Desperate Councils Buying Back Homes They Were Forced To Sell

With housing waiting lists higher than ever, eviction rates rocketing and stock dwindling through right to buy and the impending compulsory sale of high value housing, some councils have resorted to desperate measures. Freedom of information requests show that of the £1bn raised since 2012 to replace right to buy, £27.3m of it has been used to buy back homes sold under right to buy. The government encourages the sale of council houses by offering attractive discounts to tenants, who understandably choose to buy. The council is then faced with dwindling stocks while waiting lists lengthen and homelessness spikes. So it uses its cash to buy back the homes it could not afford to lose in the first place. Read more on the Guardian website.

Evictions Soar Since Housing Benefit Cuts Began

The number of people being evicted from their rented homes has increased by almost 50 per cent since housing benefit cuts were introduced four years ago, it has been revealed. Figures from the Ministry of Justice show that 10,361 households in England and Wales were repossessed by county court bailiffs between April and June this year – equivalent to more than 23,000 people. During the same period in 2011 there were 7,072 repossessions. The MoJ report said the trend in repossessions by county court bailiffs appeared to be in contradiction to that seen in claims, orders and warrants – a situation it attributed to the time it takes for claims to be processed through to the repossession stage. Read more on the Independent website.

Eviction Action against Private Rented Sector Tenants Reaches Record High

Record amounts of eviction action is being taken against the city's tenants in the private rented sector, the News can reveal.  Cambridge landlords have launched more than 70 claims for eviction through the courts over the past 12 months, according to analysis of figures released by the Ministry of Justice. And it is feared this is just the tip of the iceberg with regards to tenants being evicted in the city. The News recently revealed that cases of homelessness coming forward to the city council had also reached record levels, with the past 12 months seeing a 41 per cent increase. Read more on the Cambridge News website.

Number of Evicted Tenants Is Soaring

Soaring numbers of tenants are being turned out of their homes by bailiffs. The surge in evictions was blamed by Labour on the failure of wages to keep pace with rent increases, as well as the introduction of the so-called “bedroom tax”. County court bailiffs repossessed 41,195 properties on behalf of landlords in the 12 months to September. Labour said it estimated 90,000 people had been evicted over the period. The total represented a 49 per cent increase on the 27,628 evictions over the same period four years earlier. Read more on the Independent website.

Evictions Rocket as Welfare Reforms and Rising Property Prices Hit Home

The number of tenants evicted from their homes in England and Wales hit record levels in November. Figures from the Ministry of Justice show that 11,100 properties were repossessed by bailiffs between July and September this year, the highest quarterly figure since records began in 2000. The homelessness charity Shelter estimates that over 1,300 people a day (560 households) in England are put at risk from eviction or repossession. Read more on the Guardian website.

Eviction Rate Doubles Under 'Unjust' Bedroom Tax

A council's eviction rate has doubled since the government's controversial bedroom tax came into effect last April. A freedom of information request found that Norwich City Council evicted 16 households due to rent arrears between April 2013 and January 2014, compared with eight in the same period the year before. Read more on 24dash.