Finance Assistant

The Housing Portfolio Team is seeking to recruit a Housing Rent Officer to take responsibility for managing former tenant rent arrears.

We are looking for an experienced Rent officer with a strong understanding of Universal Credit and Housing Benefit. The successful candidate will proactively engage with former tenants through telephone calls, emails, text messages, and written correspondence to discuss outstanding arrears, agree repayment arrangements, and review benefit entitlement where appropriate.

This role requires someone who is self-motivated, organised, and comfortable working independently. You will be responsible for managing your own workload and implementing effective recovery actions to reduce former tenant arrears in line with agreed targets and procedures.

Reporting to the Housing Finance Lead, you will be expected to maintain accurate records, monitor account activity, and demonstrate the actions taken to recover arrears in accordance with Maidstone Borough Council's arrears recovery procedure.

Key Responsibilities:

Manage a caseload of former tenant rent arrears accounts.
Contact former tenants by phone, email, text message, and letter to discuss outstanding balances.
Negotiate and monitor repayment arrangements.
Maintain accurate records of all recovery activity and customer contact.
Work independently to achieve arrears reduction targets.
Ensure all actions comply with MBC's arrears recovery procedures and relevant legislation.
Provide regular updates and performance information to the Housing Finance Lead.
Essential Requirements:

Experience in rent arrears recovery within a housing environment.
Good working knowledge of Universal Credit and Housing Benefit.
Strong negotiation and communication skills.
Ability to manage a varied workload independently and prioritise effectively.
Experience maintaining accurate records and producing performance information.
Customer-focused approach with the ability to handle sensitive conversations professionally.
This is an excellent opportunity for a motivated and experienced Rent Officer to make a tangible impact on income recovery and support effective tenancy management.