Private sector shuns LHA tenants in wake of welfare reforms | Housing network | guardian.co.uk

Private sector shuns LHA tenants in wake of welfare reforms | Housing network | guardian.co.uk

Private landlords are turning away social tenants at a time when they are needed most to meet housing need, the Chartered Institute of Housing conference has heard.

Addressing delegates at the CIH conference in Harrogate this week, Richard Price, director of operations at the National Landlords Association (NLA), said one in five private landlords was now refusing to take on new tenants in receipt of the local housing allowance.

The retreat follows government plans to overhaul the welfare system, reducing the local housing allowance to a maximum of £400 a week for a four bedroom property, pricing many tenants out of the private market.