Shaun's Story - The true cost of 'no fault' evictions
Generation Rent supporter Shaun discusses the financial and emotional costs of Section 21 'no fault' evictions.
What are the main parties offering renters in Scotland?
Today (6th May), Scotland will elect 129 members of the Scottish Parliament. We have published a manifesto here.
What are the main parties offering renters in Wales
Today (6th May) voters in Wales will elect 60 members of the Welsh Parliament (Senedd). We have published a manifesto here.
What we're demanding
Renting in Wales needs to be safer, fairer and more secure. Welsh renters can still be evicted for no reason, they need more stability and an end to Section 21 'no fault' evictions. There also needs to be tougher penalties for landlords who break the law. Wales now has a national register of landlords, however, there are still improvements that could be made to protect renters from criminals. Renters in Wales remain vulnerable to rent increases. Even though these can technically be challenged through the Rent Assessment Committee, only three did this in 2019/20. This must change.
What are mayoral candidates offering renters in city regions?
On Thursday, eight city regions elect a Metro Mayor. We have published two manifestos:
- A manifesto for London, which contains 1m private renter households and has had a Mayor for 20 years
- A manifesto for the rest of England. Between them, Greater Manchester, West Midlands, Greater Liverpool, West of England, Cambridge and Peterborough, West Yorkshire and Tees Valley contain around 750,000 private renter households and where the office of Mayor is still relatively new (completely new in the case of West Yorkshire).
Three quarters of tenants in unsafe homes go unprotected
Renters rely on Councils to stand up for them against criminal landlords. When facing dangerous living conditions, mould, damp or disrepair, Councils should step in and force landlords to make their properties legal. However, our new research has revealed that 75% of tenants in unsafe homes go unprotected.
Evictions are hard to stop - even when they're illegal
Although landlords don't need a reason to evict you in England and Wales, they must still follow certain rules. If you don't move out after your notice period ends, the landlord must apply for a possession order in court, then only bailiffs appointed by the court can physically remove you from your home.
If the landlord tries to evict you themselves, it's a criminal offence under the 1977 Protection from Eviction Act. That includes changing the locks, dumping your belongings outside, cutting off the electricity or water supply and other types of harassment. The penalties include paying back up to a year's rent.
Making homes safe and secure in Scotland
As Scotland goes to the polls on Thursday 6 May, we have published our manifesto of policies the next government in Holyrood must adopt to create a fairer rental market.
In recent years Scottish renters have gained a number of new protections, which are currently denied to private tenants in England and Wales. Landlords can no longer evict tenants without a reason, which provides some security, but tenants are still vulnerable to unaffordable rent increases and loopholes that allow landlords ways around this legislation.
Making homes safe and secure in Wales
Private renters in Wales have a rough deal. Landlords can evict without needing a reason, meaning no security over your home, and little confidence to request repairs and improvements. For landlords who break the law, the penalties are not much of a deterrent.
What's worse is that the Welsh government is falling behind other parts of Britain - they do not propose to end evictions without reason (Section 173) as the government in Westminster has promised renters in England.
Generation Rent has published its manifesto for the next Welsh Parliament, which is being elected on Thursday 6 May.
700,000 renters hit with unfair eviction notices during pandemic
One in 12 private renters has been given notice to move out without a reason since March 2020, a new poll by Survation reveals today.
The survey, commissioned by us, indicates that as many as 694,000 private tenants have been served with a Section 21 notice during the pandemic, which allows landlords to evict tenants without needing a reason.
The survey also found that one in three private renters fears that they will lose their home in the year ahead – which represents nearly 3 million adults in England.
Londoners need a Mayor for Rent Controls
Paying more than a third of your income in rent is considered unaffordable. However, rent on a typical two-bedroom home costs some 45% of a full-time salary in London, analysis by Generation Rent finds today.
Moreover, private renters in nine London boroughs face paying half of their income or more on rent.
London's skyrocketing rents are pushing families into poverty and financial stress, and making it harder to save or to start a family.
The dangers women face as private renters
Content Warning: Sexual violence and Rape
The Sarah Everard case and Clapham Common vigil earlier this month have once again brought the ugly realities of violence, and especially sexual violence, towards women, to the foreground. These attacks on and manipulations of women cut through every part of our society, including the private rental market. This can perhaps most clearly be seen in the crime of Sex for Rent, which sheds a light on the depths of exploitation women face in every facet of their lives.
Rishi Sunak has missed an opportunity to end the Rent Debt Crisis
The Government has failed to bring in measures that would end the Rent Debt Crisis. The Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, set aside no additional funding in yesterday's Budget to pay off rent arrears accrued under the pandemic, or to increase Local Housing Allowance to cover actual rents.