Mar

OFFICIAL: 53% of renters’ finances so weak they can’t pay £850 ‘unexpected bill’

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More than half (53%) of renters could not afford an unexpected, but necessary, expense of £850 compared with 1 in 10 (13%) adults who own their property outright, new research published today finds.

The Office of National Statistics (ONS) studied the impact of the increased cost of living during the last five months and found that those renting their homes, adults on the lowest incomes or those with no formal qualifications were most likely to be unable to afford this unexpected expense.

Parents of dependent children, divorcees or those separated, disabled people, and those living outside London, the South East and South West were also likely to be more affected.

The ONS data uses the affordability of an unexpected expense as a measure of financial vulnerability and helps identify households that may not be able to absorb a cost of living increase.

Rent arrears

The findings are likely to worry landlords, many of whom have been affected by rent arrears during the pandemic, while last week’s Budget offered little consolation for struggling renters who are now also being hit by spiralling energy bills.

The National Residential Landlords Association says although average rents across the country have been increasing by less than inflation, the squeeze is compounded for renters reliant on Universal Credit.

Policy director Chris Norris (pictured) adds that more than half now have a gap between what they receive in housing benefits and what they have to pay in rent.

“Ministers should be doing more to support the most vulnerable tenants by unfreezing housing benefit rates so that they may better reflect the cost of quality homes,” he tells LandlordZONE.

More than 8 in 10 (83%) adults reported an increase in their cost of living in March compared with around 6 in 10 (62%) last November, according to the ONS, mainly due to the rising cost of food shopping (90%), gas or electricity bills (79%) and the price of fuel (71%).

Read the ONS research in full.

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