Landlords get £250 a day to house Grenfell victims

LANDLORDS are being offered up to £ 250 a day to house Grenfell Tower survivors in one-bedroom flats.

Estate agents have been told to offer deals at five times the market value as housing officials continue to try to rehome the survivors.

The offers mean landlords could make £1,750 a week – up to £1,400 more than the typical rental incomes of one-bedroom flats in the area.

The Grenfell Response Team, which is managing the official response to the tragedy, is under pressure to find properties that are local or in the neighbouring borough.

But a lack of housing has forced officials to drastically inflate rent prices to tempt landlords into letting out their properties to survivors.

The £250 a day is understood to be offered for short lets of up to ten weeks. It means landlords will make £17,500 in just over two months.

But they could rake in thousands more if housing officials fail to find survivors permanent homes by then.

Days after at least 80 died and hundreds were left homeless, estate agents were asked by government housing officials to find homes.

They emailed to owners of empty properties in West London offering to pay full market rent for homes of up to four bedrooms. The ‘high priority’ emails said the rent would be ‘guaranteed by central Government’.

Estate agents have since been told to drastically increase the offers to tempt more home owners to come forward.

One landlord, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Mail: ‘I have a one-bedroom flat about one and a half miles from Grenfell Tower. I’ve put it back on the market to rent out and the estate agents said I could make around £250 a day for up to ten weeks.

‘I was astonished how much money was being offered. My flat would normally be rented out at about £350 per week. I wasn’t interested because I’m looking for a long-term tenant, but the estate agents said some greedy landlords have been keen on the deal.’

Theresa May has pledged to find homes for those affected by the tragedy in Kensington and Chelsea or in neighbouring boroughs within three weeks. That deadline expires in three days.

Offers of sky-high rents emerged after it was revealed that some families who were evacuated from their homes close to Grenfell Tower have continued to be charged rent on their flats by Kensington and Chelsea council.

It is not yet known how many evacuees have had rent deducted or how much has been taken – but the total could run into thousands of pounds.

Yvette Williams, spokesman for the Justice4Grenfell group, said: ‘A survivor living in a hotel had her bankcard reissued.

‘She looked at her statement and realised that rent had been deducted.

‘She hasn’t spoken to the council yet because there is no complaints procedure at all.’

She added: ‘Survivors have no idea where to go, or who to take a complaint to. There should be basic public sector services in place – but there aren’t.’

A spokesman for the Grenfell Response Team said: ‘Our priority is securing good quality, local accommodation for survivors of the Grenfell fire.’

‘Greedy landlords keen on the deal’