Dudley Council was owed nearly £3m in unpaid rent at the end of the last financial year, according to its latest accounts.

Arrears from current tenants amounted to £1.9m while unpaid rents from former tenants added another 917,000 to the £2.8m total.

Despite the size of the arrears, accounts show an improvement on the previous year when the council closed its accounts with £3m in unpaid rent.

Housing is accounted for in a separate ring-fenced part of the council’s budget and figures for 2024/25 reveal a surplus of £24.9m, significantly better than the 2023/24 surplus of £8.6m

One of the reasons for the improved performance was an extra £7m income which included a jump in cash raised from charges for services and facilities. Income from charges rose from £383,000 in 2023/24 to £1.1m in 2024/25.

Another big earner for the council’s Housing Revenue Account was the sale of non-current assets, which include properties like homes, garages and shops used for housing services.

In 2023/24 Dudley Council made £2.5m for the sale of this type of asset while in 2024/25 the gain was significantly higher at £14.3m.

During the last financial year Dudley sold or demolished 332 dwellings and bought or built two homes which took its total housing stock to 20,733. Council tax brings in the majority of Dudley’s income and the council performed well in collecting the local tax.

Figures from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities show the average collection rate in England was 95.9 per cent in 2024/25; however, Dudley shows an assumed collection rate of 98.5 per cent.

Allowing for exemptions and tax relief the authority raised £186.3m from council tax, £11.4m up on the previous year. Income from business rates was up from 2023/24 by £5.2m to £88.1m.

The authority wrote off £500,000 in council tax and £600,000 in business rates which were deemed uncollectable.