UKIP’s answer to London’s housing crisis
The final manifesto we’re looking at for Vote Homes is UKIP’s Peter Whittle’s. Like all the other candidates, Peter recognises that housing is the biggest challenge facing London. But unlike the other candidates, he sees the cause as excess demand, rather than a shortage of supply.
What will George Galloway do for London’s renters?
The Respect Party candidate, George Galloway, has set out his manifesto on his home page, and we’ve updated our candidate comparison on Vote Homes. This is what he is promising London’s renters.
Caroline Pidgeon sets out housing policies
Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat candidate for London Mayor, has published her manifesto. We’ve taken a look at what she’d do to fix the housing crisis and how she compares with other candidates so far.
Sian Berry’s pitch to London’s renters
The Green Party candidate Sian Berry has already promised to establish a Tenants’ Union for London. But what else does she have up her sleeve? She recently published her full manifesto and we’ve now updated her scorecard on www.votehomes2016.com.
How to fight a rent hike in 10 steps
There’s a lot of muttering right now from the landlord lobby that they’ll be putting up rents because of changes to the tax regime and expected increases in interest rates.
The threats would sound scarier if rents weren’t already going up faster than inflation. The fact is many landlords will use any excuse to put up the rent when they get the chance. Many others value their tenants, and won’t.
If you face a rent hike, you don’t need to accept it. We’ve put together a 3 minute video on what to do to avoid paying too much.
Zac sets out his stall for renters
The Conservative candidate for London Mayor, Zac Goldsmith, has published his housing manifesto, and we’ve updated the Vote Homes policy grid with his offer for London’s renters.
As the candidate of the governing party in Westminster, it was always going to be interesting to see if he would go any further than current government policy. One of the biggest divides between the Conservatives and the other parties is on security of tenure, and it’s safe to say that Zac has stuck his neck out on this, though we’re yet to be convinced that renters will benefit from his proposal.
Renters’ Hustings – London Election 2016
More than a hundred people came to the Renters’ Hustings on Tuesday to hear candidates from five parties tell us what they’ll do for private renters if they’re elected as London Mayor or Assembly Member – a lively discussion chaired brilliantly by Buzzfeed’s Jim Waterson. All five candidates (Sian Berry: Green, Tom Copley: Labour, Joy Morrissey: Conservative, Zack Polanski: Lib Dem and David Kurten: UKIP) said they are private renters themselves, so perhaps they know how, er, ‚Äòspecial’ it is trying to survive as a private renter in this city.
Exodus from London accelerates
The London housing crisis is taking its toll on families in the capital as they move to other parts of the UK in ever greater numbers. The net number of thirtysomethings and under-10s leaving the city has increased by 25% between 2012 and 2014 according to figures from the Office for National Statistics.
We have always seen more people in these age brackets move away from London than move there, but the difference is getting bigger. In the same two-year period, rents and house prices rose three times as fast in London as the rest of Britain.
The first mayoral manifesto and other updates
We have just updated the Vote Homes policy grid with Sadiq Khan’s offering in his manifesto, which was published on 9 March. Also updated are a number of recently announced policies from Caroline Pidgeon.
Renters have been asked to pay for their OWN pension
The Labour Party’s Independent Review of Retirement Income (IRRI) has suggested that workers should be aiming to save 15% of their salary into the pension each month, according to a BBC report.
The other week, in an FT piece that went viral, Rebecca Taylor, director at the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investments, said that 25-year-olds should be aiming to pay an average of £800 a month into their pension for the next forty years. Now this is an average: less now can be balanced out by paying more later. But the message is clear: start now.