Households living in overcrowded private rentals double in 10 years

Headline figures for 2018/19 from the government’s English Housing Survey, released on Thursday 23 January, show:  

• More than 283,000 households who rent privately are living in overcrowded conditions – this has doubled (an increase of 95%, or 138,000 households) in the last ten years and increased by 9% (22,000 households) in the last year alone. 

• More than 4.5 million households rent their home from a private landlord, which works out as just over 11 million people – a rise of 48% (1.49 million households) over the last ten years. 

• One in four families with children in England (24%) now rent privately – 84% more families than ten years ago. 

Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “As the supply of new social homes grinds to a halt, we’ve seen an explosion in the number of people living in overcrowded private rentals. More and more families are crammed like sardines into homes that are too small for them because they can’t afford to rent anywhere bigger.  

• Private renters spend an average of 40% of their income on rent – more than any other tenure (i.e. homeowners or social tenants). 

“The odds are stacked against struggling families. What this country desperately needs is an alternative to private renting, which is why Shelter is urging the government to build a new generation of genuinely affordable social homes. These homes would finally give people the chance of a decent place to live where they can plan for their future.”