Sunday, June 25, 2017

The Growing Housing Crisis

Low wages, freezes to benefits and rising costs of renting could cause more than 1 million households ( including 375,000 with at least one person in work) to become homeless by 2020. It estimates that 211,000 households in which no one works because of disability could be forced to go.

The study by the homelessness charity Shelter shows that rising numbers of families on low incomes are not only unable to afford to buy their own home but are also struggling to pay even the lowest available rents in the private sector, leading to ever higher levels of eviction and homelessness.

The Shelter report highlights how a crisis of affordability and provision is gripping millions with no option but to look for homes in the private rented sector due to a shortage of social housing.
Shelter says that in 83% of areas of England, people in the private rented sector now face a substantial monthly shortfall between the housing benefit they receive and the cheapest rents, and that this will rise as austerity bites and the lack of properties tilts the balance more in favour of landlords.
Shelter says landlords are becoming choosier about who they rent out properties to, with many refusing to take those in receipt of benefits. Delays in payment have made them more reluctant to take on people they cannot rely on to pay up promptly.
Other factors make it near-impossible for many on low incomes to find the money to start a private tenancy. “The upfront cost of private renting prohibits low-income households from accessing the private rented sector and means that many are forced to borrow, starting a tenancy in debt,” says Shelter.

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