Tenant eviction service providers Helpland give their views on the rising rates of tenants in rent arrears.
(1888PressRelease) July 01, 2011 - The number of tenants in severe financial difficulty has climbed rapidly in the last quarter, with nearly 8,700 more tenants over two months in arrears, report Templeton LPA.
To the back end Q2 2011, 74,492 tenants in England and Wales were in severe arrears - a 13% increase compared to the same period in 2010 .
This also represents an increase of 4% compared to 71,483 in the previous quarter. Nevertheless, tenancies in severe arrears represent just 2.1% of all properties in the private rental sector in England and Wales.
The growth in tenant arrears has been mirrored by a rise in the number of tenants being evicted through court orders. In the last quarter, 24,170 tenants faced eviction notices - an increase of 9% on the 22,091 a year ago. But the change is not just annual. In Q1 2011, there were 5% more than in the last quarter of 2010.
Lee Daniels, Managing Director of Helpland Limited, said:
"I am not surprised by the sharp increase in tenants' rent arrears. At Helpland Ltd we have taken on more cases and served more notices month on month, especially in the last quarter.
"Tenants finances have been under increasing pressure due to consistently rising rents coupled with several redundancies and public sector cutbacks not to mention the record high cost of living. This looks like it is finally taking its toll.
"Tenants who are either on low income or benefits are struggling to meet their monthly payments and when they fall behind and the arrears start to mount, they do not have the means to catch up."
Lee Daniels said that landlords are becoming increasingly less lenient of rent arrears in the wake of strong demand for rental property and with the majority of landlords annual return coming from their rental income.
He said:
"We have also seen a dramatic increase in the speed at which landlords are acting on tenants with rent arrears. It was not unusual for landlords to wait 2-3 months before contacting us. We are now constantly being contacted by landlords whose tenants are only 1 month behind seeking advice and wanting to serve notice.
"It is crucial that landlords continue to act quickly as we predict that rent arrears will continue to rise and with the eviction process taking months, landlords are urged to act as soon as possible to minimise their loss."
Tenant eviction service providers Helpland give their views on the rising rates of tenants in rent arrears. 
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