The TV debate tonight could go one of two ways:
Either we’ll spend the evening hearing about “empty-chairs” who “agree with Nick” that “met a man on Hampstead Heath” “eating a pasty (tax)”? Or politicians will skip the sound-bites and tell us what their plans are to end the housing crisis.
We’re hoping for the latter.
To check in on them, we’re going to be playing buzzword bingo. Join in and tweet @shelter if you’re lucky enough to win!… Read more
Late last year we did a big old round up of the country’s 5 most ridiculous properties to rent or buy. Things were bleak, the lowlight being a shed in Devon on sale for £40k.
We’d love to say things got better. However that would be lying.
So here is more property-scorn for you to cast your angry eyes over (and for those who want to do something about it, sign our petition to help end the housing crisis).… Read more
When Boris Johnson came on stage at the 2014 Conservative party conference brandishing a brick, claiming “you shall not be alone”, it got us thinking.
Bricks aren’t solitary creatures. They should be cemented together into new homes, to solve the housing shortage. But without politicians building enough of those, they’re stuck sitting by themselves.
So we thought, what better way to find a mate for a single brick – and highlight the issue to some of the young people directly … Read more
William Hague with a suspicious wig. Tony Blair with those satanic eyes. A snaking queue of the unemployed under the slogan: “Labour isn’t working”.
Election campaign posters tell us stories from elections gone by. Condensing narratives into single messages; and priorities into billboards.
This election though there’s a familiar old face on the block clambering for attention at bus stops (and now on social media too): homes.
Housing is now consistently a top 5 voter issue, beating issues like … Read more
You know there’s a housing crisis right?
Well it turns out that house prices have gone up. A lot.
But we wanted to give you EVEN MORE DRAMA
So here’s what the soaps would really be like if house prices in Soapland had gone up as much as in reality.
It’s not good news. Sorry Ste…
It turns out house prices in Fasset Square, Hackney – the inspiration for Eastenders’ Albert Square – have gone up 530% since … Read more
The housing crisis is out of control. Across the country, high house prices and unaffordable rents mean more and more people are struggling to get by.
This general election we’ve got a chance to get this changed. To show politicians that the housing crisis ends here.
But we need help! Here’s how you can make a difference:
Get involved locally
We’ll be visiting towns and cities all over the country. Whether you can stop by for a minute or … Read more
We all know it: house prices are out of control. It would take the average person 12 years to save up a deposit nowadays. And renting is pretty terrible too: renters now spend 40% their income on housing costs.
Terrifying.
The sad/rubbish/anger-inducing thing is that what you get for your money is often, well, pretty damn awful.
Here are five of the worst properties we’ve come across in our trawlings:
The housing shortage is a thing that leaves no-one untouched. It impacts on us all, often in very different ways.
For a family renting the crisis is lived out through expensive housing costs. It is the pervading worry you could be evicted from your home, forcing you to uproot your lives and children.
For many of us it can be even more precarious. An unexpected job loss, or a serious illness could be the thing that tips one of us … Read more
Ever get the feeling people are talking about you behind your back? Or ever wondered what actually happens when you complain to your landlord or letting agent?
Well Miguel found out first hand what both were like when his letting agent accidentally forwarded an email conversation he’d been having with Miguel’s landlord.
This actually happened. And it’s pretty awkward.
Agent: I’ve told Miguel that you’re coming to the flat today for the boiler. Best say you’re the landlord’s brother that … Read more
On Tuesday something strange happened. Everyone in politics agreed on something.
One North – a collection of five cities working together – put forward an ambitious proposal on how to improve transport connectivity, dubbed the “Crossrail of the North”.
George Osborne pledged support, stating he’d make the plans the centrepiece of his Autumn Statement. And Ed Balls welcomed the proposals too.
However, before everyone runs away with themselves I want to offer an amendment, an addition to the plans. Let’s … Read more
The politics of housing is a delicate thing. The public have little understanding of how it works. The problem is difficult to grasp. And the solutions are even harder to formulate. Consensus, when achieved, can be easily rocked.
All in all, this means Professor Danny Dorling’s new book, ‘All that is solid’ is kicking up a bit of a storm at the moment, asking fundamental questions around the solutions to our housing problems as a country.
He’s not … Read more
For the second time in two weeks we’ve seen homes – the need for a safe, decent, affordable place to live, work and bring up a family – come up as the central theme of a political party conference.
And it’s purely because building more good quality homes, which ordinary families can actually afford, has become one of voters’ key demands. In fact it’s now a top five election issue, up from 17th back in 2010.
Unfortunately this surge in … Read more