Tenants in Greater Manchester are becoming 'exhausted' and 'overwhelmed' as poor quality housing damages their health and bank balance, a new report has found. Researchers at IPPR North have exposed the shocking reality facing too many tenants in the private rented sector across the area.
Speaking to a focus group of tenants from around Greater Manchester, they heard from residents who had been left 'feeling hard done by' as they endure sub-standard properties - yet feel unable to speak out through fear of being thrown out of their homes. "You feel like nobody is on your side, and they [landlords] always try to one up you," one person told IPPR North.
"They seem to know what to do and what to say, and I lost a lot of trust in private landlords." The report highlights that 21% of homes in the area's private rented sector failed to meet the decent homes standard, according to the English Housing Survey 2020-21, while 38% live in 'poor housing' - and private tenants are more likely to live with a 'category one' hazard than social tenants.
