Haringey housing action success

On Tuesday 16 October, members of Haringey Housing Action Group successfully supported a family facing eviction.

Ms T, a member of the group and mother of three, is pregnant and about to be evicted from a private tenancy later in the month, just three days before her baby is due to be born. Ms T had approached Haringey Council to apply for emergency housing at the beginning of summer, but was told on repeated occasions that she would not be housed until the hour of her eviction. The fact that she was pregnant was not reason enough to offer her accommodation earlier. So she would have to wait for bailiffs to throw her out, before turning up at the council office with all her belongings, only three days from her baby’s due date. Read the rest of this post »

October 21, 2012  Tags: , , , ,   Posted in: HHAG ACTIONS, NEWS  Comments Closed

Community Housing Inspectors demonstration – Video

October 16, 2012  Tags: ,   Posted in: HHAG ACTIONS, NEWS  Comments Closed

Housing activists stage inspection of local letting agents

Haringey Housing Action Group, Haringey Private Tenants Action Group and Haringey Solidariyt Group held an inspection of local letting agents to draw attention to high rents, short-term tenancies, discrimination against housing benefit claimants and high administration fees.

On Saturday 6 October, a team of Community Housing Inspectors took a tour of local letting agents along Green Lanes to investigate their practices. About twenty people took part in the inspection, asking letting agency staff about their company policies, including: whether they accept tenants claiming housing benefit; how many months deposit they require; what charges they make to tenants; and what is the longest tenancy period they offer. Of the agencies visited, four agreed to take part, while Winkworths, Kings Group, Bairstow Eves, Brian Thomas and Anthony Pepe all denied access or refused to speak to the self styled inspectors. Read the rest of this post »

October 8, 2012  Tags: , , , ,   Posted in: HHAG ACTIONS, NEWS  Comments Closed

Private Tenants challenge discrimination and profiteering by Haringey Letting Agents

Community Housing Inspection of Haringey Letting Agents

Saturday 6 October, meet at 12noon outside Turnpike Lane tube station

We at Haringey Housing Action Group are seeing more and more tenants, including those who are entitled to welfare benefits who cannot find anywhere to live in Haringey. This is due to discrimination against anyone on benefits by Letting Agents, and unaffordable rents. We will be taking to the streets on October 6th in Haringey to challenge these practices and step up our ongoing campaign to reverse the trend in rent inflation, extortionate charges for prospective tenants and policies where anyone on welfare benefits is turned away. We intend to create a public audit of the practices carried out by Letting Agents to ‘Name and Shame’ some of them and force changes to be made.

We will be investigating the practices of local letting agents on our high streets, to uncover any unwelcome practices:

  • Discriminating against housing benefit claimants
  • Extortionate charges to prospective and existing tenants
  • Encouraging short term tenancies to maximise renewal fees
  • Inflating rents Read the rest of this post »

October 1, 2012  Tags: ,   Posted in: HHAG ACTIONS  Comments Closed

Joint demands agreed by Haringey Housing Action Group & Private Tenants Action Group

OUR DEMANDS:

AFFORDABLE, DECENT, SECURE HOUSING FOR ALL

  • Rents brought down to affordable levels Landlords should be not be making a profit or gaining an extra home out ofsomeone’s basic need for housing
  • No evictions due to inability to pay e.g. due to cuts to benefits, unaffordable housing, loss of job

  • All housing to be maintained to a high quality standard

  • Tenant empowerment No decision about tenants, without tenants
  • All housing to be seen as a public resource Not for exploitation as a private gain

TO LETTING AGENTS AND LANDLORDS

  • Removal of all fees for prospective tenants Admin ‘fees’, reference check ‘fees’, leaving ‘fees’ etc

  • No discrimination against people on welfare benefits

  • No discrimination against people who are self-employed or low-waged

  • Secure tenancies for all For as long as you want to stay

TO HARINGEY COUNCIL

  • Ensure an adequate supply of council housing for all that need it, when they need it and in the area they wish to live. No loss of existing council housing
  • Ensure all new developments contain 100% social housing Whether it’s subsidised with public or private funds
  • Fair treatment of those facing eviction e.g housing people in priority need before their day of eviction
  • Set a maximum rent level for private renting in Haringey and insist all landlords adhere to it
  • Support private tenants in securing their rights toa decent, secure and affordable home

September 27, 2012  Tags: ,   Posted in: INFORMATION  Comments Closed

Bring rents down! Lobby the Landlords Forum Thursday 20th Sept

Join us to demand landlords bring rents down and stop discrimination against those on benefits.

At the Landlords Forum run by Haringey council
Thursday 20th September, 5.30– 6.30pm
Outside the Civic Centre, Wood Green, N22

Some landlords have agreed to reduce rent for tenants who have had their benefits cut following negotiations with the Council’s new HUB team which aims* to prevent homelessness as a result of benefit cuts; other landlords agreed to reduce their rent at the previous Landlords Forum when asked by us – Let’s try and spread this across the borough and bring all rents down to affordable levels to ensure noone is evicted due to inability to pay. Read the rest of this post »

September 18, 2012  Tags: ,   Posted in: HHAG ACTIONS, LOCAL CAMPAIGNS  Comments Closed

Our Response to London Assembly Review of Private Rented Sector

Haringey Housing Action Group response to London Assembly’s Housing and Regeneration Committee review of London’s Private Rented Sector – Session 2: Affordability and Tenure

Haringey Housing Action Group

Haringey Housing Action Group has been supporting local residents with housing problems for about three years.  Our aim is to support people in a way that they feel empowered to take action to resolve their own housing problems. We also encourage people with similar experiences to support each other and find solutions.  We currently meet twice a month and carry out outreach sessions in the borough, at least fortnightly, mainly outside Haringey Council’s customer service centres.

We are open to residents with any kind of tenure.  However, we have noticed a shift in the tenure of new people approaching our group.  Until about 18 months ago, most new people were homeless and in priority need, and were having trouble in being considered as such by the council’s housing services.  Over the last 18 months, we have been increasingly seeing people who are in private rented accommodation.

Our responses below are based on experiences from people within our group.

AFFORDABILITY AND TENURE

Why is the cost (in terms of rent and public subsidy) rising? Read the rest of this post »

September 3, 2012  Tags: ,   Posted in: INFORMATION  Comments Closed

More Attacks On Our Rights To A Home – Changes to Squatting Laws

If you think you might be affected by the changes to the law about squatting read this article by Advice Service for Squatters and Squash (Squatters’ Action For Secure Homes).

Advice Service for Squatters:
September 1st – what happens now?

On the 1st September S144 of LASPO 2012 comes into force. We’ll leave it to others to explain how this is crap law, in response to myths from sections of the media, brought in by a government of the rich.

The intention is to criminalise squatting in residential property. Read the rest of this post »

August 31, 2012  Tags:   Posted in: INFORMATION  Comments Closed

Homeless? Get Your Rights!

Council Homeless Persons Units (HPUs) are famous for trying to turn away as many people as they can – telling them they don’t fit the criteria to be housed. In reality many of these people are entitled to help – and this might include you.

There are 5 TESTS that the council must look at to sort what type of help you are entitled to. If you satisfy all of the tests you will be entitled to temporary housing and some priority on the housing register for a permanent home. Even if you don’t meet all the tests, you may have the right to some help with housing.

THE 5 TESTS:

1. Are you homeless?

This includes people who will become homeless within the next 28 days or are badly or unsafely housed as well as those who are on the streets (e.g. if you can’t stay in your home because you are experiencing violence there). Read the rest of this post »

August 28, 2012  Tags: ,   Posted in: INFORMATION  Comments Closed

No Gentrification For Tottenham! The Threat to Working Class People and Ethnic Minorities From ‘The Plan For Tottenham’

We were forwarded this report and analysis of the recently announced regeneration proposals for our community: ‘A Plan for Tottenham’. The proposal contains many references to housing including, increasing property values leading to an increase in rents, less social housing, no mention of how rents will be controlled so those on Local Housing Allowance and Housing Benefit will be able to find an affordable home in the new plan, which at the moment many of us are struggling with already. Tottenham has seen fantastic examples of community-led regeneration recently with Wards Corner Coalition Campaign working on their plan for Sevem Sisters, and at Lordship Rec the Friends group has worked hard to attain lottery funding to regenerate the park. We should be calling for the same community-led regeneration for Tottenham, where local people are included in the plans, not just big business and private interests.

NO GENTRIFICATION FOR TOTTENHAM!

THE THREAT TO WORKING CLASS PEOPLE AND ETHNIC MINORITIES FROM ‘THE PLAN FOR TOTTENHAM’

INTRO

On Tuesday 31st July, Haringey Council announced a regeneration plan for Tottenham, the Plan for Tottenham, which it claims will create thousands of new homes and jobs (download at http://www.haringey.gov.uk/vision-for-tottenham-unveiled.htm). Read the rest of this post »

August 19, 2012  Tags: ,   Posted in: INFORMATION, NEWS  Comments Closed