Whatever way you look at it - this General Election is important. The next Government will be tackling the big issues of the day like Brexit, crime, protecting our NHS and fixing the housing crisis. At this election Generation Rent is getting stuck in.

Why is renting so important at this election?

• One in five people in the UK rent privately, yet renters are often overlooked by policymakers in favour of homeowners or first-time buyers. 
• Renting is unaffordable, with renters paying around 40% of their income on rents.
• In return for high rents, private renters suffer poor conditions and have very little security.
• One in seven privately rented homes are unsafe, and tenants can be evicted by their landlords with just two months’ notice, even if they have done nothing wrong.

That’s why we are working hard to put renting on the agenda at the election. Here’s what we’ve done so far:

1. We’ve crunched the numbers and there are around 50 seats where renter votes could make a difference - where there are more private renters than the national average and the seat was won in 2017 by less than 5000 votes. It means that renters are powerful - we are a political force to be reckoned with. Renting isn’t working and at this election, we are setting out to make sure every candidate from every party knows how to fix it, no matter who is in 10 Downing Street.
2. We’ve launched a Renter Manifesto alongside ACORN, London Renters Union, New Economics Foundation, Tenants Union UK and Renters Rights London. It’s a huge document detailing the views of thousands of us on how to fix the renting crisis and make sure renting is safe, fair and secure. Take a look at the Renter Manifesto here
3. We’re taking our ideas to the candidates. Whether that’s Generation Rent volunteers meeting the candidates face to face, asking questions in their local hustings or emailing them the manifesto directly.
4. We’re also making the case for renters in the headlines and on the airwaves. We’ve been covered by The I, TalkRadio, BBC 5Live, CityMetric, the Guardian. Generation Rent supporters are talking to journalists about their experiences and why renting isn’t working. 
5. We’re crunching the numbers to make evidence-based arguments. We know that renting is hard because we live it every day but we know that to make real change we need to prove it. Generation Rent staff and volunteers have been busy bringing together data and analysing it to shine a light on the renting crisis.
6. We’re building a movement online. On 25th November we will be taking over social media with #VentYourRent, sharing our experiences of the renting crisis. This election has already seen renting go viral whether it’s a landlord putting a thermostat in a cage or a landlord evicting renters so they can have a birthday party. We know there are more stories where they came from and we can create a buzz to make politicians sit up and listen.

We’ll be doing much, much more over the course of the election to make sure that renting is on the agenda. Generation Rent is a campaign of thousands of people and we won’t stop until renting is safer, fairer and more secure for the 13 million renters across the UK. You can help today by donating just £1 to cover the costs of our campaign.