Airbnb data identifies illegal social home sublets

An important development from the financial markets: Airbnb data identifies illegal social home subletsImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Nearly 6,000 social homes in England are suspected of being illegally sublet on short-term rental platformsByMeghan Owen London work and money correspondentPublished1 hour agoLocal councils and Airbnb have begun sharing data to identify the illegal subletting of social homes on the short-term rental platform. The scheme, coordinated by the Cabinet Office's fraud team, external, allows councils to cross-check social housing records against Airbnb listings in an effort to tackle what the government calls "social housing fraud. "It is suspected nearly 6,000 social homes in England are illegally sublet on short-term rental platforms, according to the Tenancy Fraud Forum, a not-for profit organisation.

Early results suggest 470 cases of social housing fraud have been identified so far across participating local authorities, with offenders facing penalties including eviction, fines and up to two years in prison. However, some campaign groups say tackling illegal subletting will have "very little impact on the acute housing crisis. "According to the Cabinet Office, whether a tenant can sublet a room depends on the terms of their individual tenancy agreement and may require the council's permission, but subletting an entire social housing property is an offence.

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Fraudsters could include people who have more than one home or are living abroad. The government estimates on average, each case costs taxpayers around £78,300 - a figure which could include paying for temporary accommodation for genuine applicants, the legal costs to recover property, and rent foregone during the void period between tenancies. Image caption, Geraldine Geraldi said she has noticed lockboxes and a stream of people with suitcasesThe Tenancy Fraud forum estimates at least 1,000 social homes are illegally advertised for short term lets on Airbnb in London over a period of a year, but if other platforms are included, this number is likely to be far greater.

London has spoken to residents who are convinced illegal holiday lets are operating in their buildings. They describe lockboxes appearing outside flats, a constant stream of unfamiliar people arriving with suitcases, and in some cases antisocial behaviour. Geraldine Geraldi has lived in a mixed-tenure Notting Hill Genesis block in King's Cross for 26 years.

A leaseholder and member of the Social Housing Action Campaign, she believes one social housing flat has been illegally sublet as short-term accommodation. "Recently there's been lots of people coming and going with suitcases. They're not residents of the building.

"She said residents had repeatedly found lockboxes attached to the building, which are removed and relocated somewhere else. "It's really obvious someone's trying to avoid detection. "Geraldi said the constant turnover of visitors has led to damage of communal area carpets, doors and entrances.

Economists are analysing what the news means for the markets.