Forced out of our homes

IT’S right to draw attention to the plight of ordinary people trying to live in London (Mail). A case in point recently was my daughter and her partner having to move out of their apartment following a rent increase.

They moved into the one-bedroom apartment in May 2014 and agreed a monthly rent of £1,250. The apartment is riverside and owned by a far east-based landlord.

In July this year, they were advised that the rent would increase to £1,600 a month and that this figure was non-negotiable.

They were unable to afford this massive increase of more than 25 per cent and had to move out of the city as a consequence. Something more needs to be done to curb this trend.

GRAHAM OWEN, Brown Edge, Staffs. My Son was made homeless when his landlord wanted his flat back for his own recently divorced son, and has been trying to rent somewhere to live for more than four months.

He has passed the MARAS credit checks, has always left his rented properties in a spotless condition and his rent has always been paid on time.

Until a few years ago, he ran his own business, had his own home and car. Then he had a breakdown resulting in him losing everything he had worked for.

He was just getting back on his feet when he had a heart attack. He was starting to recover from that when, through no fault of his own, he lost his home.

During this time he somehow found the strength to bring up his daughter — my granddaughter — who has become a charming, caring young lady.

now, thanks to the Government’s recent policy change, private landlords won’t touch people who are on housing benefit.

When the rent was paid directly to the landlord by the authorities, that worked. now it is paid to the claimant,

with the result that many landlords aren’t paid and the rent is in arrears.

When the tenant is asked to leave, the council’s advice to them is to stay in the property until an eviction order is served and bailiffs move in.

My son has been to 38 estate agents and not one of them will deal with housing benefit claimants. sadly, the good tenants are tarred with the bad.

to say my son is desperate would be an understatement. all his worldly goods are in storage and he, his daughter and their cat are effectively homeless.

he went to see the council again and was told that even if he had epilepsy (why epilepsy, i don’t know) they still couldn’t help him. Don’t they ever think these changes through? it was OK when landlords were paid direct — now it’s a shambles. NORMA PEARSON,

St Albans, Herts.