New research into the effectiveness of Repayment Agreements in the social housing sector has uncovered alarming failure rates, with 90% breaking down within three to six months.

The study also highlights opportunities to enhance the success rate of the crucial arrears management mechanism, ensuring better financial outcomes for both landlords and tenants.

The report, We Need to Talk About Agreements, published by Voicescape, draws on extensive deep data analytics, in-depth interviews, focus groups, and analysis of over 50 housing association income collection policies. It finds that while repayment agreements are a vital tool for managing arrears and supporting tenants in financial distress, a stark gap exists between their potential and real-world performance.

The importance of agreements has surged in recent years due to universal credit changes, the lasting impact of Covid, and the cost-of-living crisis. Data from the recent “Holding on to Home” project has revealed that while 9% of tenants are currently in arrears, 70% are struggling to pay rent – putting them at high risk of falling behind.

Voicescape’s research suggests that around 25-50% of total arrears are currently tied up in agreements. However, it also identifies that agreements are failing at an unsustainable rate for a number of reasons, including:

  • The reliance on housing management systems (HMS) not designed for complex repayment structures
  • A lack of real-time, accurate data to assess, negotiate and track individual cases
  • Overburdened income officers managing excessive caseloads without adequate support and training.

To support landlords in delivering a structured yet empathetic agreements process, We Need to Talk About Agreements introduces a ‘Golden Moments’ best practice framework structured in six key stages and grounded in behavioural science principles. The report also explores the role of technology and how the likes of AI and predictive analytics can revolutionise repayment agreements.

Paul Hickman, co-author of the Holding on to Home study, provided the foreword to We Need to Talk About Agreements. He said: “In light of our findings in the Holding on to Home study, this whitepaper is timely and will be a valuable resource for landlords when putting in place and administering repayment agreements.”

The report coincides with Voicescape’s recent launch of Agreements Manager – a first-of-its-kind technology platform designed in conjunction with social landlords to reduce break rates, lower management costs, and improve tenant outcomes.

Gary Haynes, CEO of Voicescape, said: “As they stand today, agreements are incredibly difficult to operationalise effectively and at an affordable cost. Our research has highlighted the degree to which changes to current systems and processes are needed.”

“Our aim with this report is to offer a new perspective and approach to harness and enable the full potential of Agreements. It also introduces our new custom-built platform to address the gap in current technology solutions.”

The full and abridged versions of We Need to Talk About Agreements are available to download free here.