Residents living in a tower labelled 'the biggest eyesore in Salford' are being hit by a 20 per cent increase in rent - on Christmas Eve.
Tenants of 120 apartments in the 24-storey Briar Hill Court in Pendleton will see their monthly rent rise from £545 to £650. Struggling neighbours branded the move "scandalous" while a dad of three told how he now faces an agonising choice of whether to 'eat or heat'.
Pendleton and Charlestown ward Coun John Warmisham accused the block owners of 'under investment' and described it as 'the biggest eyesore in Salford' in a September meeting. Residents claim the lifts frequently break down and take days to be repaired, and outdated water heating systems cost £100 a week to run.
Now, they face a battle to afford the rent rise coming into force on December 24. Briar Hill Court tenant Benjamin Simpson, 37, told the Manchester Evening News: "It's city centre prices. I think they're trying to gentrify the area and drive people out.
"It's a prime location and if you look at what they're planning on the bingo hall you can see the way it's going. It's nice people here. It's a really good community.
"But a lot of people in here are on the breadline. I don't know where they'll find another £100 a month.
The dad of three added: "A friend said to me the other day it's 'heat or eat', and that's exactly it. I have three kids, so it'll have a big impact on me, but at the end of the day what are you going to do? It's hard to find somewhere else and put the deposit down."
Martin Dwyer, 56, has lived in the flats where big red letters point the way to 'Salford Shopping City for five-and-a-half years. He said: "Everyone's going mad [about the rent increase]. A lot of people have complained, but their attitude is 'If you don't like it, get out'.
"A lot of people here are on benefits, but it doesn't cover the full amount, so they have to put money towards it.
"It's a lot of money, especially the way things are these days. It's just not on, it's scandalous really."
Many of the residents living in the block ran by Bury-based Sterling Property Management are elderly and disabled, but others are professionals, including a neurosurgeon who recently left to go back to his Syria homeland.
A resident told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: "Sterling has stated that this [the rent rise] is so the rent is in line with other properties in the area. However, the difference between our and the other flats is vast.
"Other single-bedroom flats in the area boast mod-cons. The flats in Briar Hill Court are massively in need of both modernising and repair.
"Many residents can't afford to have constant access to hot water because it is too expensive to run the boiler (my bill was coming in at around £100 a week).
"People can't put the heating on because it is expensive and inefficient.
"The lifts are about 40 years old, and constantly break down. The company is always reluctant to fix the problems and will not replace them.
"This means that residents have to walk up flights and flights of steep stairs, and those with disabilities remain stuck in their flats."
Another resident said the intercom has been broken for at least three months, meaning people are unable to receive packages.
"This has also meant some residents missing out on essential district nurse visits," they said. "The communal laundry has four appliances - two washing machines and two dryers.
"However, only one washer and one dryer have ever worked at any one time in the time I have lived here."
Meanwhile, a third resident said: "We appreciate that the cost of living has increased, but many will not be able to afford this 20pc increase, especially if improvements aren't made to the building.
"I am genuinely worried that many residents will be made homeless and I am worried that people will die over the winter due to the state of the flats and the increase in rent."
Coun Warmisham has been contacted by several residents of Briar Hill Court and he described the conditions residents are living in as 'unacceptable'.
"I really feel for these residents," he said. "This should not be happening in this day and age - people not looking after properties and then putting rent up."
Coun Warmisham said he would be asking the Salford city council landlord licensing team to look into the issues raised by the residents. "They have the power to force landlords to bring their properties up to scratch," he said.
Sterling Property Management have declined to comment.
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