Activists Urge Tenants to Stop Paying Rent

Reply to the comment left by Gary Nock at 15/05/2020 - 12:35
bang on and well said

Reply to the comment left by Frederick Morrow-Ahmed at 15/05/2020 - 12:47
Hi Frederick, apologies this was a mistake, the actual figure is £147.29 per week and I have addressed this in my response to Damien which I am about to post. Regards
Joss

Reply to the comment left by James in London at 15/05/2020 - 14:12
Hi James, you are correct this was a mistake and I have corrected it in my response to Damien. My main point here remains that both tenants were awarded the full amount of their rent. Regards Joss

Reply to the comment left by steve p at 15/05/2020 - 17:49
Hi Steve, great summing up and you were spot on I am about to post Damien's response and my subsequent reply. Regards Joss

Reply to the comment left by Smartermind at 16/05/2020 - 03:25
Hi there, yes agreed I now understand that not all those "falling through the cracks" will be eligible for Universal Credit as you describe, however my point remains that we need real information here and not this at best lazy reporting and at worst deliberately misleading article. I am about to post Damien's response and my subsequent reply. Regards Joss

Hi everyone, this was Damien's response to my letter:

Dear Joss, 

The LHA rate for a single person in shared accommodation in London inner SW (among the country's highest broad rental market areas) is £116.91 a week. I think your tenant is confusing the rate with the one-bedroom rate, which is £295 but is not available to single people under the age of 35. 

From my own research into the cost of shared accommodation in my part of central London, £116.91 is barely enough to cover the rent in even the most modest shared houses. 

Across the country, the housing element of Universal Credit covers only the cheapest 30% of rents in any given area - and only since it was increased by the government in response to the current crisis. This is obviously going to be quite inadequate for most renters who find themselves out of work as a result of the crisis. 

Yours sincerely, 

Damien Gayle

Dear Damien,

Thank you for your response, which immediately begs the question:

Why did you omit to mention in your article the significant portion of those applicants for Universal Credit (who are “falling through the cracks” such as my tenants) who’s rent will be FULLY met as you state that “it falls within the “lowest 30% of rents in any given area”?

Therefore the number of people actually “scraping by” with regards to rent could not be anywhere near 1.2 million.

And you have not responded to the fact that you refer your readers to an NEF report which gives the impression that under 25’s tenants applying for Universal Credit are going to have to choose whether to buy food or pay rent with the £79 per week that is in fact awarded for living costs when there is a separate and comparatively substantial award for rent.

All this is incredibly misleading.

It seems to me that the correct breakdown and information to be examined is:

A) The NEF report states that 1.2 million private renters whose income has been affected by Corona Virus are not eligible for furlough or SEISS
B) Of those, a small portion will NOT be eligible for Universal Credit either and will be in direct need of further assistance for both food and rent.
C) Of the remainder who WILL be eligible for UC, those paying the cheapest 30% of rents in any given area will have most likely have their rent met IN FULL by the housing costs award.
D) Of the remainder, whose rents are not met in full, some will receive a “discretionary housing payment” to top up (see below), and therefore will also have their rent met IN FULL
E) The remaining portion who’s rent will not be met in full and will not receive the above DHP but who WILL still have a portion met from the UC Housing costs award and therefore will have SOME arrears.

If the NEF could provide the numbers of people in these categories then we would have a true picture of the problem regarding the need for rent assistance and we could go from there.

Evidently those in category B) will be worse off than people in category E) as if they have lost the whole of their income they would then be struggling to find the whole of their rent rather those in category E) who are only needing to find the top up amount.

So what we are really talking about here is people who find themselves in category B) and E) and what are the true numbers and how can they be helped in these unfortunate circumstances?

In both cases again I would urge them again in the first instance to enter in to discussion with their landlords as to how to deal with any arrears and this could be resolved via payment plans, rent reductions etc. Many landlords I know have already reduced rents in line with what tenants can afford and written off arrears in order to support tenants therefore taking the financial “hit” themselves. Would you care to write an article about that?

If tenants and landlords engage in open and honest discussion with real information then we can find solutions and if necessary lobby the government from a unified position for any assistance needed.

Yours sincerely,
Joss Urch

Note: My apologies, you are correct, I was mistaken regarding the figure of £295.

For housing costs in Universal Credit the most a single person in shared private housing under 35 in the Inner North London BRMA is entitled to is £147.29 per week. This is the area relevant to my tenants situation.

I note that this extrapolates to £638.26 per calendar month, in an area that covers Willesden, Hampstead, Highgate and Islington.

This is my source for the information:

https://www.gov.uk/housing-and-universal-credit/renting-from-private-landlord

I also note that on the same page is the following statement:
If your housing payment does not cover all your rent
You can apply for extra help from your local council - called a ‘discretionary housing payment’.