Renting - guarantor needed!

Jowo_2

AMILLIONDOLLARS wrote: »

Seems like Landlord want a risk free investment!

You don't want to take the risk of losing your income or property by sponsoring your nephew or having personal finance problems from his behaviour so you'll understand why landlords have a similar aversion.

It's about mitigating risk, reducing the likelihood of it happening because the impact is so great - it can take many months to evict a tenant that can but won't pay the rent and trashes the property. It is also pointless seeking damages or arrears from tenants that have no income so the best thing to do is to screen out those least likely to be problem tenants or transfer the risk onto someone else via a Guarantor.

It's standard business practice - would you expect your nephew to go into a car show room and be able to drive away with a car? Or would you think that the car seller might want evidence of extra support, such as a guarantor for the loan?

The government don't want to do it by providing a more responsive benefits system. It wants private landlords to fill the vacuum caused by the lack of social housing without giving them the tools to protect them from the actions of risky and vulnerable tenants.

AMILLIONDOLLARS wrote: »

A hugh chunk of Housing Benefit is paid out to private landlord, maybe this money should be used to start building social housing again.

Yes, until then, private landlords are not comparable to social housing landlords and must disabuse the public that they are.

Remember, it's the governments policies that have led to the housing crisis - the right to buy has made over a million properties disappear, immigration has quadrupled over the last decade, their benefits system encourages parents to live apart from their children causing the creation of even more households, they have not helped housebuilding to keep up with population growth.

People's expectation that a private individual with a small business (which are what many landlords are) are happy to risk their pension pot (investment in a second property) can address a social crisis is a bit optimistic.

mchale

AMILLIONDOLLARS wrote: »

I came across this problem this week. I was looking for a rental property for my Nephew and his son. Unfortunately, the DSS will be paying the rent. In ringing around, I was told by one well known Estate Agent in my area, that the landlords on their books will only tak on a DSS renters, if a home-owner in the UK will sign as a guarantor on that's person's behalf:eek:. Well I for one will not be putting my house on the line, family or not, should the DSS mess-up. Sounds like some BTLers now want their cake and want to eat it.

Has anyone else come across this stipulation?

AMD

Don't be silly, can you supply 1 instance were a guarantor has lost his house, I always take guarantors for DSS tenants and in 25 years of renting only twice have I had to contact guarantor for payment.

barnaby-bear

Jowo wrote: »

Remember, it's the governments policies that have led to the housing crisis - the right to buy has made over a million properties disappear,

They haven't disappeared - mostly the same people are living in them just on a different basis. Those houses aren't empty/blown-up. Some sink estates have become gentrified and the expense of maintenence passed on to the householder. Some people have a genuine investment and interest in long residency through RTB. Some who would be ineligible for council housing now buy ex-LA properties all mixing it up - there are a lot of bad points to RTB but also positives.

eco-friendly_2

Walk into comet and ask for credit for a £100 hi-fi, and tell them your DSS, they'll tell to you to get lost...


Do you really believe I would hand over my £100,000+ property to your nephew with a handshake.

DawnW

One thing that has not been mentioned is that many landlords are simply not allowed, under the terms of their mortgage, to let to DSS claimants. The mortgage companies are not a social service either.