Saturday, 8 March 2014

GMB union study shows landlords are the real winners from benefit reforms

"Billions going into fat cats wallets and off shore tax havens from housing benefit would be better spent building houses and homes for working people." says Labour-affiliated union GMB. A new GMB study, published on 24th February, shows the top twenty company landlords in each of the 39 councils in North West that receive housing benefit direct from councils for tenants renting their properties.

Hyndburn
Eafield and Maple
£261,176
Sterling Properties Co Ltd
£198,595
Creative Support Ltd
£180,063
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
£178,044
North Western Housing Ltd
£145,568
Rishwood Homes
£143,086
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
£118,628
Becontree Ltd
£104,343
R E Walsh Investments Ltd
£100,745
Rent the House
£97,189
Sycamore Letting Co Ltd
£92,754
Property Shop Client Account
£92,399
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
£87,359
Wellbase Estates Ltd
£70,703
Northern Residential Securities
£66,800
Thompson and Partners
£59,018
National Autistic Society
£58,557
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
£54,604
Rent Solutions Ltd
£53,034
Rhyddings Wood Properties
£51,659

Total                                          £2,214,324

In the region there are 219,536 households renting private accommodation and entitled to house benefit. This study covers where it is paid direct to company landlords not private individual landlords.
Taxpayer’s cash pays the rent to private landlords for 1.65 m privately owned dwelling in Great Britain. Paying housing benefits to meet housing costs for rented accommodation for tenants on low incomes dates the 1980s. The cost has ballooned to £23 billion per year. While over the past 30 years some £411billions of taxpayer’s funds have been spent on housing benefit it is not clear who the ultimate recipients are.
For 30% of tenants entitled to housing benefit the cash is paid direct to landlords. To establish the identity of these landlords GMB carried out research at the Land Registry to establish the beneficial owners of properties and Freedom of Information requests were made to councils to establish the amounts paid to them. The ultimate recipients of housing benefit and amounts were disclosed by councils where the landlords are companies. The ultimate recipients of housing benefit and amounts were not disclosed where the monies are paid to tenants or where landlords are individuals.
69 councils refused to disclose any information. GMB is inviting local media and politicians to follow up on the study and fill in the gaps.
Paul Kenny, GMB General Secretary, said, "This research lifts the lid on the mainly secret payments to landlords who are the real winners from Britain's welfare system. We see taxpayers cash subsidising buy-to-let empires where the money ends up tax free in tax havens. The research shows the rich and powerful sucking up taxpayer’s money through housing benefit. This is made possible by out of control rents and a lack of affordable and council homes that so many hard working people and their families desperately need. This should bring both shame and action from this government to end this exploitation of public money. These billions going into fat cats wallets and off shore tax havens would be better spent building houses and homes for real working people. Shovelling millions of pounds to the likes of castle owning barons, whilst so many either wait for a home or have to pay exorbitant rents, is a public scandal. It is also bad economics for the nation.
"It is disgraceful that 69 councils refused to reveal the companies they paid huge sums to. Every council has refused to disclose the names of private landlords they pay huge sums to without scrutiny.”


See at foot of the national release on GMB website www.gmb.org.uk a pdf with names of some castle owning barons, the amount they receive and pictures of the castles.
Percentage of privately rented households in receipt of housing benefits by council in North West in November 2013.


All private rented households
Housing benefit recipients in the private rented sector
%
Great Britain
4,195,070
1,645,504
39.2
England and Wales
3,900,178
1,548,342
39.7
North West
462,899
219,536
47.4
rank
1
Blackpool UA
16,770
15,037
89.7
2
Knowsley
5,980
4,734
79.2
3
Sefton
15,804
10,780
68.2
4
Wyre
6,397
4,349
68.0
5
Burnley
7,267
4,802
66.1
6
Wirral
22,275
14,709
66.0
7

Hyndburn

6,235

3,889

62.4
8
Barrow-in-Furness
4,442
2,705
60.9
9
Halton UA
5,212
3,149
60.4
10
Oldham
10,944
6,442
58.9
11
Rochdale
11,556
6,618
57.3
12
Pendle
6,760
3,794
56.1
13
Wigan
15,875
8,694
54.8
14
St. Helens
7,736
4,223
54.6
15
Blackburn with Darwen UA
8,993
4,835
53.8
16
Tameside
12,573
6,452
51.3
17
Lancaster
10,929
5,427
49.7
18
Fylde
6,066
2,936
48.4
19
Bolton
15,930
7,617
47.8
20
Rossendale
4,106
1,962
47.8
21
West Lancashire
4,744
2,215
46.7
22
Bury
10,774
5,006
46.5
23
Liverpool
48,290
21,095
43.7
24
Stockport
13,852
6,020
43.5
25
Chorley
4,587
1,941
42.3
26
Copeland
2,665
1,097
41.2
27
South Ribble
4,308
1,741
40.4
28
Warrington UA
9,549
3,804
39.8
29
Salford
19,420
7,642
39.4
30
Cheshire West and Chester UA
17,734
6,663
37.6
31
Preston
10,365
3,744
36.1
32
Allerdale
4,142
1,476
35.6
33
Carlisle
6,914
2,281
33.0
34
Cheshire East UA
19,938
6,534
32.8
35
Manchester
58,170
18,178
31.2
36
Trafford
12,001
3,724
31.0
37
Ribble Valley
3,278
822
25.1
38
South Lakeland
6,633
1,658
25.0
39
Eden
3,685
757
20.5

Sources - Crown Copyright Reserved: DWP; Office for National Statistics Housing Benefit Statistics - November 2013 and Census of Population data – 2011


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