The rent can’t wait: The impact of the Local Housing Allowance freeze on older private renters

This Independent Age briefing exposes the human cost of freezing Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates since April 2024. While market rents have soared, nearly seven in ten pension-age renters receiving Housing Benefit face a shortfall between their rent and the support they receive, forcing them to cut back on essentials like heating and food, leaving them stuck in unsafe or deteriorating conditions, and fearing the prospect of homelessness.

Independent Age is calling on the UK Government to seize the opportunity in the upcoming budget to raise LHA to cover at least the cheapest 30% of local rents and keep it pegged at that level, to provide a vital lifeline to protect older renters from financial hardship, health crises, and the threat of losing their home.