Tenant Survey Dispels Fears Of Eviction Surge

Over 95% of private tenants are paying their rent or have made an arrangement with their landlord to pay less rent or defer payment during the pandemic. Independent polling for the National Residential Landlords Association finds that 87 per cent of private tenants have paid their rent as normal throughout the pandemic. Ahead of the courts beginning to hear possession cases from 24th August, the survey shows that just over three per cent of tenants are building arrears and are unable or unwilling to repay these. Less than a third of all those with arrears have been served with a possession notice. Read more on the NRLA website.

https://www.nrla.org.uk/news/tenant-survey-dispels-fears-of-evictions-surge

Survey Shows Private Tenants Not Interested In Buying A Home

The government is urged to end its “penalisation” of landlords on the back of a new study showing the majority of the UK’s private tenants don’t want to buy a home. The Landbay study, based on responses from 2,000 private renters in the UK, has only 42% of private tenants interested in getting on the housing ladder in the near future. Read more on 24housing.

https://www.24housing.co.uk/news/survey-shows-many-private-tenants-not-interested-in-buying-a-home/

Labour’s Right To Buy Idea For Private Tenants Is Ludicrous, Says NLA

The National Landlords Association (NLA) has slammed the Labour Party’s suggestion that private tenants could be given the chance to buy their homes at a discounted rate from their landlords. In an interview with the Financial Times, Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell said he hoped the policy would be a solution to the “burgeoning buy-to-let” market. The policy replicates the right to buy scheme that was introduced by the Thatcher Government, allowing social housing tenants to buy their homes at a fraction of the market price. Read more on the NLA website.

https://landlords.org.uk/news-campaigns/news/labours-right-buy-idea-private-tenants-ludicrous-says-nla-0

Labour Could Give Private Tenants Chance To Buy Their Rented Homes

The Labour Party could bring in a radical “right to buy” scheme if it gains power at the next general election which could help millions of private tenants in the UK to buy their rented homes at a reasonable price, the shadow chancellor has suggested. John McDonnell is promoting the idea as a way to make it easier for workers to buy the homes they live in, while also tackling what he calls the “burgeoning buy-to-let market” and the problem of landlords who do not maintain their properties. The mooted scheme would echo Margaret Thatcher’s policy of the 1980s relating to government housing, under which millions of council tenants bought the property in which they lived. Read more on the East Lothian Chronicle website.

https://www.eastlothiancourier.com/news/national-news/17874228.labour-give-private-tenants-chance-buy-rented-homes/

Shelter Report Misses Target And Offers No Solutions

The report from Shelter and the National Housing Federation, pointing the finger at agents and private landlords for discriminating against tenants claiming benefits has infuriated many working in the sector.  Just like statistics that claim the ending of private tenancies, not the rent arrears that led to serving notice, are the leading cause of homelessness, rather examining the underlying causes, we get a sensational headline that fails to scratch the surface of the issues. Worst still, it offers no solutions, other than seeking to prosecute agents and landlords and have the practice outlawed as indirect discrimination.  So, what is the reality of the situation? In truth, there a host of reasons landlords and agents are reluctant to take on tenants claiming benefits. Read more on the RLA website.

https://news.rla.org.uk/blog-shelter-report-misses-target-and-offers-no-solutions/

No-Fault Evictions Making Hundreds Of Families Homeless Each Week

Analysis of quarterly eviction and homelessness data by the pressure group Generation Rent suggests that 216 households evicted every week in England under section 21 of the 1988 Housing Act are becoming homeless. These are known as no-fault evictions because landlords do not need a reason such as rent arrears or property damage to kick tenants out. The end of a private tenancy is now the single biggest cause of homelessness in England, with the number of cases more than trebling from 4,580 to 16,320 between 2009 and 2017. The analysis reveals for the first time that 94% of this rise can be blamed on no-fault evictions, which have more than doubled since 2009. Read more on the Observer website.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/aug/18/no-fault-evictions-hundreds-of-families-homeless-each-week

Private Tenants See Rents Surge By Almost £10 Billion Since 2010

Private tenants are paying an average of £166 a month more in than in 2010, analysis by the Labour Party has claimed. Rents in England and Wales are up nearly £2,000 a year since 2010 according to the party’s research. Shadow housing secretary John Healey said the figures were evidence of the Conservative Party’s “failure on housing”. Read more on the Belfast Telegraph website.

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/uk/private-tenants-see-rents-surge-by-almost-10-billion-since-2010-37211049.html

One In 25 People Homeless In England's Worst Hit Areas

As many as one in 25 people are classed as homeless in the worst-affected areas of England, a new study has shown. Homeless charity Shelter said more than 268,000 people across England are homeless, although the number is a "conservative estimate", with many more expected to be going unrecorded. It said the leading cause was the loss of a private tenancy, with three in 10 cases coming as a result. The government said it was "determined to tackle all forms of homelessness". Shelter has launched an urgent appeal to raise money for front-line services. Read more on the BBC website.

Homelessness Figures Reveal “Devastating Impact” Of Expensive And Insecure Private Renting

Evictions from the private rented sector have fuelled the massive rise in homelessness revealed by the latest government statistics, according to Shelter. The latest figures from the CLG revealed that:

·         In the last year alone, 59,260 households were accepted as homeless by their local council – a rise of 22% over the last five years

·         The loss of a private tenancy remains the single biggest cause of homelessness, with 18,750 households becoming homeless after an eviction from a privately rented home in 2016

·         Since 2011, the rise in the number of households evicted from a privately rented home has accounted for 78% of the rise in homelessness

Read more on the Housing Excellence website.

Want To Reduce Homelessness?

The Homelessness Reduction Bill heralds a renewed emphasis on prevention: government statistics show that in the last year alone, 59,260 households were accepted as homeless by their local council. That’s a rise of 22% over the last 5 years. And behind these statistics are thousands of families trying to raise children, living through the indignity and worry of being unable to house themselves. When the new legislation is implemented, councils will be legally required to try to prevent homelessness, rather than pick up the pieces. But why is homelessness rising year on year and what can we do about it? It’s rising because of short-term rentals.  Eviction from a private tenancy accounts for 78% of the rise in homelessness since 2011. Read more on the Shelter blog.

Working Families Shut Out Of Help-To-Buy

A third of working private tenants cannot afford to take advantage of three government flagship schemes to help them own a home, a study by the housing charity Shelter reveals. The help-to-buy, starter homes and shared ownership schemes are too expensive for more than 830,000 of the “treadmill families” for whom they were intended, according to an analysis of the official family resources survey and data on households with below average income. Help-to-buy allows people to buy with a 5% deposit and a government equity loan of 20% of the price, while starter homes are sold at a 20% discount to under-40s. Shared ownership allows them to buy 25-75% of a property and pay rent on the rest. Read more on the Times website.

Rent Rises Are Inevitable After Tax Clampdown On Buy-To-Let

Buy-to-let landlords may have failed in their legal battle against planned government tax relief changes for buy-to-let homes, but the real losers will be private tenants. The rules that permit landlords to offset all of their mortgage interest against tax will, from April 2017, be phased out, restricting the amount of mortgage interest landlords can offset against tax on their property investments. By April 2020 Section 24 will mean higher-rate tax payers will only receive 50% of the relief that they currently get. With many landlords likely to face the prospect of having their profits unjustly wiped out, the majority of landlords will have no option but to recoup their losses through higher rents. Read more on the Home UK website.

MPs Urged To Act On Eviction ‘Crisis’

New government figures on homelessness in England show the loss of a private tenancy remains the single biggest cause of homelessness, with over 18,640 households becoming homeless after an eviction from a privately rented home in the last year –  twice as many households as five years ago. In the last year alone, 42,940 families were accepted as homeless by their local council, rise of 35% over the last five years. On top of this, English councils dealt with 200,930 requests for help from people on the verge of homelessness in the last year. Read more on 24housing.

Homelessness Rises By 10 Per Cent

Government figures show that 15,170 households were accepted as homeless between April and June of 2016, a rise of 3% on the previous quarter and a 10% rise on the same quarter last year. The ending of a private tenancy remained the leading cause of homelessness at 32% of acceptances (41% in London), while the total number of households in temporary accommodating reached 73,120 - an increase of 9% compared to last year.  At the same time, 5,070 households were found to be homeless but not eligible for help - a 10% rise on the same quarter of 2015. Read more on the Crisis website.

Changes To Housing Benefit Since 2010

After coming into power in 2010, as part of its deficit reduction programme the Coalition Government announced a package of welfare reforms aimed at reducing public expenditure. Housing Benefit was targeted as a key area for reform due to the increasing expenditure in this area (forecast to be £23.5 billion in 2016-17 - around 11% of total welfare expenditure).  This latest briefing paper details changes to Housing Benefit announced since 2010, including the under-occupation penalty ("bedroom tax"), limiting Housing Benefit paid to private tenants via changes to Local Housing Allowances and reducing social sector rents by 1% a year for four years from 2016-17.

Download the briefing from the Parliament website.

Unexpected Rental Costs Leave Tenants Out Of Pocket

A disgruntled minority of private tenants say they are being left out-of-pocket after being hit by unexpected costs not covered by their landlord, while almost half were surprised by yearly increases in rent, according to a survey by insurance provider Endsleigh. The survey of over 2,000 tenants found 14% of tenants had been caught out by unexpected costs not covered by the landlord, for example boiler repairs, flood damage, and property maintenance, with the average cost person per year coming to £165.41. Almost three-quarters (70%) of them said they did not agree with the reasons for the charges given by their landlords.  Read more on the Housing Excellence website.

New Figures Show 'Soaring' Homelessness

The number of households accepted as homeless is 33% higher than five years ago, and the number of families in emergency hostels and B&Bs has doubled. Loss of a private tenancy remains the biggest cause of homelessness. Overall, the latest government issued statistics show:

·         In 2015 41,020 families were accepted as homeless by their local council - an 8% rise in a year and 42% higher than five years ago.

·         The overall number of households accepted as homeless by their local council was 56,500 in 2015, 33% higher than five years ago.

·         The number of homeless families living in emergency B&B’s and hostels has risen by 14% in a year and 103% in five years.

·         The loss of a private tenancy remains the single biggest cause of homelessness

Read more on 24dash.

No DHP for Bedroom Tax Households after July 2015

It is highly unlikely any discretionary housing payments (DHP) will be given to bedroom tax cases after July this year. The reason is the inevitable consequence of the reduction in the benefit cap and all local councils will have no choice but to divert DHP to benefit cap cases and away from bedroom tax cases and this also means that the majority of DHP awards will go to the private tenant not the social tenant.  The reduced benefit cap means private landlords will seek to evict all families on benefit firstly and soon to be followed by social landlords having to evict social tenant families. Local councils will simply and inevitably shift DHP payments to benefit cap households and away from bedroom tax households as to do so will save the local councils money in temporary homeless costs. Read more on the Speye blog.

Homeless Figures Treble among Private Rental Tenants

The number of people made homeless when a private tenancy ends has trebled in the last five years. It is now the single biggest cause of homelessness in England and most have been thrown out by private landlords. According to government figures, the end of a tenancy has been the most common cause of homelessness every quarter for the last two years. In the final quarter of 2009, 1,060 households in England became homeless after their private tenancies were ended, while the latest figure for the first quarter of 2014 is 3,330. And once low-income families lose a home, they can quickly get trapped. The waiting list for social housing is enormous, but the cost and insecurity of the private sector is too much. Read more on the BBC website.