NEW RESEARCH from Citizens Advice finds almost one in two (45 per cent) private renters in England are currently experiencing damp, mould or excessive cold in their home, and half (48 per cent) of them have been living with these disrepair issues for over a year.
This new data shows private renters are some of the worst affected by a generational decline in living standards, forced to pay rapidly increasing sums despite poor housing conditions. Private renters on a low income (households in the bottom two income deciles) are expected to spend 53 per cent of their income on energy and housing costs this year, according to the charity’s analysis. That compares with 46 per cent of those living in social housing and 40 per cent for those who own their homes.
Citizens Advice says this is pushing private renters to breaking point. A third of private renters in England (32 per cent, equivalent to 3.4 million) have had to borrow money to cover their rent, and 17 per cent have gone without heating, hot water, or electricity to do so.
Precarious living
This ‘double whammy’ of unaffordability and poor quality housing in the private rental sector is made worse by tenants’ lack of protection and security. Renters live with the constant threat of losing their home and lack the proper processes to challenge their landlord. This leaves them running the risk of receiving a retaliatory eviction when they do speak up.
This fear is very real. Citizens Advice is helping almost 100 people a day with section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions. More than a third of renters (37 per cent) who have lived with damp, cold or mould say they have never complained to their landlord, with 51 per cent citing the fear of retaliation, including eviction or a rent increase, as the reason.
Hayley contacted her local environmental health team about the extensive mould in her property, which she feared was harming her young children’s health. Shortly after she complained about the mould, her landlord served Hayley and her family a Section 21 ‘no fault’ eviction notice.
“Our house was awful. It was freezing cold: the double glazing in all the windows had blown, the front door had a breeze you could feel coming through it and there were cracks in the walls. But by far the worst part was the mould. I believe it caused my children to get eczema and other skin issues – whenever the mould flared up on their bedroom walls, their skin would flare up too.
“We had no direct contact with the landlord in the five years we lived there. Everything had to go through a letting agent but we were totally ignored almost every time we reported anything. Then about a month after I contacted environmental health, we came home to find we’d been served a Section 21 notice.
“I’ve gone through a lot in my life, but this has been by far one of the worst times due to all the stress. The best way I can describe it is: if you’re a renter, you’re only ever two paychecks [sic] away from being homeless.”
Citizens Advice says the government must recognise the dire state of the private rented sector and bring in robust legislation to address three key areas: affordability, disrepair and security:
- Permanently link financial support for renters to real rent prices by matching Local Housing Allowance to the cheapest 30 per cent of rents in an area
- Bring in strong legislation, as promised, to reform the rental sector including a watertight ban of Section 21 evictions that closes all loopholes so renters feel confident challenging housing conditions and unfair rent hikes
- Require landlords to improve the energy efficiency of their properties by bringing them up to a minimum of EPC C
Dame Clare Moriarty, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said: “A warm, safe home, free of damp and mould should be a fundamental right. Yet private renters are paying through the roof for increasingly decrepit housing which eats up their hard-earned cash and puts their health at risk. To make matters worse, renters have little power and live with the constant threat of eviction hanging over their heads.
“The government must follow through on its promises and improve the lives of private renters. This means raising the quality of privately rented housing, tackling runaway rents, and bringing in a watertight ban of section 21 evictions so renters aren’t afraid to challenge poor conditions.”
* Source: Citizens Advice