Family Resources Survey 2002-03
Tenure and housing costs
This set of tables contain information on tenure and housing costs. The FRS primarily collects data on income, but housing costs is one area of household expenditure where detailed data are collected.
Total housing costs include all payments for water and sewerage charges, Council Tax Water Charge in Scotland, structural insurance and other charges on owner occupiers relating to their property (for example, ground rent and compulsory service charges). Figures for rent paid by respondents in rented accommodation are defined in terms of eligible rent, i.e. which excludes charges that are not included in the calculation of Housing Benefit.
A rates system operates in Northern Ireland, which is different from council tax in Great Britain. This means that housing costs in Northern Ireland cannot be defined on the same basis as for Great Britain, and that no equivalent concept to council tax bands exists in Northern Ireland. Housing costs differ because water and sewerage charges cannot be separately identified in Northern Ireland, as these charges are included in the rates paid, but are not given separately. Separate tables are therefore necessary for Great Britain and Northern Ireland when housing costs information is being presented.
The Department uses the information on tenure and housing costs for the modelling and forecasting of benefits. They are also a key issue in the analysis of living standards. Housing costs vary across households. In part this reflects variations in the quality of housing, but there are also significant cost variations that do not reflect quality changes or differences. Further information on the use of housing costs in living standard analyses is given in the DWP statistical series Households Below Average Income.
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