Half of working private renters in England would not have enough in savings to pay their rent for more than a month if they lost their job, according to new research by homelessness charity Shelter.
In addition, the leading homelessness charity discovered one in three would be immediately unable to pay their rent from their savings if they lost their job.
With tenants’ savings all but drying up, the charity said they were some of the worst figures it had recorded since before the pandemic. The number of renters who are one paycheque away from losing their home is up by almost a third in two years.
Official government data shows private rents are at a record high, and according to Shelter’s latest YouGov poll, 55% of private renters have had their rent put up in the last year – putting immense strain on people’s finances. Nearly 40% of private tenants are now struggling or behind with their rent due to the increase in payments.
Shelter called for new social housing as the only sustainable, long-term alternative to expensive, unstable private renting. In contrast with private renting, social housing offers long term secure tenancies with rents set based on local incomes.
Additional research by Shelter found:
- More than three quarters of social renters in England (76%) say without their social home they would not be able to afford to live in their local area
- 67% of social renters say where they live feels like a safe, stable, and secure home
- 53% say living in a social home enables them to stay close to family and friends
Shelter chief executive, Polly Neate, said: ‘Private renters up and down the country are facing a crisis like never before. Decades of failure from government to build enough social housing means that the pressure on oversubscribed private renting is worse than ever.
‘The severe lack of social homes means swathes of people are barely scraping by as they’re forced to compete for grossly expensive private rentals, because there is nothing else. With food and household bills continuing to surge, the situation is precarious for thousands of renters who are one paycheque away from losing their home, and the spectre of homelessness.
‘The time for piecemeal policies is over. To jam the brakes on the housing emergency we need a genuinely affordable alternative to private renting. We know social housing works for most people because it’s secure and the rents are tied to local incomes. Instead of empty words, the government and every political party must sign up to building thousands more social homes.’
Image: Robert Linder
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