In the news on the Welsh Leasing Scheme

We comment on The National report that just 24 properties are included in the Welsh Government’s flagship leasing scheme

The Welsh Government’s Leasing Scheme is supposed to provide landlords with rent guarantees to encourage them to rent their properties to low-income tenants.  However a report by The National, published on 1st December, found that just 24 properties were signed up to the scheme, with some areas not having any included to date. 

In a statement to the paper, the Bevan Foundation said:

“This data confirms the concerns expressed in our report on the Local Housing Allowance published in September.

“We found that when there is a large gap between the LHA rates and the market rents, landlords are hesitant to engage with any scheme that involves them receiving LHA rates, as they are able to earn substantially more on the open market.

“Just last week, the UK Government announced that they would be continuing the freeze on LHA rates for the second year in a row.

More details about the Bevan Foundation’s work on Local Housing Allowance is here.