Sharp rise in renters struggling to make ends meet

Sharp rise in renters struggling to make ends meet

9:26 AM, 14th September 2023, About 8 months ago 5

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A staggering five million households will be forced to spend more than a third of their income on housing by the end of the decade, according to a new study.

The National Housing Federation reveals the sharp rise in renters struggling to meet housing costs.

The report finds that by 2030, compared to the most recent official figures from 2020/21, an extra 1.7 million households will be living in unaffordable homes – an increase of more than a third (35%).

600,000 households will be living in unaffordable PRS homes

According to the study by 2030, an additional 600,000 households will be living in unaffordable private rented homes, taking the total to 2.2 million.

More than 1.5 million families will be on the waiting list for social housing, a rise of 350,000.

A further 150,000 children will be homeless and living in emergency accommodation such as B&Bs and hostels by 2030 – an increase of 20,000.

This is the equivalent of six children in every school in England

No more time to lose

Kate Henderson, chief executive of the National Housing Federation, says without urgent action more families will live in unaffordable homes.

She adds: “There is no more time to lose. For decades, the number of families who can’t access a safe, secure home has been rising.

“Without urgent action from government, by the end of the next parliament many more families will be left living in unsuitable and unaffordable housing, affecting their health, economic security and life chances.”

Ms Henderson says the hardest hit of the housing crisis are struggling to make ends meet and said: “Many at the sharpest end of the crisis are forced to share beds or live in shared emergency accommodation such as B&Bs or hotels whilst struggling to pay for food and other essentials.

She added: “The report shows that short-term, piecemeal decisions on housing have created an emergency that will continue escalating at a rapid rate.

“But this is a crisis that can be solved. By committing to a long-term plan for housing that is properly funded and based on ambitious, measurable outcomes, politicians of all parties could begin to turn the tide and create real change for people in need of affordable housing.”


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Comments

Teessider

10:55 AM, 14th September 2023, About 8 months ago

Why not mention the abject failure of government to plan for migration? There are not enough houses for the expanding population.

As climate change makes more and more land uninhabitable, we need to accept that there will be more migration to the U.K. We should either build houses (and other infrastructure) to accommodate our fellow human beings or we should stop the population growth.

A proper conversation needs to be had so that the U.K.’s position is both clear and deliverable.

Reluctant Landlord

13:10 PM, 14th September 2023, About 8 months ago

Sharp rise in renters struggling to make ends meet
V
Sharp rise in PRS LL's planning to get out of renting

Funnily enough both camps suffering as a direct result of governement plans to 'help'....

northern landlord

15:30 PM, 14th September 2023, About 8 months ago

Because I am a paranoid landlord I see anti landlord sentiment in most PRS articles. PRS housing is not unaffordable because of greedy landlords. Landlords need to make a return on their investment, it’s business. When interest rates were low a return of 5% on a rental investment was not too bad. Now you can get that return in a savings account with no risk. The PRS is risky, one bad tenant could seriously damage your wealth (and health) and look at all the new regulations coming along where any non-compliance or a slip up comes with huge fines attached. I think that a PRS landlord these days needs a minimum return of around 8% to cover the risk and routine costs. So a rental house valued at £150,000 (2 bed terraced where I live) should command a rent of £1,000 (they don’t, but rents are rising as local landlords wake up). That this is unaffordable for some is not the landlords fault. Wage stagnation in the face of inflation is the real cause. People are getting poorer, it seems to be government policy that we will be a low wage low skill economy (you will own nothing and we don’t care if you are happy or not). First people couldn’t afford houses and had to resort to renting now they increasingly can’t afford to rent either.
The economy is shrinking the Government are never going to build affordable housing and developers won’t. Just what urgent action can the government take by the end of the next parliament, to ensure “many more families will [not} be left living in unsuitable and unaffordable housing, affecting their health, economic security and life chances” I have my suspicions, just because I am a paranoid landlord doesn’t mean they are not out to get me!

The Forever Tenant

15:57 PM, 14th September 2023, About 8 months ago

"we should stop the population growth."

You may end up getting your wish. Recent statistics show the birth rate to be 1.53. It's been dropping rapidly of late.

A society needs a birth rate of 2.1 just to maintain its numbers.

Teessider

19:26 PM, 15th September 2023, About 8 months ago

Reply to the comment left by The Forever Tenant at 14/09/2023 - 15:57
We don’t need to maintain numbers. Just like the cod in our oceans, we need a population that the planet can sustain.

Imagine if the population was halved. Most of the world’s problems would be solved.

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