Shelter says cuts push vulnerable into hands of rogue landlords | Money | The Guardian

Shelter says cuts push vulnerable into hands of rogue landlords | Money | The Guardian

Housing benefit cuts and the government's refusal to regulate the private rented sector will force the most vulnerable citizens to depend on property managed by rogue landlords, Shelter has warned.

The charity has seen a 23% increase in complaints about landlords in the past year, with grievances over "shocking" levels of dampness and disrepair soaring by 40% and complaints about landlord harassment rising by nearly a quarter. At the same time, a chronic shortage of social housing and large numbers of people being priced out of the housing market have led to a 40% rise – to 3.4m – in the number of households in private rental property over the last five years.