The Resolution Foundation found that those who are living in the worst conditions are actually the 16-24-year-old bracket. As the lockdown enforced little to no movement amongst the general populous, it was those who fell into the younger age brackets which were said to have put up with the worst living conditions.

The research found that those in the youngest bracket were three times more likely to live in damp conditions and one-and-a-half times more likely to have no garden. As the local lockdowns continue to be enforced across Britain, it is becoming more evident that the housing conditions, in general, are far from satisfactory.

Findings

The study also found that those in the younger bracket had on average 26metres of space in which to live in comparison with the over 65's bracket, which had 50 metres on average.

When also digging deeper into the study, which was funded by the Nuffield Foundation. It highlights that ethnicity and income were commonly linked with poor living conditions. With 20% of children from a low-income home having spent time in an overcrowded space during the lockdown. Whereas, this figure is only 3% in the higher-income homes. 10% of those low-income home children were also found to be living in a state of housing disrepair. This was primarily due to damp conditions. 6% having no access to the internet.

Nearly 40% of under-16s from black, Asian or ethnic-minority background households are growing up with no outside space. Whereas, this figure is only 17% in white homes.

The most shocking fact is that despite the improvement in housing standards across the past decades. Overcrowding has increased across all age groups. With young adults and children being by far the most likely to live in a crowded home. 

Needing help with your living conditions?

If you feel your house is in a state of disrepair, contact us today. Whether you rent from a private landlord, housing association or council. We will be able to help you with your housing disrepair claims.

Did your landlord protect your tenancy deposit? If not, you may be able to claim thousands in compensation.

The Law regarding tenancy deposits.

Tenancy deposit law is actually pretty simple. Your landlord must pay you deposit into one of three government-protected deposit schemes. He/She has 30 days to pay the deposit, if they neglect this, you can claim.

How it works

The law determines that if your deposit was not paid into one of the schemes within the 30-day allocation. Then your landlord has breached the law, and therefore you can claim up to 1-3 times the deposit paid.

Due to the fact that this law seems so readily ignored Antony Hodari Solicitors, who have been a reliable firm of solicitors for over 35 years' are here to help! We protect the rights of tenants across the country in several different matters. 

A reliable tenancy deposit solicitor

As a company, we will operate solely on a no win no fee basis and will always be fighting in your corner. All we ask is that you help us to gather the information by providing items such as proof of your payment. 

With our support, you can claim against your landlord regarding your tenancy deposit, and you can win! With over 35 years of experience we are always on the side of the tenant. You shouldn't have to put up a fight for your legal rights to be maintained. That's why we are here to help. If you don't want to take our word for it. We had over 250 5-star reviews in 2020. Have a read to see what our clients say about us. We look forward to hearing from you, and of course helping you win your battle.

For information on housing disrepair or any other legal matters head across to our news section.

So here's the issue. Every year the number of council homes up-and-down the country which are deemed to be hazardous and therefore dangerous to live in grows. As these numbers show no sign of slowing down. It means more and more tenants are living somewhere where they could be entitled to damages. Especially when the state of disrepair causes ill-health to the tenant or any of their family.

The figure in the UK has risen to over 8100 homes, over three times the number from the previous year. This figure only includes those homes which are deemed to be a 'serious hazard'. Therefore, it doesn't include those falling lower down the scale of severity.

As the waiting lists grow and the stock of available housing dwindles, more and more people will inevitably require legal support. That is where we come in. We can support you in your search for damages and bring legal proceedings against your landlord.

The Number of dangerous council homes.

In England, there are over 245,000 people in homes which fall under the 'poor quality' standard. And therefore fail to meet the Decent Homes Standard. This number is way above and beyond what we expect in 2020. With unliveable homes scattered across the country, now is the time to stand up. You should not live somewhere which doesn't meet the adequate standards.

If any of the above sounds like a situation, you have found yourself in. Or, if you know of anyone who is being subjected to a less than satisfactory standard of living due to housing disrepair. Follow any of the steps below and get in touch with us. Dangerous council homes are not something which you should just be putting up with. So make sure to have a specialist housing disrepair solicitor on your side.

Contact us

Find us at www.antonyhodari.co.uk

Send an email to info@antonyhodari.co.uk

Call us on 0161 832 4781

 Antony Hodari Solicitors, housing disrepair specialists

It was recently announced that the funding distributed from the government’s legal aid programme has shown a gross tumble where the housing sector is concerned. The data provided, highlighted a drop of 39% in cases which were granted support in 2018/19 in comparison with 2010/11.

Substantially less applications were made in 2018/19, 45% to be specific, meaning it was inevitable that less would receive funding. However, in our opinion the problem runs much deeper. The constant tweaking of what support is allowed when it comes to specific housing cases. And, the more stringent set of rules which now exist are undoubtedly the force behind the lack of applications.

Legal aid problems.

The crux of the funding issues arrived in 2013. As the Legal Aid and Punishment of Offenders Act (LASPO) came into force.

The LASPO meant that disrepair cases were no longer able to be funded by legal aid. Except in cases whereby the tenant was at risk of serious health and safety breaches.

This of course means that vast wastelands grew in the area of housing disrepair. Meaning tenants rights were neglected and expert housing repair lawyers firms were left to go out of business.

However, this wasn’t the end of the matter. Despite being an obvious causal link LASPO wasn't the only regulation which brought a downturn in the number of housing cases being taken forwards.

In March 2015, government regulations meant that payment to solicitors would only be made once the courts granted the permission to bring the case forward. Therefore meaning firms could do large amounts of work and remain unpaid for that work in the long run.

When all is said and done and the dust settles on the effect LASPO had on the housing sector. It is fair to assess that without the firms in place to bring forward cases against local authority and housing associations, bad practice and poor maintenance of homes will continue. Systematically failing tenants up-and-down the country for what has been almost a decade.

If you think that you've suffered due to housing disrepair we are here to help.

Simply follow any of the steps below and speak to one of our qualified housing sector solicitors today.

Call - 0800 085 6041

Email - info@antonyhodari.co.uk

Here at Antony Hodari solicitors, we specialise in all things housing disrepair. So we thought it best to talk you through the legal obligations bestowed upon your landlord and the issues of disrepair which they must rectify, as well as any damages which are available to be claimed if problems have arisen.

So What is housing disrepair?

Firstly, if you are a tenant living in rented accommodation, your landlord has to legally ensure that specific provisions have been made for your safety and wellbeing. These include:

• That you have working water, gas and electricity which is accessible safely in case of an emergency.
• That your home isn't also home to any insect infestations, mice, rats or any other form of uninvited animal tenants.
• That you have access to all sanitary provisions, such as a bath, sink etc.
• The dwelling has a working heating system and is free of damp or mould throughout.
• Structurally the house is secure and is liveable without fear of disrepair.

All of the types of disrepair stated above can bring about legal proceedings, whereby the tenant can claim compensation relating to:

Health issues - If the tenant or any of their family have suffered health-related problems as a result of the disrepair.

Damage to household belongings - If any of the tenant's possessions incur damage due to the disrepair or the fixing of the disrepair.

General inconvenience -  If some or most of your house is inhabitable due to the level of disrepair this is classed as a general inconvenience

There are multiple ways that disrepair can happen to a dwelling here are a few which you may have encountered.

• Cracks in internal walls.
• Faulty or broken boiler.
• Loose slates on the roof, allowing water and draught to ingress.
• The occurrence of vermin, such as mice or rats.

What can WE do next?

If your landlord hasn't kept your home in a good state of repair, here are the ways we can help!

Firstly we look into your tenancy agreement and collect all the facts and information regarding disrepair.

Before instructing a professional surveyor to complete a report.

We consider any illness or poor-health which has occurred due to the disrepair, as well as any other losses such as damage to property etc.

Request the landlord to make the repairs within an agreed timeframe.

Try to negotiate an early settlement, without court action.

Explain the court proceedings if needed.

What now?

Well, if you think you have issues of housing disrepair get in touch with us as soon as possible. We will do everything we can to help and progress your claim through the necessary means.