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The Welsh Government has launched a scheme to provide private tenants with low-interest loans to enable them to avoid falling into rent arrears as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The 1% APR interest loans will be paid directly to landlords or letting agents when private tenants in or facing rent arrears apply for one. The loans – overseen by the Wales Council for Voluntary Action – will be repaid over five years. The scheme will remain open until 31st March 2021.
Minister for Local Government & Housing, Julie James (Lab, Swansea West) said: “We are committed to ensuring no-one is made homeless as a result of the pandemic and this scheme is part of our long-term strategy to help people manage their debt, prevent homelessness and where (homelessness) cannot be prevented ensure it is rare, brief and non-recurrent.”
Delyth Jewell MS (Plaid, South Wales East) believed the scheme stands to benefit private landlords at the expense of tenants. She said: “Offering a loan to someone in rent arrears replaces one type of debt with another….In all cases, the recipient of the loan will have to pay interest on that loan, and for that reason, I would question whether this is really designed with the tenant in mind.”
