A single mum whose hire was raised by 20% with only one month’s discover is about to ship her 56,000-signature Change.org petition to 10 Downing Road to name for a cap on how a lot landlords can elevate tenants’ hire by.
Bridget Chapman and Era Lease will ship the petition to 10 Downing Road at 2:30pm on Tuesday eighth July.
Chapman launched the petition, backed by renters’ rights group Era Lease, after her landlord elevated the hire on her County Durham house by £100 — a hike that left her struggling financially.
She stated: “As a single mum or dad dwelling with my two youngsters, with one revenue to stay on, the affect will ripple by my life. I really feel damaged down by this method. Excessive damp in my earlier house led to me being rushed to hospital with pneumonia. I hoped this new house can be higher, however as soon as once more, I’ve suffered an enormous blow to my safety. Rents in my native space are excessive, and I can’t merely bounce to a different extra reasonably priced choice… I used to be already struggling to cowl my necessities; this shock hire rise will put much more of a pressure on me.”
Era Lease’s winter 2024 survey discovered that 61% of renters reported that their landlord had requested them to pay the next hire prior to now 12 months whereas nearly 1 / 4 (24%) reported a rise over £100. This compares to only 9% reporting hikes of this dimension in July 2022, nearly a threefold improve. In the meantime, the 2024 English Personal Landlord survey discovered one in 5 landlords hiked hire by 15% or extra the final time they renewed or prolonged a tenancy.
Era Lease commented: “The commonest cause that renters reported they’d been given for his or her hire will increase, was not as a result of their landlord confronted elevated prices, or was struggling extra, it was merely due to the rising rewards of ‘the market’. Nearly a 3rd (31%) of landlords had blamed larger market rents, whereas an additional 7% acknowledged that the rise was due to letting agent recommendation. That is indefensible. Personal landlords shouldn’t be in a position to elevate the hire larger than inflation or wages. The Authorities can and should act to alter this.”
