Half of renters are living in cold, damp homes – Citizens Advice

Half of renters are living in cold, damp homes – Citizens Advice

9:46 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago 46

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Nearly half of private renters in England are enduring freezing, damp or mouldy homes, Citizens Advice has warned.

And, the charity claims, half of these tenants have endured these conditions for over a year.

It also says there has been a surge in eviction cases and it is helping nearly 100 people every day who are facing Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions.

The government is now being urged to end Section 21 and force landlords to improve energy efficiency in their properties.

‘Should be a fundamental right’

The chief executive of Citizens Advice, Dame Clare Moriarty, 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.”

She added: “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.”

Generational decline in living standards

Citizens Advice says the crisis is exacerbating a generational decline in living standards in the private rented sector.

It says that renters on low incomes are projected to spend 53% of their earnings on housing and energy this year.

That figure dwarfs the 46% for social housing tenants and 40% for homeowners.

The organisation also claims that a third of private renters have resorted to borrowing to cover rent.

And 17% choose not to use the heating, hot water or electricity.

Third of renters who have experienced damp

However, the research also reveals that a third of renters who have experienced damp, cold or mould haven’t complained to landlords, fearing eviction or rent rises.

Citizens Advice is now demanding reform of the PRS and is urging the government to address affordability, disrepair and security issues.

This includes permanently linking financial support for renters to real rent prices, implementing a watertight ban on Section 21 evictions, and requiring landlords to improve energy efficiency to a minimum EPC rating of ‘C’.


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Cider Drinker

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9:10 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago

I’d love to know how this data was gathered.

According to the English Housing Survey, just 10% of private tenants reported damp issues in 2022-23. That’s still too many but it is a far lower number than that reported by CAB. Someone’s lying.

Cold homes are likely to be more common than we would like and the coldness could be causing more damp. Homes are cold because of the price of energy to heat them. I know plenty of tenants that chose to spend their ‘cost of living payments’ on takeaways and booze. Others will have spent it on drugs.

When will this constant barrage of anti-private landlord (and anti-private tenant) rhetoric end?

GlanACC

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9:43 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago

Cobblers, what was the sample size ? .. and presumably they only counted people who complained to them - and how many were non PRS tenants (Housing Association Tenants)

This lot are worse than Shelter, at least Shelter have never spouted this statistic (plenty of time for that though)

Judith Wordsworth

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9:45 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago

Put the heating on then these homes wouldn’t be cold and damp.

An ex tenant of mine would rather have the latest iPhone for herself and exch of her children than put the heating on, and ran a car and had her annual 6 weeks holiday in Zimbabwe every year p. Oh and was in arrears in her rent!

Paul Essex

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9:45 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago

Dear Citizens Advice, we are happy to relieve this dreadful situation by removing tenants from the PRS and selling these awful properties to remarkably happy first time buyers.

The properties then magically get better.

TheMaluka

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9:52 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago

50% of the tenants who approach CAB. I suspect that this is not a statistically valid sample.

Ian Narbeth

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10:03 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago

Reply to the comment left by Paul Essex at 24/07/2024 - 09:45
Good point. If a house is cold, apply heat! Mould is caused by not heating properly, not ventilating properly (perhaps in an attempt to keep heat in) and not attending to it promptly and with the right cleaning products.

Why are there not a similar number of complaints about mould from owner-occupiers? Oh, I know why. Because they cannot pass the buck to someone else.

Bob Levin

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10:17 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago

The CAB report is complete rubbish. Presumably based on the concerns of people who access their service. I would like to know how many tenants contact the CAB to say what wonderful accommodation and landlords they have.

Kopf Schmerz

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10:27 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago

Reply to the comment left by Cider Drinker at 24/07/2024 - 09:10
You aren’t allowed to counter the propaganda from our ever self expanding institutions. Heretic!!

John MacAlevey

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10:31 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago

This is tosh.

I manage several hundred units, I never have reports of cold or damp, only mould issues which is lifestyle & inaction by the occupants, quickly dealt with by issuance of council guidance & friendly advisory visit.

Susan Robinson

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11:00 AM, 24th July 2024, About 4 months ago

So the report (click on "research" in final paragraph of the article) says 4.8m renters, sample size 2015 - about 0.04%, so not really representative of the population of private renters. Survey of these 2015 responders undertaken online over 2 days, speed no doubt contributing to the level of response.

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