00:00Kefili Council is facing one of its biggest housing challenges in years, with 500 people
00:06currently in temporary accommodation and two thirds of them staying in bed and breakfast.
00:12Officials say a shortage of one-bedroom properties, rising rents and the cost of living crisis
00:17are all driving the demand.
00:19For some, it means months in temporary rooms before a permanent home becomes available.
00:25Figures show that while 49 more people were placed in temporary housing in the spring,
00:28only 20 of them were successfully moved into long-term homes.
00:32That imbalance has left the council struggling to cope and the cost of providing emergency
00:36housing is rising sharply.
00:39Cabinet Member for Housing Shane Cook says Kefili's situation is no different than the rest of
00:43Wales, but warned that overspends are now significant, with the housing budget expected
00:47to exceed forecasts by more than £800,000 this year.
00:52The council says they have put more than £4.2 million worth of additional funding into the
00:57area in the last three years.
01:00To ease the pressure, the council is building new social housing for the first time in decades
01:05and has invested £1 million to buy 27 private homes for use as family accommodation.
01:10It also launched the Kefili Keys leasing scheme in partnership with the Welsh Government to encourage
01:15landlords to make their properties available for people in need.
01:19The problem stretches far further though than just in Kefili, with a housing crisis particularly
01:23in social housing across the country.
01:26Councils are bearing the brunt of the issues, and only time will tell if anything will help
01:29solve the problem.
01:30Kefili is the latest council being dragged into the situation, so with more and more people
01:35facing months at a time in hotel rooms or unsuitable accommodation, the worries will only
01:40go.
01:41James Beach Watkins reporting for Local TV.
01:43James Beach Watkins reporting for Local TV.
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