A lack of social housing stock in England has meant people on the lowest incomes are being refused applications, a report from Crisis, Heriot-Watt University and the UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence found.
Research found housing associations are turning down applicants based on income, as the supply of homes keeps falling and checks get stricter.
Around a third of English housing associations said pre-tenancy affordability checks often picked up new information that made a housing offer unsuitable.
Nearly a quarter (24%) said households under a certain income threshold were sometimes excluded from the housing register for social lettings.
Welfare reform was the main reason for these decisions.
71% of associations, representing 90% of sampled housing stock, said welfare changes had affected how homes are allocated.
Housing associations said applicants with serious support needs, like severe health issues or those fleeing domestic abuse, were most likely to be offered a social home.
A quarter of English housing associations said they often refused nominations from local authorities because the offer was ‘unsuitable’.
Some prioritised tenants needing property adaptations or extra support.
Applicants with a history of anti-social behaviour were most likely to be excluded from housing registers.
76% said these applicants would sometimes or always be excluded if there was no support package.
More than half (54%) said even with support, applicants with a history of anti-social behaviour would still sometimes be excluded.
Housing associations compared managing access to social housing to rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic.
71% using a choice-based lettings system, representing 89% of stock in the survey, said available properties did not match demand.
Some said the scale of need was so big that the allocations system could no longer meaningfully prioritise applicants.
Higher repair and new build costs were also highlighted as problems.
Crisis has called on the Westminster Government to follow the Scottish system, which supports people in the toughest situations.
In England, 27% of new social lettings go to homeless households, compared to 54% in Scotland.
Since 2011, councils have been able to exclude some people from housing lists, and housing associations in England are not required by law to rehouse homeless households.
Crisis said better access depends on a welfare system that covers rent and matches real housing costs.
It called for a review of the benefit cap and bedroom tax, and for welfare to reflect the cost of essentials.
Additionally, Crisis has urged ministers to act fast on their promise to build 180,000 new social homes over the next decade, with £39bn pledged and tighter rules on Right to Buy.
Matt Downie, CEO of Crisis, said: “This data proves what we’ve been hearing for years.
“Working with people who use our services, we know that people can be excluded from accessing a social home because their incomes are too low to meet the necessary criteria.
“The fundamental aim of social housing is to provide a safe and stable home for people on the lowest incomes. If people cannot afford social housing, where do they go?”
Downie added: “The reckless depletion of our social housing stock, alongside cuts to state support, has put English housing associations into an impossible position where they are forced to refuse access to people in precarious, vulnerable situations.
“Homelessness is surpassing record levels. Its costs to people, communities and local authorities are untenable.
“As a society we should be alarmed that we have got to this position.”
He said: “Ministers have to look at how we can better manage existing stock, and help councils get more stock into the system as soon as possible. This situation has to change, now.”
