Industry News


Private renting struggles in East London revealed


R


esearch by the campaigning group Generation Rent into the experiences of private renters in the London borough


of Tower Hamlets has revealed that local private renters struggle with affordability, standards and disrepair in their homes, as well as understanding about how best to utilise their rights as renters. Te survey of local private renters offers a


snapshot into the experiences of tenants in the borough. 38% of the borough’s 120,500 households are private renters: • Participants ranked rent increases as the biggest issue they have experienced as a renter;


• Te majority (58.3%) of respondents reported experiencing mould or damp in the past five years;


• Nearly half (47.7%) of respondents who reported their most recent repair issue stated that their landlord or letting agent had not fixed the problem;


• Almost two thirds (64.6%) of respondents were “very” or “somewhat” concerned about the possibility of their landlord asking them to move; and


• Almost a quarter (23.4%) had faced a landlord who turned up at their property without their permission.


AFFORDABILITY Participants were given seven issues and asked to rank them in order of priority. Affordability issues were ranked highest, with “rent increases” the highest priority and “affording the monthly rent” the second highest priority. Tis was followed by “struggling to move into home ownership”.


STANDARDS AND REPAIRS Te majority of respondents had experienced mould or damp (58.3%). One respondent described their experience with mould: “I have rented several places in the past with issues of mould and in one instance I was leſt to do all repairs with no compensation and the other instant nothing was done. I developed bad asthma as a result and couldn’t breathe properly the entire time I lived there.” Over two in five (41.7%) had experienced heating


and hot water not working as well as problems with storage of rubbish outside the property. Nearly two in five had experienced leaks and draughts (39.6%) as well as a general lack of maintenance of the property and common areas (39.6%). Around a third of respondents had


experienced an infestation (29.2%) and nearly a quarter of respondents had experienced faulty electrics (22.9%). A second respondent wrote: “For hot water issues


they would usually let us know before I was affected and fix it promptly. But we had issues with our liſt for a long time now and they still haven’t managed to fix it.”


KNOWLEDGE OF RIGHTS Te majority (54.2%) of respondents stated that they were “very” or “fairly” confident about their rights as tenants. However, less than 3 in 10 knew that the local authority can support tenants in cases of harassment, and only a fiſth knew that they can support renters living in homes with a poor energy efficiency rating. Tis suggests that there could be a gap


between tenants’ confidence in their knowledge of their rights and their actual knowledge of their rights. Te vast majority (84.2%) of all respondents would welcome more information from their local council about their rights and responsibility as a tenant.


WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? Te researchers concluded that private renters in Tower Hamlets (and indeed everywhere) deserve a safe, secure and affordable home. In order for this to be achieved, a combination of effective enforcement from local councils, national legislation, and renters’ awareness of their rights is required. It is concerning that this snippet into renting


in the London borough reveals that local renters oſten struggle in finding somewhere affordable to rent and with issues surrounding poor conditions and disrepair. Te Renters (Reform) Bill is an opportunity


in improving the lives of private renters across England. But, as well as these reforms, local councils can, and do, perform an integral role in supporting and protecting local renters.


Ex Home Secretary criticised for her claim homelessness is a ‘lifestyle choice’


Homelessness charities and housing organisations publicly criticised the former Home Secretary aſter she described sleeping in tents as a “lifestyle choice”. Organisations across the whole of the


housing sector responded in unison to reject Suella Braverman’s plans to crack down on the pitching of tents in urban areas, like on pavements and squares, which she largely blamed on individuals from abroad. Housing charities rounded on Braverman by


saying sleeping on the streets was not a lifestyle choice. Tey said blaming rough sleepers will only push people further away from help and into poverty, putting them at risk of exploitation. It remains to be seen if her replacement as Home Secretary, James Cleverly intends to follow a similar agenda. Matt Downie, the chief executive of Crisis, said:


“In the last 12 months, in London, there’s been a 29% increase in people experiencing their first night


on the streets. Tis is a consequence of poverty – and poverty in this country has been exacerbated by policy choices.” Homelessness charity Shelter said Braverman’s


comments were a sign of failed government policy: “No one should be punished for being homeless. Criminalising people for sleeping in tents, and making it an offence for charities to help them, is unacceptable.” Some of her fellow MPs also joined the


criticism. Bob Blackman, head of the all-party parliamentary group for ending homelessness, said Braverman had been wrong to discuss a complex and serious issue in such terms and advised her to use “wiser” language. Braverman had posted on X, formerly Twitter,


that she planned to crack down on the pitching of tents in urban areas, which she largely blamed on individuals “from abroad”. Te former home secretary wrote: “We cannot


allow our streets to be taken over by rows of tents occupied by people, many of them from abroad, living on the streets as a lifestyle choice.” Blackman, who set up the parliamentary group in 2016, said: “Homelessness for people from the UK is not a lifestyle choice, far from it. Every case is unique. People would have ended relationships or fallen out with parents – which is why young people end on the streets. Tey may have made the wrong choices in life or had an accident and be unable to work. I obviously would never use (Braverman’s) words. She should use wiser words.” At the extreme end, it was claimed we will see


an increase in deaths and fatalities, the majority of which are totally preventable. Te proposal was not in the King’s Speech setting


out the Government’s priorities for the year ahead. A Downing Street spokesperson said it would not speculate on whether the proposal would eventually be included in the Criminal Justice Bill.


www.housingmmonline.co.uk | HMMDecember/January 2024 | 19


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