Landlords asking for ‘benefits’ in return for free rooms

SLEAZY landlords across Wales are trading free rooms in exchange for sex with women desperate for somewhere to live.

We found scores of ads posted on classifieds site Craigslist from men looking for women in need of a place.

One offered “nice lovely all new fitted out” one and two-bedroomed flats in Cardiff and the Valleys.

“Tenant with benefits wanted,” the post read. “Must reply with pic.”

Another promised a “free room for [a] female” in Cardiff.

Prospective tenants were also offering themselves in exchange for rooms.

One 19-year-old from Bridgend said she was “19, bisexual, size 18, 38E.”

“I’m looking for free rent in exchange for what you want,” she wrote on the site. “Obviously nobody else would know about this.”

She did not want to be in a place with more than two people. “I’m very openminded, have a very high sex drive, kind, respectful and a good cleaner,” she said.

A 21-year-old “cute, polite, educated” male wanted somewhere in return for being “entirely to your disposition several times a week”.

“I am bisexual and have a high sexual appetite,” he said. “Looking for a landlady or a gentle landlord.”

Andrew Wallis, chief executive of anti-slavery charity Unseen, raised concerns about the vulnerability of tenants entering into these kind of arrangements.

“I think landlords placing these ads are treading as close to the line as they can in terms of the law,” he said.

“It’s preying on vulnerable people and putting them in a situation which makes them more vulnerable.”

Exploitation was his “primary concern”. “We know there is a thin line between what is exploitative as defined under the Modern Slavery Act,” he said.

“We are calling for a change in the law.” He urged Craigslist and other organisations to have a “good look” at the problem. “When your platform is used to exploit people you have a moral responsibility to police it better,” Mr Wallis said.

Homelessness charity Centrepoint said 26% of homeless young people have stayed with a stranger in the UK.

“Exploiting the vulnerability of homeless young people by demanding sex in exchange for rent is abhorrent and websites carrying these advertisements must take responsibility for moderating the content they display,” spokesman Paul Noblet said.

“It is tragic that young people are finding themselves with no option but to resort to desperate measures to avoid sleeping rough – hurting themselves to access A and E, committing minor crimes to find shelter in a police cell, or staying with a stranger.

Assembly Member Dawn Bowden has called for action to stop the practice, which she dubbed “inherently immoral”.

“I find it unbelievable that landlords can advertise properties free in return for sexual favours,” she said. “That is exploitation of the worst kind.”

“It’s little more than sexual slavery.”

In a debate in the National Assembly Ms Bowden proposed there be an amendment to the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 to remedy the situation.

The Welsh Government advised that was not the answer.

Now she is seeing if landlords who seek sex instead of rent can be denied licences to operate.

The Welsh Government condemned “this abhorrent practice” that took advantage of “poverty and social inequality”.

A spokesman said: “We are already working to address the underlying difficulties ... through provision of affordable housing, mitigating the economic pressures from zero hours contracts and benefits changes, our anti-slavery policies and our support services for vulnerable people with multiple needs.”

Craigslist did not respond to multiple requests for a comment.