Housing disrepair statistics for England

Damp and mould

The English Housing Survey is the government’s survey of housing conditions in England, and includes inspections of homes by surveyors. Its figures for 2024 were published on 29 January 2026.

• 1.4 million homes (5%) had a problem with damp in 2024, more than in 2022.
• Privately rented homes were the most likely to have damp (10%), followed by social rented homes (7%) and owner-occupied homes (4%).
• In social housing, council homes (8%) were more likely to have damp than housing association homes (6%).
• Severe condensation was the most common kind of damp (3% of homes), ahead of penetrating damp (2%) and rising damp (1%).

The kind of damp matters, because it points to the cause and to who has to put it right. See damp and mould in a rented home and whether condensation mould is your landlord’s responsibility.

Homes that fail basic standards

• 4.0 million homes (15%) did not meet the Decent Homes Standard in 2024: 22% of privately rented homes, 15% of owner-occupied homes and 10% of social rented homes.
• 2.3 million homes (9%) had a Category 1 hazard, the most serious band under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System: 10% of privately rented homes, 9% of owner-occupied homes and 5% of social rented homes.
• In social housing, council homes (6%) were more likely to have a Category 1 hazard than housing association homes (4%).

Category 1 hazards are the ones a council must act on. See how the HHSRS works and what an environmental health inspection involves.

Complaints to the Housing Ombudsman, April 2024 to March 2025

The Housing Ombudsman decides complaints, mainly from social housing tenants, once a landlord’s own complaints process has finished. Its Annual Complaints Review for 2024-25 was published on 23 September 2025.

• It made 7,082 determinations (decisions after investigating a complaint), containing 14,420 findings.
• Property condition was the most common complaint category, ahead of complaint handling and antisocial behaviour.
• Findings about poor property condition rose by 43%, far faster than investigations overall.
• Overall it upheld 71% of complaints, and it upheld repairs complaints at 73%, the same rate as the year before.
• 131 landlords received at least one finding of severe maladministration.

Our own Housing Disrepair Index takes 43 published Ombudsman decisions about damp, leaks, heating and pests and breaks each one down issue by issue, with a link to the decision.

What social housing tenants say, 2024/25

Social landlords in England must survey their tenants each year using the Tenant Satisfaction Measures set by the Regulator of Social Housing. The 2024/25 results were published on 4 November 2025.

• Just over seven in ten tenants are satisfied with the overall service from their landlord.
• 74% are satisfied with their landlord’s overall repairs service.
• Satisfaction with how landlords handle complaints is much lower: 36% for the typical landlord.
• Social landlords carried out just under 15.1 million responsive repairs during the year.

The deadlines the law now sets

Awaab’s Law has applied since 27 October 2025. It sets fixed deadlines for councils and housing associations in England to investigate and deal with damp, mould and emergency hazards. Phase 2 is scheduled to come into force on 30 November 2026. See Awaab’s Law explained, or use the Awaab’s Law deadline checker to work out the dates for a particular home.

About these figures

• All the figures are for England. Wales publishes its own housing statistics through the Welsh Government.
• The English Housing Survey is a sample survey, so its figures are estimates for all homes in England.
• The Tenant Satisfaction Measures cover social landlords only. The figure for complaint handling is the median across landlords, not an average across tenants.
• Each figure was checked against the source named on 7 October 2026. When a source publishes newer figures, this page is updated.