TENANTS: Vicky Spratt

What does the universally accepted phrase ‘housing crisis’ actually mean?

Read this book and it will be very difficult to come to the conclusion our country is in anything other than major housing crisis! You’ll also feel equipped to better understand the dynamics behind it. Ever wondered why, in the 7th largest and growing economy, food poverty is on the rise over the last 15 yrs? The housing crisis, with rents taking an ever larger % of incomes, is a key driver. (2011-2018 rents alone increased by 16% wages by 10%.)

Whether you are right or left leaning in your politics you should read this. It unpacks and explains the housing crisis with statistics, arguments and stories. The stories bring the book to life, personify and personalise the problem while brilliantly painting the issues in simple terms.

It is stunning this problem is not given more serious prominence in our country and political discourse. A home underpins everything in our life. Before education and even health should come our home. Spratt highlights that poor quality of housing, insecurity of tenure, the trauma of evictions and ‘section 21s’ lead to poor mental health and poor physical health, poor education and unstable employment to name a few. She recounts stories of people with degrees and master degrees who hold down steady jobs but when forced to leave their home either through eviction (because the landlord wants to sell) or by de-facto eviction (as the landlord forces up rent)) their lives steadily disintegrate at the seams because the system of housing in this country can not support them: they have to wait until the bailiffs arrive (usually around 12 months of chronic stress) otherwise they will be ‘intentionally’ homeless; then well might be moved to another borough or city miles away from support networks (like Grand-parents to help with child-care, schools for their children, GPs who understand the chronic conditions of their children) and their sustainable life begins to fall apart at the seams: leading to poor mental health and a further deterioration of their lives. Yes this is happening 10’s of 1000’s of times in this country…..every year.

We are now a country with a burgeoning landlord class, (over the past 20 yrs the number of people in private rented accommodation has doubled), almost feudalistic system Spratt argues, with tenants disempowered, unable to save and unable to hope to get on the ladder. The government has sold masses of state owned assets (houses) - now 40% of ex council homes are privately let - the vast majority are raising rents faster than the state which in-turn costs the state: Governments in 19/20 spent £142,000,000 on rents for homeless hseholds in B&Bs etc in 10/11 it was £26,000,000. That is a 430% increase. Awful economics for socialists and capitalists alike.

Keeping rents low and building housing would a) stimulate the economy now and, by keeping house prices down over the medium to long term prevent wage inflation for nurses, policeman (as they won’t need so much for property) for decades to some – so a long-term state saving also.

Inevitably this problem highlights others in our society: race, single mothers, the elderly are all overly represented. (2017 35% of all single mothers were privately renting. Number of over 55s in rented has doubled.)

It is the ‘system of housing’ which is at fault and the root cause is decades of policies or neglect from successive Governments:

· Thatchers right to buy without replacing council housing / social housing.

· Successive Governments policies built on the belief the free market can do a better than the state – unregulated rents, no control over quality of housing, easy access to credit and tax breaks to landlord – has lead to spiralling rents, soaring house prices, a dwindling and imbalanced ratio of social housing to rented and privately owned.

· Labour Governments neglect of this issue: only building c6000 social houses while it was in power for 12 yrs.

· Cameron and Osborne: ‘help to buy’ further increasing demand, helping the children of the wealthy to get on the ladder leading to soaring house prices and a further ostracization and ‘leaving behind’ of the poor.

· Sunaks stamp duty cut has lead to a further soaring of prices in the last 2 yrs!!! (Aagh – I remember my heart sinking when he brought in another demand-lead policy and wondering that successive decisions makes in this government must be property owners.)

That is a very short summary of this brilliant and searing book analysing the current crisis. It is quite a long read and, at times, could be shorter, but worth ploughing through never the less.

Finally, it isn’t all about the state:There has been a massive shift in ratio of private landlords with now: 1.2 milion landlords in this country. I’ve spoken to countless Christians over the past decade who have told me, privately, they own a second home - many of whom will also be volunteers and supporters at their local food banks? You can’t help thinking that your volunteering at the foodbank, soup-kitchen, street runs, baby-basics is just paltry crumbs being thrown from your table.

So – what can I/ you do?

I’ve little doubt that if John the Baptist, was to read this book then he would give advise along the lines of the below:

· Speak up: Write to your MP and make him know this issue matters to you. We will need sustain supply lead policies to rectify decades of demand lead ones. (Send them this book).

For landlords:

· Commit to never increasing your rent or, better still, reduce your rent – this has to be one of the most effective and dignified ways of alleviated poverty: it’s leaving wheat at the edge of your field, it gives more dignity than a hand-out.

· Assure your tenants of life-time tenancies.

· Offer to sell your house to your tenants at knock down price (you have, no doubt, amassed plenty of capital growth from your purchase)

· Allow them to decorate.

· Allow pets

· Anything to make it feel like a home.

…..and here’s a confession: I’ve been working in housing / homelessness since 2008 and there are still parts of it I don’t fully understand. Nor, probably, do many politicians. This book filled in some gaps for me. It might you.

There are loads of stats in the book. I’ve quoted a few above, here are a few more.

· ‘If you do not own your own home in Britain, precarity is a fact of life.’ 11,000,000 are living in precarious private rented.

· 2 million homes lost to social housing since 1980.

· HB now spends £22 billion on HB -most now benefiting private landlords.

· End of 1970’s 40% of population lived in social housing.

· Average hse prices risen by 281% in UK since 1996.

· In 2018 the number of homeless hseholds moved out by London councils rose by 50%.

· By late 2021 rents outside London were rising at their fastest ever level.

· 98,300 hseholds in temporary accommodation (B&Bs, hostels, hotels etc) in June 2020 included 127,240 children!)

And a few of the many quotes

· ‘Disruption in pursuit of profit is legitimised in our current era’

· ‘If you do not own your own home in Britain, precarity is a fact of life.

· ‘Lies shelter the guilty.’