Tenants are the ‘forgotten victims of the recession’

Campaigners are urging the government to protect thousands of private tenants facing eviction as landlords fall into arrears, calling them the ‘forgotten victims of the repossession crisis’. The issue was first raised by ROOF in the January/February issue. They want new laws in England and Wales to give tenants more time than the current two weeks’ notice when their home is repossessed. While government has agreed to increase this notice period to seven weeks from 6 April, campaigners estimate that more than 8,000 buy-to-let properties could be repossessed in the coming year, forcing at least 10,000 people into possible homelessness. They are calling for the law to be changed to allow courts to defer repossession.