Better incentives proposed for Cambs landlords housing Ukrainians

Improved incentives to encourage landlords to provide housing to Ukrainian refugees are being proposed after only one landlord signed up to a council scheme.

South Cambridgeshire District Council wants landlords to provide for those who had been hosted under the government's Homes for Ukraine scheme.

It said landlords thought the current incentives were "not generous enough".

The council is proposing "a more comprehensive package", it said.

Council documents state that a Landlord Incentive Scheme was launched on 9 October 2023 to help improve access to the private rental market for guests who had been hosted under the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

"Although 25 landlords have contacted the council to find out more information since the incentive scheme was launched, only one landlord has signed up," a council report said.

"In general, the feedback has been that the incentive package offered is not generous enough when compared to a landlord renting using their existing methods."

The council said a lack of credit history in the UK was preventing many Ukrainian families accessing the "highly competitive" private rental market in the south of the county.

The proposed revision to the policy would "enable a much more comprehensive package to be offered to participating landlords, further increasing the number of properties available without adding additional pressures to the social housing system".

The council said its Homes for Ukraine Moving On Team "has seen 289 groups move on from hosted accommodation, with 123 finding private rental accommodation, 60 moving into social housing through the normal priority application and allocation process, and 106 have returned to Ukraine".

"As well as this, the team has facilitated 129 rematches to new hosts where needed."

However, with 135 groups of Ukrainian guests still living with hosts, the council said it should revisit its policy and improve its incentives.

For landlords offering homes at the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rate, these include six months' LHA rate rent in advance to the landlord, and a one-off £1,000 "thank-you payment" for joining the scheme.

There would also be additional top-up payments to landlords to compensate them for offering homes at the LHA rate, which is lower than they would receive if renting to tenants privately.

It said an example of the new incentive would be that for a two-bed property being rented for six months at the LHA rate, a landlord could expect £5,700 rent in advance, £2,700 to compensate for renting at that rate, and the one-off £1,000.

The council said implementing the revised plan would have "no impact on the council's general fund as the Landlord Incentive Scheme can be fully funded using the government tariff we receive for each guest arriving under the Homes for Ukraine scheme".

"There is sufficient tariff funding available to allocate to this scheme," it added.

The proposals will be discussed at a cabinet meeting on 16 April.

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