A council says it is looking to work with more private landlords to help reduce homelessness.
Over recent years Shropshire council says it has seen an increase in households approaching the authority for housing assistance and as a result it is appealing for private landlords to make contact if they think they could offer a tenancy to those in need.
A statement from the council claims several reasons for the increase in numbers - with flooding, the cost-of-living crisis and more recently, Ukraine host placements ending, the demand for suitable alternative accommodation is higher than ever, it says.
The council is keen to avoid the need to use temporary accommodation as much as possible and now says it wants to discuss options for more settled accommodation with private sector landlords.
Landlords will be offered cash incentives and extensive support for them and their tenants in exchange for letting to residents who are at risk of homelessness or who are ready to move on from homelessness services and live independently.
Support includes financial help to pay towards deposits and rent in advance which is paid to landlords directly; tenants support and advice to help ensure that tenancies are sustainable; specialist advice on tenancy matters and changes in the law; the council acting as mediator if disputes arise; and the provision of a named point of contact from the start who will work with landlords throughout the tenancy.
The council statement adds: “Landlords who can offer a six-month tenancy will also receive a thank you payment of £250.00.”
An authority spokesperson adds: “Facing homelessness is a worrying experience for anyone, so we’re appealing to private sector landlords so we can continue to offer vital housing support to those most vulnerable.
“We can offer support for Landlords to help house households who are homeless or threatened with homelessness. Currently all types of accommodation are needed.
“You could be an experienced Landlord with a portfolio of properties and just looking for tenants, in which case, we can offer a tenant matching service where we will interview and assess all tenants before they approach you. Or you may be a first-time landlord and benefit from extra support our team can give with setting up the tenancy and handling all the paperwork.
“If you are unsure if your property will be suitable, please call us to discuss and if you are a landlord who uses a letting agent and would like to help, please let us know and our team can speak to the agent directly. I’d encourage anyone who has a suitable and affordable vacant property who would be interested, to get in touch and speak to the team.”
Interested landlords should e-mail housingoptions@shropshire.gov.uk for details.
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After being charged additional council tax for an empty property that I could not refurbish and re let due to the covid lockdown, my local council can go and whistle in the wind.
If it was not for the fact that so many people are being made homeless is so sad I would be laughing out loud. I read this twice because they make it sound like they are doing us a favour.
So they can offer us a tenant matching service and help us with paperwork when we have tenants coming out of our ears - Often Dumping unsuitable tenants on PRS more like
£250 incentive - with private rents skyrocketing that really will have zero impact - and LHA will not meet PRS rates
And the reasons they give for homelessness? I see no mention of 49% less rentals on market since 2019 I believe despite demand increasing I thhink I saw a figure of about 149% somewhere recently. Absolutely no recognition that due to govt persecution landlords evicting to sell in their droves
Do councils really think landlords buy into this rubbish!
No doubt it might attract some very low standard properties and then ironically the council will pursue and fine said Landlord
👎🏻 Not a hope in hell, it’s like April 1st has come early.
Certainly not those in distress and needing a home. But the irony is hilarious. I really don’t know how they have so much front . Apart from the money forced from my pockets local and national government need not look to me for any help whatsoever. You have made enemies of us now sort your own mess out.
Yes local councils are NO allies of the private landlord. The £250 offer is contempt
I wouldn't touch these people if they offered me £25,000, just inviting TROUBLE with these kind of tenants
They destroy us with the Renters Reform Bill driving us to extinction they wants our help.
An incentive of £250. or an insult some zeros missing here.
A nice incentive they are giving landlords to get a HMO license give them £1’500. Application
Fee to sit on their bum do nothing just watch and give you a £30’000. penalty if you didn’t get one. No mention of the thousands of Compliance costs just freeze the Rents,
What kind of School of Economics did they go to.
"Or you may be a first-time landlord and benefit from extra support our team can give with setting up the tenancy and handling all the paperwork." Nice try, but I predict any first time landlord that takes this up will soon regret it.
London councils are offering £5k on let and now on renewal as well but mainly because the LHA rates are now so out of date they have no choice.
The fact that the Councils are now finally realising there is a problem they should be pressuring they Government and other branches of the council to stop the constant attack on Private Landlords
With all of the current requirements , and now interest rate rises Landlords will find it impossible to continue.
Unfortunately my experience of councils is grim, they seem to see private landlords as mugs for taking.
Glasgow City Council wanted to charge ME for taking former tenants' rubbish to the dump as I am lucky enough not to live in their council area.
I was tempted to fill up all their bins at the flat but just headed home dumping it in my own council dump on the way.
How does any council think it helps the environment and their costs to make using any dumps more difficult or expensive?
However this article is extra evidence how divorced from reality they are and they are now reaping just rewards!
Lol.. Lol... Lol... £250!!!! Once you take off the 40% tax that gives your a whole £150...where do I sign? Lol.
In Scotland it's now 42% income tax from 43k up to 100k, then 64% up to 125k, then 47% beyond that.
I'm looking forward to Glasgow Council making a similar offer and in the meantime enjoying the little amount of income left to me courtesy of the SNP and their little Green helpers.
Robert that’s the way more or less here to as I understand it.
The £12500. Personal allowance is wiped out for high tax payers which I think causes us to pay 62% between 100k & 127k now I hear it’s 45% after that, so probably 20% on the first £37.5k then 40% between that at 100k.
I believe it wrong to take away our personal allowance everyone should get that, aren’t we pay to s of tax after that.
Does Mr Michael Gove not understand the tax he has lost by getting of Private landlords the cash cows that milks Summer & Winter.
Michael
It's much worse in Scotland with the new 42% tax rate kicking in at 43k , not around 50k as in the rest of the UK.
There's also a 21% rate at around 25k yet the SNP have the cheek to boast that the majority of Scots pay less income tax than the rest of the UK and omit to mention It's because they earn less and are heavily subsidised by the higher rate tax payers in the South East (as is the rest of the UK).
Incidentally the SNP have just increased the penalty on investment property purchases from 4% to 6% - another extra cost for Scottish renters to pay on new tenancy agreements which aren't covered by the ludicrous rent freeze.
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