Are DSS people now a protected group?

[vetran]

how to fix it? IMHO

1. Build enough houses both Private & Social.
2. Stop population growth.
3. Make social housing means tested so getting a council / HA house is not a lottery win. You get it for when you need it and the government works with you to get you better paid then out by raising your rent as your earnings increase. When you earn enough your rent is 120% of private rent.
4. Use the deposit scheme for the following (share with insurers)
a. A way to prove your right to rent - Tenant .
b. A way to prove you can legally be a landlord. (all certs stored on it).
c. Previous evictions - Tenant
d. Previous evictions - landlord
e. Previous upheld repairs failures.
5. Lock up anyone who rents without using the deposit scheme.
6. Where evicting because of non payment of rent, render tenant bankrupt.
7. Have an annual dwelling condition inspection by a Surveyor (RICS) or similar who lists any defects and records on the system. The landlord has X days to resolve. You can also use a suitable surveyor to identify fault in damp etc. situation. ~ £250 a year. Do EPC etc at the same time, offer grants (against tax paid) to make dwellings more efficient.

[Platypus]

Is it me that is finding absurd the % of households in social housing?

It's just you. There is no social housing due to wicked Tory austerity.

(c) The Labour Party

[vetran]

It's just you. There is no social housing due to wicked Tory austerity.

(c) The Labour Party

Indeed just look at these figures which are obviously wrong for New Lie.


What’s happening to rented social housing in England? - Full Fact

Over four million homes were rented from councils or housing associations in 2017. Of these, 1.6 million were council homes and 2.4 million were from housing associations.The amount of social housing for rent fell from the peak of around five million in the early 1980s to just under four million in the mid-2000s, but it has been slowly rising since.
This has mainly been driven by an increase in housing association homes. The proportion of all social housing provided by councils has generally been falling since the 1980s.

[NigelJK]

According the bloke on R4 the other day biggest issue for landlords is that unless the incoming tenant has tangible assets (Car etc) then they have no chance to get be recompensed for rent arrears/malicious damage

[vetran]

According the bloke on R4 the other day biggest issue for landlords is that unless the incoming tenant has tangible assets (Car etc) then they have no chance to get be recompensed for rent arrears/malicious damage

Yes they just walk away they need to be forced to repay the debt or face the consequences.

[sal]

According the bloke on R4 the other day biggest issue for landlords is that unless the incoming tenant has tangible assets (Car etc) then they have no chance to get be recompensed for rent arrears/malicious damage

Even car will be useless as security unless it's a £10k+ as debt enforcement and auction fees it will eat a couple of £1000s. Not many skint tenants with expensive non-leased cars.

Making them bankrupt for non-payment of rent will have zero effect. The ones that are sponging the system couldn't care less about their credit rating/file. It will only effect the minority who has genuinely fallen on hard times and would repay even against a "simple" CCJ

[BrilloPad]

how to fix it? IMHO

1. Build enough houses both Private & Social.

Most of those being built are on flood plains. How is that going?

[vetran]

Most of those being built are on flood plains. How is that going?

Badly of course, I can't fix all the stupidity!

[BrilloPad]

Badly of course, I can't fix all the stupidity!

The stupidity is building more houses. There are plenty of houses. What it needs is a 99% tax on rental income and a ban on foreign ownership.

[WTFH]

The stupidity is building more houses. There are plenty of houses. What it needs is a 99% tax on rental income and a ban on foreign ownership.

Well, a high tax on properties that are kept empty as investments would be a start.
Then a ban (or high tax) on foreign ownership - and by “foreign” I mean not tax resident in the UK.

And maybe some long-term thinking from councils, etc, to realise that a council owned property can be a source of income over a longer period of time. (Until someone comes along and sells them off at a fraction of their value to make the numbers up)

We could also free up a lot of property if old folk didn’t live as long (or insist on living on their own, rather than with family or in care homes).
How many properties are single occupancy, or owned by those who pay little or no tax?
It’s interesting (though not surprising) to read back through this thread. Some of the implications are that it’s all the fault of foreigners. All the fault of people on any form of benefits. All the fault of whoever. But most definitely not the fault of rich investors keen to shirk responsibility and humanity in the name of profit, while paying next to no tax.