What Does London Need to do to Solve the Rent Problem?

The rent problem in London needs action. While London has always been expensive, the current state is unsustainable. The average Londoner spends up to two thirds of their income on rent. Big city professionals need not worry, but the service industries and the bulk population who make London great certainly do. This is not their responsibility. Sadiq Khan held this as a major campaign focus. Things are being done steadily, but what do we think will be the key reforms to help solve the problem?

Building for Budget Rent

Right to Buy has been controversial. It’s great that long-term residents of social housing have been able to secure their homes as their own property. However, this only works as long as new housing is built. And it hasn’t been.

The bulk of social housing was built soon after the War as we can see all around us in concrete tower blocks. These are in places as desirable as Soho, Clerkenwell and Camden to name a few in Zone 1.

Since then we see most recent developments have been targeted for the luxury market, to the extent that some of our finest property isn’t even rented, since the long term value increase means many owners simply don’t bother getting tenants.

Rent Legislation

It is this problem that requires legislation. Enlightenment-style thinkers and libertarians must question such a move at controlling what a person can do with their own property. However, our own openness to the commodification of property is affecting our own freedom as a population, to live where we desire for a reasonable rate. Maybe it is the developers who are to blame. Quotas are now being set for the amount of affordable property to be built in parallel with luxury.

Overall, it is simple enough to say that if you own somewhere you should use it. How much and how this is enforced, and indeed punished, is the difficulty.

If there is more social housing under Right to Buy, would it make sense to secure the property to remain as Right to Buy and to go on to a respective tenant rather than being sold on privately at the market rate? Of course this limits some of key principles in encouraging independence and allowing owners to improve their homes for personal gain. You cannot sell the house too soon for this very reason. Since 2005 the association who formerly owned the property have right to refuse sale.

The obvious problem with social housing and Right to Buy is you have to qualify for social housing in the first place, which London’s young professional, student and service staff almost certainly won’t.

De-centralisation and Investment Across the Country

London has become too much of a centre for this country. London is flocked to and thrives while cities Manchester and Liverpool struggle to compete. This means more people are focused in London, who given the choice might prefer these places.

In a direct result of inflated rent we are witnessing a steady migration of talent to creative centres like Glasgow, Sheffield and Manchester. HS2 is a clear example of where London is seen as a vital bastion, rather than using the investment to enrich the industries of the rest of the country.

Update Work Practice

As covered in “Strikes, It’s Time to Make a United Stand”, not enough people are working from home who totally could. Obviously, managers and offices keep people on site as a means of monitoring and enhancing productivity. But what does this cost the worker? You could easily argue that the distractions of the office, the ‘water-cooler chat’, outweigh the temptations of weeding the garden.

If more people could work from home more regularly, a hefty hour-long commute from further out would be more reasonable than peak time tube five days a week. Culture is already shifting towards the freelancer, such as monitoring software that screenshots laptops 1984 style. We have considered if working from home spells the end of trousers. Wouldn’t that be nice?

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