Taxpayers forked out a massive £1.2 billion on housing benefits across the West Midlands last year.
A study by the GMB union revealed how private landlords were making fortunes from the subsidies – with more than £6 million paid out over the last 12 months.
In one case an estate agent enjoying large payouts said he had been helping to evict tenants for the family business since the age of ten.
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The huge £1.2 billion figure included £549 million in Birmingham, £135.5 million in Sandwell, £100.6 million in Dudley, and £113.7 million in Walsall.
The overall figure has risen by more than £200 million from £976.4 million four years ago and has nearly doubled from £635 million a decade ago.
The information has been revealed after millions of TV viewers watched the , which was filmed in James Turner Street, Winson Green.
to plug gaps between market rates and what tenants can afford.
Councils in the West Midlands handed over £6,032,997 to 65 estate agents and private letters in 2012/13.
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Paul Kenny, the GMB’s general secretary, said meant housing benefits were lining private pockets across the region.
He said: “This expose shows the rich and powerful sucking up taxpayers' money through housing benefit.
“This is made possible by out of control rents and a lack of affordable and council homes that so many hard working people and their families desperately need.”
Sanjive Mahandru, of Muskaan estate agents, in Bearwood, received £67,000 from Sandwell Council for tenants who are eligible for housing benefits.
Mr Mahandru says on his website: “At the age of ten I was helping my Mum and Dad to evict tenants.”
He said that he had also been in court every month in the past year to remove tenants who could no long pay their rent, but insisted it is always a last resort option.
“Benefits paid directly to estate agents are a good thing as they minimise arrears and saves tenants mis-spending their rent money” he said.
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“One of my earliest childhood memories is of me collecting rent for my parents. I would collect go on to tricycle with my rent payment in Edgbaston.”
“Now I’m 45 now and have more issues collecting rent than I was 10. I remember my parents evicting a tenant when I was aged 11.”
More than £50,000 was also paid out by Dudley to caravan-retailer Glossop Caravans, which is based in Manchester.
Other recipients of welfare payments include the country’s largest residential property owner, Grainger Residential Management Ltd.
The Newcastle-based company, which made pre-tax profits of £64.3 million in 2013, received £15,553 from Solihull Council, while its subsidiary company, Northumberland and Durham Property Trust banked another £30,4313 in rent benefits.
Another estate agents based in Yardley, Black & White Residential Lettings, was paid more than £80,000 in housing benefit rent through Solihull Council. The agency’s directors have also established a company called ‘Remove a Tenant Ltd’.
Solihull Council said the £800,000 given to landlords represented only 1.4 per cent of the borough’s overall budget allocated towards housing.
Councillor Robert Hulland, the cabinet member for resources said: “These figures represent a small percentage of the overall housing benefit budget in Solihull.
"Like other authorities in the country, Solihull does have a shortage of council housing and private landlords are meeting a legitimate need.”
The figures have been revealed through a Freedom of Information showing the top 20 landlords who receive housing benefits in Birmingham, Sandwell, Dudley, Solihull and Wolverhampton.
Private landlords in Wolverhampton received £1.6 million on behalf of their tenants, while Dudley dished out £1.5 million and Sandwell Council, £1.15 million. Just under a million pounds was given to property letting companies in Birmingham last year.
The largest was paid out to City Estates Midlands, a company with an estimated net worth of £4 million, and which received £183,637.
Paul Reynolds, general manager of City Estates said: “Most of the properties we manage are in Winson Green, Handsworth, and Hockley, and around 95 per cent of our tenants are eligible for housing benefits.
"At one time there were lots of owner occupied houses in these parts of the cities but they have moved out in recent years.
“At the moment, benefit claimants are being demonised. One of the James Turner Street residents is a tenant of our landlords. And we refused to take part in that.
"The camera crews wanted to stage an episode in our office where we were threatening them with eviction. But we said we wouldn’t be evicting them.
"The family they were dealing with had severe learning difficulties and the landlord, who is as good as gold, has said he won’t be evicting them."
Many property managers in the region also said they had been dealing with increasing number of tenants from London who were being relocated by their borough councils as they could no longer meet their rental payments.
A spokeswoman for Birmingham City Council said: “Unlike many other authorities we still have council owned stock and are also engaged in a building programme for more council owned housing.
"However, we still have a waiting list of 30,000, so many people in receipt of housing benefit live in housing provided by housing associations, not for profit organisations, charities and private landlords.”
Councillor Pete Lowe, cabinet member of finance for Dudley Council, said: “Our housing benefits are set to a government formula irrespective of house size and is calculated based on a number of factors, including the income and expenditure of a household, how much rent they pay and how many people live at the property.
“The vast majority of our housing benefit claimants in the Dudley borough are in social housing.”
Department for Work and Pensions spokesman said: “Housing Benefit provides a meaningful safety net for people whether they live in social housing or in private rental properties, and it’s sensible that both of these options are available to people.
"Our reforms are bringing the growing Housing benefit spend under control, after it increased by around 50 per cent in just ten years.”