Tenants in Social Housing (RSL's, LA's) want different things to those in the Private Rental Sector (PRS)

 

Social Housing Tenants on Rent Affordability                                                       

Private Sector Tenants on Rent Affordability 

The results from our recent Tenant Pulse survey revealed that 76% of tenants living in social housing felt that their rents were affordable whilst only 37% of tenants in PRS felt their rent was affordable.

Similarly, only 38% of tenants living in social housing wanted to own their own home, compared to an astounding 80% of tenants in PRS wanting to own their own home. Now what does this even mean? What are the factors leading to this differentiation in perception? 

The first thing that popped into my head was the quality of housing in social housing (some, not all). The standards that the properties are built to are arguably better than those in PRS. Then of course there is maintenance and repairs of the property. Within social housing, repairs and maintenance are tracked and the results are published; something we don’t see in PRS.

Not to forget security of tenure. Social landlords want their tenants to have long-term security. Is this the case in PRS? There are a number of 'accidental' or 'part-time' landlords offering short notice periods which puts tenants at risk. Perhaps another reason that social housing tenants are more positive about renting as an alternative to owning is related to the level of engagement they have with their landlords and the community.

Then there is the generational element. Some people are born into social housing and may have the property passed onto them which may then continue through generations. Perhaps this means that it is the norm within your family and buying a property may not have even been considered. I mean, why would you consider buying your own property when there are so many benefits to renting in social housing; not forgetting that buying a house comes at a significant expense.

Our pulse surveys often show lower levels of satisfaction in PRS. I’ve mentioned some of my thoughts above but what do you think? We would love to hear your thoughts on this. Please contact our PRS lead [email protected]

 

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