Research shows local authorities owed rental arrears
New research has revealed that local authorities in North East England are each owed an average of £4.39 million in rental arrears from social housing.
Public sector payments specialist Access PaySuite, part of the Access Group, created the Rental Arrears Index by submitting Freedom of Information requests to local authorities.
The analysis highlights a significant financial burden on local authorities that provide social housing in the UK, who are each owed on average £2.86 million in rental arrears. North East England was found to have the third highest average level of rental arrears based on the local authorities that responded.
The average owed to each local authority in North East England has increased by 10% from £4 million in 2024, and 94% from £2.27 million in 2019.
Total average value of rental arrears per local authority in 2025
- London - £6,808,781.26
- Yorkshire and the Humber - £5,794,908.58
- North East England - £4,389,929.30
- Scotland - £3,854,221.32
- West Midlands - £3,048,396.69
- North West England - £2,398,597.13
- Wales - £2,216,369.36
- South West England - £1,689,924
- South East England - £1,378,824.94
- East of England - £1,169,342.52
- East Midlands - £681,431.38
London was found to have the highest level of rental arrears, with each local authority in the capital owed £6.8 million on average - 55% more than North East England’s average.
According to the data, local authorities in North East England are owed 53% more than the UK average per authority, which stands at £2.86 million.
Yorkshire and the Humber, Scotland and the West Midlands all fall into the top five, recording the highest levels of arrears in 2025.
Authorities in the East Midlands and East of England were owed the least, on average, with less than £700,000 and £1.2 million owed per authority in each region respectively.
Commenting on the findings, Alex Common, product and engineering director of Access PaySuite, said:
“While social housing rents have fallen significantly in real terms over the past 10 years, many households are still struggling to keep up with payments. Economic uncertainty, welfare changes and rising living costs mean rental arrears continue to place a significant strain on local authorities and the communities they serve.
"If we apply our representative sample across the 229 local authorities which own social housing, the total value of rental arrears across local government could be as high as £655 million.
“For councils and housing associations, the challenge remains finding a sustainable balance between supporting vulnerable renters and maintaining the income needed to deliver essential services. The data reveals a persistent and troubling rise in the level of tenant debt that continues to outpace growth in the proportion of households in arrears, which signals serious long-term risks.
“At Access PaySuite, we work with social housing providers to simplify rent collection, giving tenants more choice and flexibility in how they pay. Making rent payments easier is one of the fastest ways to boost collection rates, cut costs, and free up resources to support those most in need.”
To explore the full findings and learn more about the financial position of social housing providers in North East England, see the complete 2025 Rental Arrears Index here: https://www.accesspaysuite.com/sectors/housing/rental-arrears-index-2025/