A quarter of private renters could fall into arrears in some areas

Rental Property

Up to a quarter of private renters could fall into arrears in towns and cities most impacted by Coronavirus, research from rental technology firm flatfair has found.

With up to 25% of furloughed workers set to be made redundant across Britain as the government’s job retention scheme winds down this month, towns like Crawley, which has high numbers of both private renters and furloughed workers, are set to be hit the hardest.

As many as 23.8% of the West Sussex town’s private renters could be out of a job soon, leaving them unable to pay rent.

A high proportion could also be affected in Blackburn, Lancashire (19.5%), as well as Sunderland (17.9%).

Franz Doerr, chief executive of payment technology firm flatfair, said: “While the government’s job retention scheme has ensured many thousands of workers have avoided unemployment, not every job is salvageable.

“Thousands of out-of-work renters face the very real possibility of also losing their homes if they are unable to keep up on rent payments. It is, therefore, up to both landlords and their tenants to be proactive and work together to find a solution.

“flatfair’s free-to-use Resolve solution is an online portal which allows landlords to quickly and transparently negotiate and agree on a rent repayment plan in the event of any current or expected rent arrears.

“Landlords looking to further safeguard their income can also take advantage of Boost, which provides an additional six weeks of damage protection on top of the maximum of five allowed through a traditional rental deposit.”