Nearly five million UK renters are living with cold, damp or mould in their home, while a third are borrowing to afford repayments, a study finds.
That represents almost half (45%) who are currently living with those issues, even during the summer months.
A similar number of people (48%) have been doing so for over a year, according to Citizens Advice.
This is despite renters paying an average of £1,314 per month, a figure that rises to £2,661 if you live in London.
Affording those levels of housing costs is proving to be a struggle for many, as a third (32%) of renters in England have had to borrow money to cover their rent repayments.
Further, 17% of renters – around 1.7 million people – have gone without heating, hot water or electricity to keep a roof over their heads.
It is a problem that many are raising with their landlord, but unfortunately, they are risking eviction when doing so. Around 100 people per day are contacting Citizens Advice to ask for help after being hit with a ‘no-fault eviction’.
A third (37%) say they live with damp, cold or mould but have not complained to their landlord, with over half (51%) worried about potential retaliation from their landlord leading to eviction or a rise in rent.
‘Warm home should be fundamental right’
Clare Moriarty, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: “A warm, safe home free of damp and mould should be a fundamental right. Yet private renters are paying through the roof for increasingly decrepit housing, which eats up their hard-earned cash and puts their health at risk.
“To make matters worse, renters have little power and live with the constant threat of eviction hanging over their heads.
“The Government must follow through on its promises and improve the lives of private renters. This means raising the quality of privately rented housing, tackling runaway rents, and bringing in a watertight ban of Section 21 evictions so renters aren’t afraid to challenge poor conditions.”
The Renters Reform Bill, designed to give a fairer deal to tenants and landlords alike, was amended several times and the abolishment of the no-fault evictions was eventually not included. Following the general election, the finalising of this bill becoming law was further delayed.
So, the charity has called on the Government to address three ‘key areas’ to improve the “dire state” of the private rental sector. They are:
1. Affordability: Permanently link financial support for renters to real rent prices by matching Local Housing Allowance to the cheapest 30% of rents in an area.
2. Disrepair: Bring in strong legislation, as promised, to reform the rental sector, including a watertight ban on Section 21 evictions, that closes all loopholes so renters feel confident challenging housing conditions and unfair rent hikes.
3. Security: Require landlords to improve the energy efficiency of their properties by bringing them up to a minimum EPC rating of C.
This article was first published on Mortgage Solutions‘ sister site, YourMoney.com. Read: Millions of tenants borrow to afford rent while living with cold, damp or mould
Matt Browning is a reporter at YourMoney.com and joined the team in the summer of 2023. Before he was a journalist at Reach PLC and London Evening Standard. Matt pursued his career in journalism while also working at the Financial Ombudsman Service where his knowledge of personal finance and desire to help people grew.
As a reporter at YourMoney.com, Matt contributes to the news agenda and writes stories and features about personal finance matters. In this role he also conducts exclusive interviews about major topics that impact our readers, most recently about fraud prevention with the head of CIFAS Mike Haley. He also manages our social media platform on X (formerly Twitter).
In March 2024, he presented our annual YourMoney.com Personal Finance and Investment Awards for the first time.
Before his career in personal finance journalism, Matt worked as an entertainment reporter for Reach Plc and Evening Standard Magazine. He also contributed as a writer and reviewer for hospitality website Design My Night.
Matt is a keen music fan and collects a lot of funk, soul & disco records, while he has DJ’ed at festivals and venues too.
As a seasider, he likes to make the most of coastal runs, restaurants, dips in the sea and keeps his sporting dreams alive playing for his local football team every Sunday morning.
