Private landlords and hotels ‘cashing in’ on England’s hidden homelessness crisis

Exclusive: Half of local authorities charged double by private providers for temporary housing, investigation finds

• It feels very much like a prison': inside a cramped Birmingham homeless hostel

Private landlords and hotel owners are charging councils far in excess of market rent to house people who would otherwise end up on the street, an investigation has found, laying bare the depth of England's hidden homelessness crisis.

Local authorities in England are paying 60% more for rooms in places such as bed and breakfasts and hostels than it would cost to rent similar-sized accommodation on the private market, with half of them spending double the local going rate.