Shelter blames rising rents and housing benefit freeze for driving homelessness
4 months ago | 18 comments
Government defends freeze of Local Housing Allowance rates
8:00 AM, 21st January 2026, 3 months ago
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The government has claimed a range of factors were considered when Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates were frozen for a second time in a row.
During the Autumn Budget, ministers announced that LHA rates will remain frozen for a second consecutive year in 2026/27.
According to government data, almost 1.7 million private rented households across the country were receiving housing cost support as of August this year, with 53% of those households facing a gap between their housing benefit payments and their monthly rent.
Challenging fiscal context
In answer to a written question about the adequacy of LHA rates, the government said the LHA rates were last increased in 2024.
Minister for Work and Pensions, Stephen Timms, said: “Local Housing Allowance (LHA) determines the maximum levels of housing support for households claiming Housing Benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit and who rent in the private rented sector. LHA is not intended to cover all rents in all areas.
“In April 2024, LHA rates were increased to the 30th percentile of local market rents, costing £1.2bn across Great Britain (GB) in 2024/25 and £7bn over five years.
“LHA rates were reviewed at Autumn Budget and will remain at current levels in 2026/27. A range of factors were considered, such as rental levels across Great Britain, the challenging fiscal context, and the impact of current levels of housing support
“For those renters who require additional support to meet a shortfall in rent costs, Discretionary Housing Payments are available from local authorities.”
One-way street to hitting low-income tenants
As previously reported on Property118, chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) Ben Beadle warned the current freeze on LHA rates, combined with a 2-percentage-point increase in taxes on dividends, property, and savings income in the Autumn Budget, will ultimately harm renters.
He said: “It beggars belief that the government thinks it is helping renters.
“Piling on further tax rises that will drive up rents, whilst keeping housing benefit rates frozen, is a one-way street to hitting low-income tenants the hardest.
“This can only be described as a deeply regressive package that will make life more difficult for renters across the country.”
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Member Since October 2022 - Comments: 28
10:42 AM, 21st January 2026, About 3 months ago
No problem financing the illegals though?
How are these idiots in charge of the purse strings and taxpayers money??
Member Since November 2017 - Comments: 263
11:18 AM, 21st January 2026, About 3 months ago
I can’t help but think this is a typically misguided way to try and keep rents down. Between this and the arbitrary limits imposed by Universal Credit, based on postcode I believe, if you have tenants that rely on any kind of housing support from ‘benefits’, there is going to be a problem.
Member Since June 2015 - Comments: 333
11:34 AM, 21st January 2026, About 3 months ago
In my area LHA is nowhere even close to the cheapest available properties (never mind the 30th percentile).
The cheapest one bed is £70 pcm more than LHA, 2 bed £155 more, 3 bed £250 more and 4 bed £304 more. That’s a hefty shortfall on the absolute cheapest available properties. When looking at 30th percentile properties the difference is much greater.
Cheap properties are going to be inundated with applicants. Many will have decent jobs and be financially self sufficient. Given the choice most landlords would prefer to avoid the risk and hassle of dealing with DWP. We will naturally let to the person who appears to be the best applicant. Claimants are often thoroughly decent people who will look after the property and stay for years but the DWP involvement does add extra risk.
I have several tenants who receive UC top ups. Sometimes I will go along with the rent freeze, sometimes I won’t. I didn’t increase rents much or at all on those properties last April. It’s unsustainable to not increase them this April. Fortunately the rest of UC is going up by 6.2% and minimum wage is increasing by 4.1%. Social Housing rent is going up by 4.8% so it seems that kind of increase would be affordable.
Member Since October 2022 - Comments: 205
8:22 AM, 22nd January 2026, About 3 months ago
From comments I’ve seen previously reported, I suspect that this is all about putting less money into the pockets of greedy landlords who, according to one politician, should be housing people for free.