Ending your council house tenancy

We have a specialist team that manages and recovers: 

• unpaid rent from former tenants 
• unpaid rent for garages, garage sites and land 
• court costs from legal action 

We follow clear rules to recover or write off debt when necessary. 

Before your tenancy ends

We expect you to clear your rent account before you leave. 

We will: 

• send you a letter showing what you owe 
• try to contact you to discuss payment 
• ask for your new address 

If you are struggling to pay rent, read our guidance on rent arrears.

After your tenancy ends 

We will: 

• check for benefit adjustments and refund any overpayments to benefit agencies 
• pursue any remaining debt 
• write off small debts under £50 or debts involving deceased or vulnerable tenants 
• send a reminder letter if we have your address 
• try to trace you for up to 12 months if we do not have your address 

If you ignore the reminder letter, we will pass the debt to Sheriff Officers for collection. 

Joint tenants

All joint tenants are equally responsible for unpaid rent or charges. 

If one tenant leaves, they remain responsible for any debt until the end of their tenancy. 

Applying for housing again 

You can still apply for housing if you have unpaid debt. However, it may affect your application unless: 

• the debt is small (less than one-twelfth of your yearly rent) 
• you have made regular payments for at least 3 months 

Court costs

If we take you to court, you may need to pay legal costs. These may be invoiced to you and managed by our Finance Team or in some cases you can pay us direct - your housing officer will let you know. 

Read our former tenants rent arrears policy