Tenants’ organisations in Edinburgh are calling for home owners to pass on savings from coronavirus ‘mortgage holidays’ to renters.
Big banks RBS, Lloyds and TSB have all said they would allow homeowners to stop payments on their mortgages if they lost earnings because they had to self-isolate due to the coronavirus outbreak.
But no such help has been offered to people who rent privately and tenants’s groups are worried renters could be forced to work through the pandemic to pay the rent.
Tenant’s groups today reacted to the possibility of unscrupulous landlords with buy-to-let mortgages could claim a repayment holiday from the bank (allowing them to self-isolate) but keep charging rent to their tenants, who would need to continue working through the pandemic.
Edinburgh tenant’s union Living Rent said it was “imperative” that landlords pass on the benefits of any mortgage holidays to tenants.
David Hanson, from tenants' union Living Rent Edinburgh, said: "It is right that we do everything possible to allow people to follow medical guidance around coronavirus, but if landlords are being given "mortgage holidays" then it is imperative that they are forced to pass that on in full to tenants.
"People renting are far more likely to be in the kind of precarious, low-paid work where taking time off to self-isolate is near impossible.
"If we're serious about containing the spread of the virus, tenants need to know that they won't face destitution for doing the responsible thing. That means that the barrier of high-housing costs has to be eased, urgently."
Edinburgh is often described as a ‘city of renters’ with the latest government figures showing 62,000 rented properties in the city. A large proportion of those renters will be younger people unable to afford their own homes. And its not cheap, rent costs up to 60% of the average income for someone in their 20s living in Edinburgh.
The Intergenerational Foundation are a pressure group fighting for a better deal for young people, a spokesperson told Edinburgh Live: “With younger households more likely to be renting privately, any mortgage deferrals made to (mostly older) landlords must get through to their younger tenants, who are also more likely to be in insecure employment and on low pay.”
A spokesperson from TSB said: “If our customers are experiencing any difficulties, we urge them to get in touch as soon as they can to see how we can support them.”
Gordon MacRae, Assignment Director at Shelter Scotland said:
“Tenants deserve the same support as landlords. It is essential that repayment holidays from lenders are matched by rent holidays for tenants. We would call on landlords bodies to issue guidance to their members and for lenders to consider how they can stipulate that tenants do not lose out. “
Edinburgh Live has approached RBS and Lloyds for a comment.
