Abstract
Contemporary debates around affordability have largely focused on homeownership and private renting. This article considers the affordable social rented sector in England, in which reforms to social welfare assistance, reduced security of tenure, and a shift towards mid-market rents, are changing access to ‘affordable’ housing for those on the lowest incomes. Drawing on in-depth interviews with housing associations and stakeholders, the article highlights the increasing use of affordability assessments for prospective tenants. These assessments interact with mid-market rental products to increase the potential for exclusion from affordable housing on the grounds of ability to pay. This conditionality is applied not only at the point of tenancy access, but also at renewal of fixed-term tenancies. The research highlights that the combination of welfare and housing policies, in the context of a financialising housing association sector, has the potential to erode access to social housing for those who are perceived as a financial risk, reshaping the focus of social housing.
Highlights
With adequate housing increasingly out of reach for a large proportion of the population in most countries, housing affordability is an area of global interest (Tsenkova & French, 2011)
Pre-tenancy checks have been a long-standing part of the process for obtaining a housing association tenancy, with one organization noting that affordability checks were not ‘driven by welfare reform’ (HA5R2)
Most participants linked the use of more comprehensive affordability assessments to welfare reforms, which were viewed as impacting prospective tenants’ ability to pay their rent and disrupting payment of Housing Benefit directly to landlords
Summary
With adequate housing increasingly out of reach for a large proportion of the population in most countries, housing affordability is an area of global interest (Tsenkova & French, 2011). Social housing has featured less prominently in affordability debates, perhaps because this housing is oriented towards those who are excluded from other markets, often through inability to pay. The interaction of a number of policies in England has the potential to erode access to social housing for those on the lowest incomes. Reforms to social assistance provision (welfare reforms), reduced security of tenure, and diversification of new supply towards mid-market rents is resulting in scrutiny of tenants’ financial risks, and greater conditionality in access to social housing
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
