Over 450,000 private renting parents fear ‘Covid-homelessness,’ says Shelter

Thursday, 30 July 2020 00:01

Nearly one in five (17%)private renting parents– equivalent to458,000 adults - are now more concerned their family will become homeless as a result of the Covid crisis, new research from Shelter shows. The new polling carried out by YouGov for Shelter, revealed parents living in privately rented homes are almost twice as likely to be worried about homelessness than parents living insecure social...Request free trial

The new polling carried out by YouGov for Shelter, revealed parents living in privately rented homes are almost twice as likely to be worried about homelessness than parents living insecure social homes (9%). This demonstrates just how precarious private renting is, and the stark differencethat access to a stable social homecan have.

But as the country moves tentatively out of lockdown, the chronic lack of social housinghas left struggling families with few options to escape the insecurity of private renting.In fact, a third ofparentswho rent from a private landlord (926,000 adults) feel more negative about their long-term housing situation.

The housing charity’s research suggeststhis negative outlook and fears of homelessness are not unfounded for some private renting parents, with:

49,000(2%) having to resort to using food banks since lockdown
429,000 (15%) cutting back on food to help pay their rentsince lockdown

And 550,000 (20%)taking on debt (such as overdrafts, credit cards, payday loans or borrowing money from the bank/ family& friends)to help pay their rent since lockdown.

Shelter is urgingthe government to give these hard-pressed families a way of out private renting, and the chance of a stable social home they can afford.So far, the government hasonly offered a stamp duty cut, which will be of no help to most renters who are ruled out of homeownership due to a lack of savings.The government’s ownfigures show that 73% of private renting families have no savings at all.

Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “Families are going hungry andtaking on risky debt to payprivaterent, and yet for too many even these sacrificeswon’t be enough to avoid homelessness.These parents need a way out of living hand to mouth, but so far, the government has offered them no alternative to private renting.Thismust change if we are ever goingto build this country back better.

“As rescue and recovery packages roll in, the government needs to prioritise building safe homes that everyone can afford. Cuts to stamp duty are not a solution when you’re struggling to keep aroof over your head, and terrified of becoming homeless at the hands of this crisis.Many renting families will feel like they’ve been sold down the riverwithout a paddle.

“But not all hope is lost. There is still time to build a better future that benefits everyone and not just a lucky few.The government can step in and show it cares about these families, by building social homes. Not in five or ten-years’ time, but now.Byaccelerating spending on social housebuilding,it can rapidly deliver the safe homesso many families are crying out for.”

Deborah, 54, is a cleaning manager and lives in Southport with her daughter. She was furloughed during the crisis and is now facing eviction. She has been relying on foodbanks to get by.

“My landlady at the moment keeps harassing me as she wants me out. I was furloughed, and I asked her if I could come to an agreement on rent while we saw what happened. She went ballistic and demanded I pay it all, I’ve managed to keep paying but she’s still on at me to get out. You’re always one step away from eviction.

“When I’ve finished paying my rent and my bills, it’s over £1000, and I’m left with £150 a month for food. I’m just working to pay the bills, that’s it.

“I’ve had to use foodbanks. There’s one at the end of my street. I’m trying my best to do everything I can to be a role model for my daughter but I’m rolling up at the food bank. And it’s because I can’t get a decent, affordable place to rent.

“I’m not asking for handouts, I’m just asking for a decent and affordable place to live. I worry about becoming homeless 24/7, day in, day out.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

All survey results are based on a YouGov survey of 1,058 private renters in England, online, 16+, weighted to be representative of England’s private renters using official statistics, fieldwork 4th June to 11th June 2020.322of this sample had children living in the household, and the results in this release are based on this group. 504 Social renters also completed the survey, 145 of whom had children living in their household.
The estimated number of parents is calculated by Shelter using the survey results in conjunction with population estimates from the last available household type by tenure data from the English Housing Survey, MHCLG, 2018-19.Table AT1.3 in the Headline Report, Household tables section, shows that in private rented housing there are approximately 2.775million parents of dependent children living in the household, and this is the basis for all estimated numbers of parents/ adults in this press release.
The proportion of private rented households with dependent children who haveno savings (73%) is taken from English Housing Survey, MHCLG, Annex Table 2.12: Savings by tenure and household type, 2018-19 and is the proportion among couples with dependent children and lone parents with dependent children.

The table below show all results and question wordings for the results used in this press release:

Question	Based on	%	Estimated number of people (with dependent children in household)
The Coronavirus outbreak, and the impact I think it will have/ it has had on the country and me personally has...made me worry more about becoming homeless	322 people renting privately and with children in the household who answered strongly agree or tend to agree	17%	457,888
The Coronavirus outbreak, and the impact I think it will have/ it has had on the country and me personally has...made me worry more about becoming homeless	145 people social renting and with children in the household who answered strongly agree or tend to agree	9%	172,873
The Coronavirus outbreak, and the impact I think it will have/ it has had on the country and me personally has...made me feel more negative about my housing situation in the longer term	322 people renting privately and with children in the household who answered strongly agree or tend to agree	33%	926,320
Which, if any, of the following have you sacrificed/ done in order to enable you to keep up with any rental payments since mid-March 2020: used a foodbank	322 people renting privately and with children in the household	2%	48,564
Which, if any, of the following have you sacrificed/ done in order to enable you to keep up with any rental payments since mid-March 2020: Cut back on food for myself/ partner	322 people renting privately and with children in the household	15%	429,027
Which, if any, of the following have you sacrificed/ done in order to enable you to keep up with any rental payments since mid-March 2020: Borrowed money from parents OR Borrowed money from friends/ other family OR Borrowed from bank or building society OR Borrowed from credit card OR Borrowed from payday loan OR Borrowed from overdraft	322 people renting privately and with children in the household	20%	549,520
Source: YouGov survey of 1,058 private renters in England, online, 16+, weighted to be representative of England’s private renters using official statistics, fieldwork 4th June to 11th June 2020. 322 of this sample had children living in the household, and the results in this release are based on this group. 504 Social renters also completed the survey, 145 of whom had children living in their household.