20th
Dec 2022
A council desperately needs help to reduce its community’s homelessness crisis and wants more private landlords onboard to tackle the issue.
Over the past few years Shropshire council states there is an ever increasing number of households looking for the authority to find homes for them, and is now asking private landlords to work with them by offering tenancies to the vulnerable.
The council has released a statement claiming there are several reasons for the surfeit in numbers of households needing help including, the cost of living explosion, floodings and even more recently Ukraine host placements that have and are ending. The authority says demand for appropriate and alternative accommodation is at its highest ever.
The council wants to use as little as possible temporary accommodation and states it now needs to discuss with private sector landlords the possibility of using far more settled accommodation for those at risk.
If landlords are willing to help there are cash incentives and a full and extensive program of support for them and their clients at risk of becoming homeless, or are now able to move on from its homelessness service and make it on their own.
The council offers financial support to help pay towards rent and deposits upfront which will be paid direct to the landlords, professional advice on tenancy law changes and other matters and it will take on a mediatory role if any disputes or issues occur. There will also be a named contact from the beginning of a tenancy for landlords to work with throughout the term.
The council statement also says: “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.”
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