Affordable Housing - Within Whose Means?

The term ‘affordable’ describes something which is ‘believed to be within one’s financial means’. However, looking at two housing initiatives –affordable rent and the local housing allowance – you’d be forgiven for thinking that ‘affordable’ meant quite the opposite.  Boris Johnson’s proposal to set affordable rents across London at up to 80% of market rents was defeated at the most recent London Assembly meeting.  A family looking for affordable rent in Camden will need a combined salary of £78,743, while the median family income for the borough is closer to £31,000. In Kensington and Chelsea you’d need a household income of £100,000 a year. The CLG recently released its latest homelessness statistics. Perhaps the most notable finding is that 27% of all acceptances come from applications made by people coming to the end of short-term tenancies, whose landlords have seen fit not to renew them. Read more on the Homeless Link website.