Landlords have urged the Chancellor to adopt a cost-of-living plan for the private rented sector.
The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has written to Kwasi Kwarteng warning that rising energy, food and other bills will make it more difficult for many tenants to meet their rent payments.
The NRLA also said that landlords were ‘struggling’ because the impact of rising interest rates on mortgages raises the prospect of landlords making a loss on their properties.
The landlord body called for the unfreezing of housing benefit rates and said there should be an end to the five weeks wait for the first payment of Universal Credit.
It also said that Universal Credit claimants should have the ability to choose, at the start of a claim, to have the housing element paid direct to their landlord.
The NRLA also called for the extension of access to emergency housing support (Discretionary Housing Payments) to those not in receipt of benefits.
Ben Beadle, chief executive of the NRLA, said: ‘Both landlords and tenants are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis. We need a package that supports both to prevent rent arrears and sustain tenancies.
‘Our proposals provide a pragmatic way forward that would have an immediate and positive impact on the private rented sector. We call on the Chancellor to act as a matter of urgency.’
