requested.
“Where costs do apply, these are for additional services which keep customers safe in their homes and ensure developments are well maintained.
“The difficult reality is we’re beginning to see the impact of the wider economic challenges with costs increasing.
“We know these increases come at a difficult time and encourage anyone who is struggling to get in touch.”
