Rent increases for council house tenants in the Highlands are being capped at 1% for the coming financial year.
The weekly rent on an average house will rise from £70.26 to £70.97 – an increase of £0.71 – in 2015-16.
The national average for council rent increases in 2014-15 was 3.77%.
A 1% increase will also be applied to hostel rents, traveller site pitches, garage and garage site rentals, as well as caretaking and CCTV services.
Sheltered housing tenants are subject to a weekly charge for sheltered warden services. These will remain frozen for the fifth year running.
The local authority has around 13,600 council houses and 473 tenants receiving a warden service.
In 2014-15, the council spent £15.58 million on repairs and maintenance, invested £17.5 million in improvements to meet the Scottish Housing Quality Standard for existing houses, and spent £23 million to build new Council houses.
William Gilfillan, director of community services, said: “In order to provide best value for tenants, we will continue to identify annual efficiency savings aimed at reducing unit management and maintenance costs without compromising service quality. The increase is lower than the retail price index which was 1.6% in December.”
Graham Mackenzie, chairman of the community services committee, welcomed the announcement of the low increase, adding: “Most welfare benefits for the coming year will increase by 1.2% and council rents increases must remain affordable. The 1% increase will be welcome news for council tenants.”