Fife Council have agreed a rent increase of 6% for council houses from April 2025, adding £5.19 a week to the average rent.

The same increase will apply to service charges, garages, lockups and temporary accomodation. The increase will mean Fife Council’s average weekly rent will be £91.72 in the year ahead.

Water bills will rise by 9.9% from April too, although almost half of Scots homes receive some form of discount.

Council rents in Fife have already increased by more than 33% in the past decade, with information provided in a Freedom of Information release to Radio Cowdenbeath demonstrating the annual increase since 2015:

2024-25 = 5%

2023-24 = 5%

2022-23 = 2.5%

2021-22 = 1.5%

2020-21 = 3%

2019-20 = 3.2%

2018-19 = 4.9%

2017-18 = 3%

2016-17 = 2.5%

2015-16 = 3.3%

Since Labour became the administration at Fife House, the rises in the past 3 years, including 6% in 2025-26, are the highest for over a decade, but still not as high as some other councils in Scotland.

People living in Falkirk and Orkney face a 15% rise, with those in Edinburgh and Dundee rising by 8%.

Rising costs, especially in the above-inflation pulic sector pay awards, are at the heart of the argument to continually push up rent, which some households will continue to struggle with.

Fife’s spokesperson for Housing, Cllr Judy Hamilton (Lab) said any increase in the current financial climate was a difficult one to make, but that it was an essential move to support Fife’s under-pressure housing services.

“Good quality housing is absolutely fundamental – never more so than during a housing emergency. People deserve warm, safe homes that are affordable, especially those on the lowest incomes. We have a duty to ensure no one is left behind, and that every tenant in Fife can live with dignity and security.”

“Any rent increase must be set at a level that ensures we can deliver these priorities while protecting essential services. A 6% rent increase is necessary to maintain stability and sustain investment.”

“The Fife Living Rent makes sure our rent levels remain below the local authority average, below housing association rents, and significantly below private market rents. To further support tenants, we are also introducing a £1.3m Tenant Support Fund which will directly help the 28% of tenants who receive no housing benefit or Universal Credit support. It also is available to address fuel poverty so no tenant should have to choose between heating and eating.”

There was investment of £210m over the next four years to maining existing housing stock; £239m to extend the Affordable Housing Programme until March 2029; and, £4.8m to extend a programme to purchase more council housing from the open market.

Cowdenbeath’s four councillors were asked for comment but none were received.