Private sector rent for two-bedroom houses in less-affluent parts of Swansea has risen to around £1,000 a month, forcing people to turn to the council for help, a meeting heard. Councillors were told the local housing allowance in these areas was much lower, at approximately £500 per month.
Rent vs Allowance Gap Widens
The local housing allowance determines how much housing benefit someone renting in the private sector can receive and is based on rent levels in the area and household size. The bigger the gap between rent and local housing allowance, the less affordable a home is for people on low incomes. Private sector rent increases began accelerating in Wales and the UK from 2021-22.
Steve Porter, housing operations manager at Swansea Council, told councillors examining the cost of living that the private rental sector “is probably our biggest challenge” because some two-bed homes in Townhill and Port Tennant were being rented for £1,000 per month when the local housing allowance was around £500 per month. He said this meant people were seeking help from the council who wouldn’t have done seven or eight years ago.
Homelessness Applications Surge
Mr Porter said the council dealt with more than 4,000 applications from people at risk of homelessness per year, most of which it could help with. He said there were currently eight or nine people sleeping rough in the city and that housing staff would know who and where they were within around 24 hours and offer support. “Probably one third of those sleeping rough per night have their own accommodation,” said Mr Porter. The council was helping someone sleeping in a cemetery who didn’t want to go back to their rental accommodation because of a neighbour issue.
Swansea Council has its own housing stock and manages around 14,000 tenancies. It also funds temporary accommodation for people in dire need of housing. The meeting heard about a range of help offered to tenants such as furniture being provided and support to prevent rent arrears building.
Arrears Rising Among Working Tenants
A report before the scrutiny group heard arrears were increasing among working tenants who previously managed without support. It said early intervention was a big focus for housing teams and realistic repayment schedules could be drawn up. Cllr Mair Baker said arrears were a big issue in her Penderry ward and some tenants buried their heads in the sand and only sought support at the last minute. “There is more help out there than they realise,” she said.
Cllr Andrea Harrington, cabinet member for service transformation, said a huge amount of work was done behind the scenes by the council and evictions were “an absolute last resort”.
Council Building and Buying Homes
The council is building houses, buying others sold under right-to-buy legislation, and requiring developers to build social housing as part of planning permission for new schemes. Housing associations are also building and acquiring social housing but demand exceeds supply. Cllr Lyndon Jones said his Conservative colleague Cllr Will Thomas had advocated granny annexes being provided with new homes so that an elderly relative could move in, in turn freeing up a property and saving on potential care costs. Cllr Jones said he felt a trial might be worth pursuing.
The scrutiny panel is hearing about various cost of living aspects during its inquiry before reporting to cabinet. Cllr Harrington said: “Things are tough and finances are biting and hurting families, not just in terms of rent and bills but in terms of food (price) increases and inflationary increases which are impacting everybody.”
The Local Democracy Reporting Service searched for two-bedroom rental properties in Townhill on June 30 and found ones for £800, £850, and £895 per month. There was a two-bedroom house for rent in Port Tennant for £775 per month and a two-bed flat and a maisonette for £850.
