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Lenders should be ‘banned’ from rejecting tenants on benefits – Star Letter 12/10/2018
Mortgage Solutions and its sister title Specialist Lending Solutions select the most thoughtful or thought-provoking comment for Star Letter.
This week’s letter comes from Lisa Peach-Hill in response to the article: NatWest tells landlord to evict tenant on benefits or pay £2.5k in ERCs.
Peach-Hill said: “It’s hugely discriminatory towards people who claim benefits.
“There are so many reasons people end up on benefits, often it’s not by choice.
“The days of benefits being a ‘lifestyle’ choice are well and truly over, given recent changes in support to unemployed and disabled people.
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“Many working families receive housing benefit and other benefits to supplement their income.
“I don’t think the interest rates should be loaded at all – tenants have a tough time as it is, with lack of security, inability to save deposits because of high rents, and substandard property conditions.
“We are in a housing crisis, why make things any harder than it already is for those unable to buy a home?
“It’s difficult enough for a tenant to get a private rented property while on benefits, without lenders making the situation worse by having restrictions on who is able to reside in a buy-to-let property.
“Lenders have a social responsibility in working directly with the housing sector.”
She added: “We talk about discrimination on grounds of race, sex, religion, disability and it’s a big deal.
“Discrimination against people on benefits seems swept under the carpet in my view. This should be a legal form of discrimination also.”