One for Clutton and others......

scrummy_mummy_2

I have a property up for rent available 6 Oct 08
Nice house, well looked after etc...don't rent out anything I would not be happy to live in.
Have just found potential tenant but they will fail ref checks due to 'previous financial difficulties' the nature of which are, as yet, unknown to me.

They have been paying for a year in chunks of 6 months cash up front in a nother property locally.....

Should i consider them or reject them straight off??? Never been in this situation before...

sooz

scrummy_mummy wrote: »

I
Should i consider them or reject them straight off??? Never been in this situation before...

Can I reply if I'm not clutton? .....

Consider them if they can provide a UK based guarantor who owns a UK property. The guarantor will need to pass the credit checks. Make sure the guarantor gets a copy of the AST too, & signs a guarantor form.

Otherwise, I wouldn't.

scrummy_mummy_2

Thanks Sooz.....I would usually be happy to deal with this sort of thing through MARAS although, for the first time, I am hoping/planning to use the new NLA ref and credit check service so I'm not used to how they deal with things!
I rang them and they said that, as long as he is being truthful and it is not more serious than a credit card missed payment (Not CCJ's or being Carlos the Jackall!!) then he should be OK.....my proposed course of action is:
1. Talk to him and get his version of events to see if he is just overreacting...ask him if he has actually been refused credit and why he thinks he will fail.
2. With his agreement, run a full NLA ref and credit check and see what they come back with. I am meeting the potential tenant face to face tomorrow to discuss the situation with him.....I will advise him if they advise a guarantor but he apparently has 6 months' rent available to pay up front.

Any other thoughts anyone?
I really don't want to just write him off (or cut my nose off to spite my face) so I think giving him a check through NLA is the least I can do and then handle it from there??????

SquatNow

Are they going to be paying you 6 month up front too?

scrummy_mummy_2

they have 6 months up front available and can pay me up front, yes.

SquatNow

scrummy_mummy wrote: »

they have 6 months up front available and can pay me up front, yes.

So who cares what their financial history is.

When you go into Currys with a tenner for a toaster they don't ask you to take a credit check to prove you could afford to buy a washing machine.

pawpurrs

If they are paying the rent upfront then I cant see a problem. He seems to be being honest with you.
Any tennant could suddenly stop paying, job loss or whatever, this way you are secure that you have your rent, in fact it sounds more secure IYSWIM.

tbs624

scrummy_mummy wrote: »

they have 6 months up front available and can pay me up front, yes.

It's interesting that most local police forces suggest that LLs avoid tenants who are offering to pay 6 months rent in advance: it's apparently a favoured ruse of those who may have particular horticultural or chemistry-based hobbies.........;)


Edit:
http://www.birminghammail.net/news/birmingham-news/2008/06/06/increase-in-number-of-cannabis-factories-97319-21035829/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/insideout/content/articles/2008/02/11/west_midlands_drugs_s13_w1_feature.shtml
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/derbyshire/6158446.stm and http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=38371&in_page_id=34 (same story)

SquatNow

tbs624 wrote: »

It's interesting that most local police forces suggest that LLs avoid tenants who are offering to pay 6 months rent in advance: it's apparently a favoured ruse of those who may have particular horticultural or chemistry-based hobbies.........;)

I hate to point this out, but since the mass introduction of police choppers, ganja-houses are become rare.

It's the FLIR you see. Forward Looking Infra Red.

With all the grow lights, on the infra-red, the houses are lit up like a christmas tree. You can see them for several miles away.

There was one in my street in Luton. It was found almost instantly as my road is the waiting point for the police chopper while it's waiting to land at the airport.

silvercar

tbs624 wrote: »

It's interesting that most local police forces suggest that LLs avoid tenants who are offering to pay 6 months rent in advance: it's apparently a favoured ruse of those who may have particular horticultural or chemistry-based hobbies.........;)

and landlords that want 6 months rent in advance haven't paid their mortgage and are going to disappear with your money leaving the tenant homeless when repossession happens.

sooz

SquatNow wrote: »

So who cares what their financial history is.

When you go into Currys with a tenner for a toaster they don't ask you to take a credit check to prove you could afford to buy a washing machine.

Depends on how much the rent is. 6 months upfront for properties near me is a HUGE amount of money. I'd be concerned about someone who had access to that much, & yet said they had a bad credit history. Depends on what the problem is.

I think the OP is right to speak to the potential tenant first, & to do the checks anyway. Is the NLA one tenant ref? I've used their full profile & found them to be very good & very fast.