Housing Crisis in Pembrokeshire
Image courtesy of emrose5561 at Pixabay
Studies of the housing market in the UK have identified the fact that Pembrokeshire has around 4,331 empty homes for every 100,000 people. This indicates around 5,346 empty properties, bringing our county into third place in the empty homes statistics.
Gwynedd, in north-west Wales, is top of the list, followed by Argyll and Bute.
Our own county has experienced an increase in holiday-home ownership over the past few years, with around 74 per cent of its vacant properties being owned as second homes. Naturally, this affects our residents and our ability to rent or buy somewhere to live.
In 2021 the census revealed that we had serious overcrowding in 1,000 households – which equates to 1.7 per cent of all homes in the county.
Private renters are having the worst time, with rents for even a one-bedroom flat reaching around £600 a month.
The Welsh Government has plans to alleviate the situation – more information on Gov.Wales.
Meanwhile, there is help and support for those who are at risk of homelessness or who are living in accommodation that does not fit their needs.
This is not a definitive list of places that can help (below). There are many organisations that are set up to help and we would be delighted to hear about and possibly write about those you might have had a good experience with.
Pembrokeshire Council has advice on its website:
https://www.pembrokeshire.gov.uk/
Shelter is a charity that deals with homelessness:
Local charity Pembrokeshire Homeless does incredible work with a range of people, offering signposting, practical advice and items that could be of use if you are unfortunate enough to find yourself sofa surfing or without a roof over your head at all:
