• PRIVATE renters now make up over one-third of households in Camden and are the largest group of residents if defined by housing tenure.

So we were very concerned to see new research carried out by Shelter has revealed that nearly a fifth of renters estimate they will lose their job in the next three months as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The poll, carried out by YouGov found 24 per cent of renters had already seen their income fall or had lost their job as a result of the pandemic.

Renters now make up 11 million people in England alone, so this will mean a huge and devastating impact not only across the UK but also in this borough as well.

Anybody who thinks this will just impact on younger people needs to think again, as we’ve recently been contacted by one of our older members who has seen his income reduce and is now trying to borrow money to pay his rent.

Many people will also look to claim housing benefit to cover this, but the problem is that the housing element of universal credit only covers the lowest third of market rents in an area, meaning those paying average or above average rents, like here in Camden, will face a big shortfall.

Long before anybody had ever heard of COVID-19, very expensive boroughs like Camden were becoming no-go zones for anybody looking to rent a home through housing benefit, and we get a never-ending procession of desperate people visiting our office asking if we have a list of landlords who will accept benefit claimants (sadly, we don’t).

Even if these people are working and looking for housing benefit to make up for a low or irregular wage, they are still perceived as benefit claimants rather than workers by many letting agents.

This is why we support Shelter’s call on the government to increase universal credit allowances in line with market rents.

We also think this should be a permanent rather than temporary measure, and if they really want to save on the increasing cost of housing benefit, then it’s simple, introduce rent controls.

Polly Neate, Shelter’s chief executive, has said: “The government has rightly suspended evictions until June, so no one has to face homelessness in the middle of this pandemic. But millions of renters will be in dire straits further down the line without more government support.”

We agree. Lots of people have spoken about doing things differently after the pandemic is brought under control, and we believe this would present an ideal opportunity to take a long, hard, look at the private rented sector and its underlying principle of people being able to make a profit out of a basic human need, such as the roof over your head.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic our office is currently closed. Sadly, this means we are not able to see personal callers or answer the phone at the moment.

However we are doing everything we can to keep the organisation running by working from home and can be contacted via email at: admin@cfpt.org.uk or alternatively you can call our office mobile on 07599 206579.

If you can’t afford to call our mobile, call our office landline instead on 020 7383 0151. Leave a message and we will get back to you as soon as we can.

ROBERT TAYLOR
Organiser, Camden Federation of Private Tenants