Social Tenants ‘Burn Through’ Rent Money To Maintain Smoking Habits

Social tenants with £2,000 a year smoking habits are burning through rent money and need help from housing associations to call it quits. Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) has released stats showing a third of those living in social housing smoke, which is twice the national average. ASH says that with financial motivations to quit smoking significantly more effective than health messages, that’s something social landlords can invest in. The research references the example of a single county – Shropshire –  where, if just 5% of social tenants stopped smoking it would save an amount equal to all the county’s social housing rent arrears. Read more on 24housing.

https://www.24housing.co.uk/news/social-tenants-burn-through-rent-money-to-maintain-smoking-habits/

Rent To Buy: Council Tenants Could Be Given Chance To Pay Off Mortgages

Council tenants could be given the chance to get on the housing ladder by paying a mortgage instead of cut-price rent. Southend Council is in talks with the Government about trialling the scheme in the town as part of the Help to Buy programme. The scheme, designed to aid first-time buyers, would be extended to council house tenants, allowing them to effectively buy their properties through their monthly payments. Council leader Ron Woodley said he would only accept the arrangement if the authority could use the money to build new homes. Read more on the Southend Echo.

Tenants To Vote On Plans To Transfer Housing Stock

Steps to transfer Hammermsith and Fulham housing stock to a new housing organisation have taken a step forward after gaining council backing. A Cabinet meeting voted to back the recommendation of the Independent Residents’ Commission on Council Housing , which was published last month.

H&F will now give a vote on whether or not to pass the ownership of all of its 17,000 homes to council housing residents. The findings of the report suggested the council may struggle to raise the money needed to adequately repair and maintain council homes, whereas a new resident-led housing association should be able to secure the investment needed. However, a transfer will not take place unless a majority of tenants vote in favour of the transfer. Read more on the H&F website.

Council Tenant Evictions Soar Following Bedroom Tax Introduction

The number of council tenants evicted for rent arrears soared by 19% in the first year of the bedroom tax, government figures show. In the 12 months from April 2013, court bailiffs were called to evict 6,870 local authority tenants - up 12% from 6,134 the previous year. Almost 6,000 of these were due to rent arrears alone, a rise of 1,000 from 2012/13, the figures released today reveal. Read more on Inside Housing.

Bedroom Tax Begins To Bite On Council House Tenants

Seven months after the introduction of the so-called ‘bedroom tax’ two thirds of council house tenants affected are behind with rent, a Freedom of Information request has found. Of 2,920 Bristol council households affected, 1,990 are behind with rent, and 250 have received a Notice of Seeking Possession. Most given a notice had some level of arrears when the legislation came into force, but 14 owed nothing. Thirteen of these have continued to slide further into debt, and one has already been referred to court – as have an unspecified number of others who already owed money to the council. Just over 100 tenants have managed to transfer or exchange into a smaller social home. Read more on Bristol 24/7.