Bristol rental market leaves families feeling 'hopeless'

The Smith family has been renting the same house for the past six years but are required to leave by 15 March

People struggling to rent homes in Bristol have said the situation has left them feeling "hopeless".

One mother said they were "not looking for the moon on a stick", but somewhere safe, secure and sanitary to stay.

They were speaking following an online summit to discuss a council ambition to pilot private rent caps.

Bristol City Council said private rent had increased by 50% in the past decade, while wages had grown by only a quarter in that time.

Sarah Smith, 37, has lived with her husband Craig and three children in the same rental house for the past six years.

Their landlord is now unwell and has said he needs to sell the property.

He has already given them a three-month extension but the deadline for leaving the property is 15 March.

Sarah Smith said she and her husband Craig did not want to move their children out of school

The family has started to pack up their belongings, but Mrs Smith said they were not sure where they were heading to.

"There is nothing out there.

"You're looking around and every house is either students only, or twice to three times the rent we're already paying," Mrs Smith said.

They currently pay £900pcm, but Mrs Smith said they could not find anywhere else they could afford in the area and did not want to have to move the children from their schools where they were settled.

If they cannot find a suitable property they will have to join the estimated 500 other families in Bristol who live in temporary accommodation.

"It could be a flat, or it could be a Premier Inn. I don't even know how that's going to pan out," she said.

"Families like us, we're not after the moon on a stick, we know it costs money to rent houses.

"All we really want is a safe place for the kids, to be allowed your pets, somewhere that isn't ridiculous to heat because the boiler is 15 years old, free of mould and the security of knowing you can carry on looking after this house and living here."

Jene Stone said they had been turned down for about 1,000 properties

Jene Stone, 37, was made homeless six months ago and is sleeping on a friend's sofa.

They receive disability benefits and said: "I've made around 1,000 enquiries and I've been turned down for every single room.

"Multiple of those I've been told directly it's because of my disability benefits.

"It makes you feel hopeless and like you're not getting on properly in the world."

'Make renting fairer'

Bristol City Council held the online summit on Wednesday along with ACORN, the renters' union, and the Bristol Fair Renting Campaign.

Social housing rent is already capped by law, and now the council wants to ask the government if it can pilot a cap on private rent.

Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees will include findings from the summit in his bid to the government.

In a statement the Government said that a private rented sector white paper due in the spring would make renting fairer for all.

The Department for Work and Pensions said: "During the pandemic we increased Local Housing Allowance significantly and beyond inflation, benefitting over one million households by an average of over £600 over the year.

"We're maintaining that boost, keeping support for private renters above pre-pandemic levels."