One in three working families only one pay cheque away from losing their home

The study by Shelter and YouGov found that one in three families have little or no personal savings to fall back meaning that a staggering three million working families could be just one pay cheque away from losing their home. The research also revealed that a fifth of working parents face the prospect of being immediately unable to make their next rent or mortgage payment if they lost their job, and couldn’t get another one straightaway. The findings mirror recent government figures, which show there are 16.5 million working age adults in the UK with no savings at all.

High housing costs remain a major area of concern for most working families, with almost half saying housing puts the biggest strain on their household budget.

Campbell Robb, Chief Executive of Shelter, said: “These figures are stark a reminder that sky-high housing costs are leaving millions of working families stretched to breaking point, and barely scraping by from one paycheque to the next.

“Any one of us could hit a bump along life’s road, and at Shelter we speak to parents every day who, after losing their job or seeing their hours cut, are terrified of losing the roof over their children’s heads too.

“In these uncertain times, the new government has a real chance to show working families they’re on their side, by protecting and improving our welfare safety net. It’s vital that if life does takes a turn for the worse, there’s enough support available for families so that they don’t go hurtling towards homelessness.”