To think ending the eviction ban just as the Indian variant is spreading is a very bad idea

[Tealightsandd]

Hundreds of thousands of families and vulnerable individuals could soon become homeless all around the same time. Just as the Indian Covid variant is starting to spread...

It's a potential public health issue - and a taxpayer one too. It will cost loads to house them all in expensive but cramped (ideal Covid spreading conditions) temporary accommodation.

Rent arrears can't just keep building and landlords need the rent paying. But mass evictions during a pandemic aren't the answer.

Lots of people have lost their jobs or are too ill with Long Covid to work. Many are struggling to pay their rent.

The solution is an increase to housing welfare benefits so that tenants can afford private rents.

Separately, rent arrears and severe anti social behaviour aside (which should be dealt with by the police as well as landlords), currently England allows no fault evictions. Tenants can and are evicted, despite being fully paid up on rent. Bad at any time. Potentially deadly during a pandemic.

Buy I do not believe giving more tax payers money to landlords is the way to go

We will be - to pay for more expensive than normal housing, temporary accommodation.

This is a very unpopular view on MN but maybe if people don't want to be evicted they should pay their rent? Landlords are not charities. Nor all they all fat cats with 600 properties.

Tealightsandd

And the last time we saw housing benefit that wasn't capped we saw a huge raise in the cost of renting in the private sector.

It is a really worrying time for those renting. I honestly don't know what the answer is though. A more streamlined system maybe with more social and affordable tenancies.

The government has made it much less profitable through tax changes to run a business as a landlord. A consequence is that some landlords will now be selling up and returning the properties to the market (which most people seem to idealistically want). This was predictable. Add on lockdown and the eviction ban and there is going to be a huge demand for short term accommodation to house those evicted. Obviously lockdown was not something we could have foreseen a year or so ago, but when the eviction ban happened, there was only ever going to be an inevitable increase in demand for short term or emergency housing. Apart from taxing landlords who provide homes for people, what is the government actually doing to address this in the short term? I’m speaking as a landlord who will have to make someone homeless this year as tax changes mean it’s no longer profitable to keep it going. Our tenants can’t afford the deposit to buy so not sure taking a rental property out of the market is really helping anyone long term. Agree with others, more social housing is needed, but importantly, more options of rental properties are needed. Not everyone evicted is eligible for social housing, so this wont solve all the issues.

They should have all been evicted months ago. It's ridiculous what the government have done to landlords the past few years.

@FrippEnos

I'm talking about both.

Section 21 allows landlords to evict for no reason. It can and does mean that well behaved tenants will pay their rent in full but still get evicted. Often it's because the tenant has lost their job and the landlord doesn't want to let to someone on benefits (even when the tenant is paying rent no issue) or revenge evictions for asking about repairs. The law change wrt revenge evictions doesn't do much to stop this. It's only a temporary postponement and only if the tenant has had environmental health involved.

I support tweaks to Section 8 so that genuinely bad tenants can be evicted (wilful non payment of rent, anti social behaviour, etc) but section 21 should end. We also need housing benefit levels to meet average rents.

Regardless of anything else, whatever anyone's views on this normally, we are still in the middle of a pandemic. The majority of the population is not fully vaccinated, and the new Indian variant is potentially 50-60% more transmissible. Not the time for mass evictions. It's a public health risk.

@FrangipaniDeLaSqueegeeMop

This is a very unpopular view on MN but maybe if people don't want to be evicted they should pay their rent? Landlords are not charities. Nor all they all fat cats with 600 properties.

yep!! this a thousand times over!

Not being awful but I’m looking forward to my neighbours tenants being evicted. Their teens have had a reign of terror throughout lockdown with parties and there are actual rats in the rubbish piling up in the garden. They know they can’t be chucked out so they just do what they want. One of the kids has smashed two of the windows and a neighbours window.. this is a £2500 a month luxury house to rent!!

Those who are good tenants and are going to be found looking for new accommodation I really feel for, lack of social housing is a bit of a joke and no one ever seems to prioritize it politically

how is it a public health risk ? why is the indian variant more of a risk?

I’m speaking as a landlord who will have to make someone homeless this year as tax changes mean it’s no longer profitable to keep it going. Our tenants can’t afford the deposit to buy so not sure taking a rental property out of the market is really helping anyone long term.

It could be sold to another landlord. In an ideal world, that would be the council but I realise that's not going to happen right now. It should though.

@MontysRoseGarden

how is it a public health risk ? why is the indian variant more of a risk?

It's thought to be up to 50-60% more transmissible.

Lots of families and vulnerable individuals moving around and crammed into crowded temporary accommodation... it has potential to spread like wildfire.

Tealightsandd

I agree that this is not the time to end the "eviction ban" but landlords must have a way to end a tenancy, and I say this as a Tenant.

Not being awful but I’m looking forward to my neighbours tenants being evicted. Their teens have had a reign of terror throughout lockdown with parties and there are actual rats in the rubbish piling up in the garden.

So that should be covered by Section 8. Anti social behaviour, etc. There's no need for no fault evictions.

You should think yourself lucky. At least your nightmare neighbours are tenants. The ones where I used to live were owner occupiers.

@FrippEnos

Tealightsandd

I agree that this is not the time to end the "eviction ban" but landlords must have a way to end a tenancy, and I say this as a Tenant.

I agree. And they do. Section 8 allows landlords to end a tenancy. The difference between that and Section 21 is landlords have to have a reason to evict (need to move in themselves, anti social behaviour, rent arrears).

@FrippEnos

Tealightsandd

And the last time we saw housing benefit that wasn't capped we saw a huge raise in the cost of renting in the private sector.

Yes. We need rent control too.

I thought Teresa May announced that No fault evictions wouldn't be allowed anymore. What happened to that idea?

@Tealightsandd

It’s ok saying ‘some people have lost jobs/are unwell with long covid’ but what are the landlords who aren’t receiving rent and can’t afford to pay the mortgage supposed to do?

My OP deals with this. We need to increase housing benefits so they meet private rents.

Temporary accommodate is massively more expensive than housing benefit on a regular private rental. Huge sums are already spent on it. It's often private landlords - but they charge 5-10 times the usual market rent for a property in very poor condition.

No we need the opposite. Reduce housing benefit and stop paying out these ridiculous amounts for temporary accommodation.

@FrangipaniDeLaSqueegeeMop

This is a very unpopular view on MN but maybe if people don't want to be evicted they should pay their rent? Landlords are not charities. Nor all they all fat cats with 600 properties.

I agree with this and I say that as a tenant.

Those who are happy with mass evictions (during a pandemic) of families and vulnerable individuals.

What do you think should happen? Leave children and the disabled on the streets? Take the children away from their parents and put them in care? (That will cost many times more than raised housing benefits btw).

Obviously longer term we need more social housing - but what would you do in the short term?

No we need the opposite. Reduce housing benefit and stop paying out these ridiculous amounts for temporary accommodation.

You want children and the disabled on the streets?

Many landlords haven’t been receiving rent for well over a year and won’t receive the arrears ever. Many will be In dire straits because of it, will have had Covid, furlough, job losses. Not fair on them either, is it. No one wins.

Helena is that you?

@Grilledaubergines

Many landlords haven’t been receiving rent for well over a year and won’t receive the arrears ever. Many will be In dire straits because of it, will have had Covid, furlough, job losses. Not fair on them either, is it. No one wins.

@Grilledaubergines

Obviously the government needs to bring housing benefits into line with average private rents.

I'm definitely not Helena.