Fears Cornwall's 'housing crisis' has been made worse by the coronavirus pandemic
There are concerns about families being left homeless
A Cornwall councillor has raised concerns about families being left homeless and properties being put up for let attracting hundreds of renters.
Loic Rich, independent councillor for Truro Tregolls, has been trying to highlight the issue at recent council meetings.
He says that the Government and Cornwall Council need to recognise the housing crisis which he says has worsened during the pandemic.
Cllr Rich said that he had spoken to families who were facing eviction because their landlords have asked them to vacate their homes due to the economic slowdown.
And he said that an estate agent had told him that 164 people applied for a property in Truro after it went on the market for rent while other properties have been snapped up by people from outside Cornwall who are offering a whole year’s rent up front.
Cllr Rich said that all the elements combined had thrown up problems which meant that some families were having to go to Cornwall Council to secure emergency housing.
He said: “It has got worse in the pandemic – there is already a big problem in Cornwall with very high house prices people can’t afford to get on the housing ladder.
“Because of that they are renting which is usually private rentals. But a lot of families that you would think would deserve a council house aren’t living in them because there aren’t enough.
“Instead they are having to pay very high private rents – a three or four bedroom house can be £1,200 a month.
“They probably don’t get housing benefit to help with that because they are both working.
“It is already bad in the first place but in the last year I have been contacted by a couple of families who have been left in an emotional and traumatic situation – they have been served with eviction notices but when they go to estate agents to find an alternative home they are told that it id really, really difficult to get anywhere at the moment.”
Cllr Rich said that part of this is due to an increase in the number of people outside Cornwall wanting to move down here – they decide to rent first while they find a property to buy.
He said: “They are coming up with 12 months rent in advance, they are outbidding local families.”
As a result Cllr Rich said that more families were going to Cornwall Council to seek help for their housing situation.
But a lack of social and council housing meant that there was little that the council could do for the families other than to help find them emergency housing if necessary.
The councillor explained: “That could be a hotel or a bed and breakfast and sometimes it might not even be in Cornwall and they could find themselves having to go to Devon.
“If that is a family from Truro or Falmouth with the parents working locally and kids in local schools – how are they going to get to work and kids to school? The prospect of being in temporary housing is very frightening.”
In addition Cllr Rich said that those placed in emergency housing could also have to pay the costs of it which he said could be as much as £580 a week.
He said: “Usually the cost of temporary housing is covered by benefits, but if they do not qualify for benefits then they would have to pay for it.”
Cllr Rich, who is deputy leader of the Independent group at Cornwall Council, said that he wanted to be clear that he was not criticising the council, landlords, estate agents or people looking to move into Cornwall.
He said that nobody was doing anything wrong but that it was a set of circumstances which had created a new problem.
“I have been told that some landlords are serving notice on tenants because they need to go back and live in their properties because of financial pressures.
“And estate agents have to act in the best interests of the landlords – it doesn’t help if somebody comes down to view a place in a Range Rover and then gives £10,000 to an estate agent to rent a property.
“That seems to be what is happening – but for the agent and landlord that security of having the rent paid is going to be very appealing.
“I am not blaming anyone as everyone is under pressure. But I think the government and the council need to recognise that this is a problem and that Cornwall is a bit different to other areas.”
Cllr Rich added: “If you have 164 people after one place in Truro, what happens to the 163 people who don’t get it?”
The independent councillor said that he was currently involved in a project in Malabar in Truro with a community land trust which is looking to build 12 affordable homes for local people.
He said that it was vital that projects like these and the work that Cornwall Council is doing to provide more affordable and social rent homes are supported.
“It doesn’t have to get worse, we can do more by providing more truly affordable homes for local people and we can do more to encourage landlords to let to local families.
“Hopefully things will get better, but at the moment it is a bit of a nightmare.”