Kids unsettled by short term rental moves
INSTABILITY in the rental market could be having an impact on children in Halton, according to Shelter.
The homelessness charity said that one in 15 parents in the North West told a survey that shortterm lets result in frequent, stressful moves and stop their sons and daughters feeling settled.
Shelter said its research showed the ‘broken rental market’ had a ‘ worrying impact’ on families.
It said the number of renting households had more than doubled in the past decade but the law had not kept up.
Renters have a secure home for six months, after ● which their landlord can ask them to leave with two months’ notice and without a reason, the charity said.
The survey found that 39% of parents feared worried their children would have to change schools because of an unwanted move.
Of those surveyed, 40% said searching for a rented home had a negative impact on their personal life and 7% said a shortterm rental negatively affected relationships with friends or family.
Shelter added that the loss of private rented homes was the main cause of homelessness in England.
The charity is calling on the Government to introduce five-year tenancies to provide more stability.
Graeme Brown, Shelter’s interim chief executive, said: “Soaring house prices mean more families are renting than ever before.
“But the dire state of our rental market means they can only secure a home for six months – the equivalent to just two school terms.
“Every day at Shelter we speak to parents who are forced to move, faced with yet another unsettling house move.
“And at the sharp end, a worrying number of renting families are becoming homeless because they can’t scrape together the money needed for a deposit on a new place.
“No child deserves this upheaval.
“We welcome the Government’s shift towards helping struggling renting families but their plans will still leave the majority without the secure home they want and need.
“Now is the time to fix this by introducing fiveyear tenancies across the board, allowing families to plan and save for the future and to feel secure and settled in their homes.”