Renting with CCJ

Gareth78

Hi all,

We have recently agreed to let out own flat out due to an expanding family and a lack of interest when we put it on the market.

We are now looking to rent somewhere ourselves, at least until (and if!) the housing market improves.

We have, however, aquired a CCJ back in early 2007 and are paying it off monthly and have not missed a payment. Because of this our credit scores with experian are 703 and 733 respectively, one of which is poor and one of which is fair.

Will this affect our ability to rent as when viewing a property recently the person showing us around mentioned that CCJ's would count against a person when reference checks are made.

I am also not employed as I was made redundant in March and it was agreed that from that point I would stay at home in a "househusband" role as it seemed (and is working out) to be more economical than returning to work and paying for childcare.

I'm now worried that having agreed to rent ours out we will not be able to go out and rent ourselves. My wife earns £46k p/a and of course we will have the income from the letting of our own flat - £7.5k p/a) but will this be enough to get us through a credit check with a letting agent?

Thank you in advance for any comments and/or information.

Gareth

Jowo_2

Yes, landlord are extremely averse to letting properties to those with poor credit records and if they agree to rent, often seek to mitigate the risk by asking the prospective tenant to pay more rent upfront or provide a guarantor.

I don't know whether your current property ownership and wife's high income puts you in a much better position - it can't hurt. Other posters should be able to advise.

princeofpounds

There is not standard credit assessment procedure. It is down to the individual LL and the checking agency that advises him/her.

Your CCJ will prove a difficulty. Some landlords will have a blanket no-CCJ policy. Others will judge the case on its merits. Some might not care.

If you can explain your CCJ well and offer rent upfront or a guarantor, you are much more likely to get LL acceptance.

Your wage and debt levels are much more relevant to your ability to pay than your willingness to pay, but being in a good situation certainly won't hurt and might help, particularly if your CCJ was linked to a time of unemployment or similarly impaired income.

G_M

Paying 'more rent upfront' would not influence me as a LL. What happens when that runs out and rent becomes due?

As a LL I'd want either the entire 6 months in advance (and the tenancy terminated after the fixed 6 months) or, more realistically, a guarantor.

Gareth78

G_M wrote: »

Paying 'more rent upfront' would not influence me as a LL. What happens when that runs out and rent becomes due?

As a LL I'd want either the entire 6 months in advance (and the tenancy terminated after the fixed 6 months) or, more realistically, a guarantor.

So as a LL, you would see a CCJ on my credit file and immediately think i was a bad debt waiting to happen?

It doesnt matter that its the ONLY bad thing on our credit file. Or that our income is more than twice our outgoings? Or that our mortgage has been paid in full and on time every month for 8 years? Or that my wife, being a teacher, has one of the safest jobs in the country? Or that we have just signed a 12 month tennancy agreement with our own tennants?

Do these things not matter to landlords? Do they not look at the bigger picture?

Jowo_2

Of course landlords look at the bigger picture which will include considering income and affordability of the tenant, possibly taking into account the personal circumstances that led to the CCJ, offering the tenancy with modest conditions to mitigate the risk of them defaulting and getting into debt once again through rent arrears but have you considered the bigger picture and their perspective?

Namely that a CCJ is a last resort of a creditor where the defendent is given ample time to reach an agreement with them and that it demonstrates that a person has failed to pay a debt they owe in the past? And that a person is a credit risk?

Someone with a CCJ isn't just going to potentially struggle with gaining a private tenancy with a landlord but with buying goods and services from other organisations, too.

Gareth78

Jowo wrote: »

Namely that a CCJ is a last resort of a creditor where the defendent is given ample time to reach an agreement with them and that it demonstrates that a person has failed to pay a debt they owe in the past? And that a person is a credit risk?

Someone with a CCJ isn't just going to potentially struggle with gaining a private tenancy with a landlord but with buying goods and services from other organisations, too.

I understand this but surely the circumstances of the CCJ should be taken into account? I (foolishly) put principles ahead of our credit score as the reasons behind the circumstances leading up to the CCJ were, in my opinion, the fault of the lender. Yes, they gave me opportunity to pay but I refused, believing (again foolishly) that I would win the case. As it happens, I didn't and we ended up with it.

As I say, the CCJ is the only bad mark on our credit file(s) and I would be disappointed if a LL just saw the letters "CCJ" and said no without investigating first as the previous poster seems to do.

JayZed

Gareth, I'm sorry if this sounds a bit brutal, but for most landlords the bigger picture simply won't be a consideration. If they have the choice of tenants with a CCJ or tenants without one, they're going to take the tenants without one. It's not a moral judgement, it's a simple risk-based approach.

Having said that, people with CCJs obviously do manage to rent properties, so there must be approaches that you can take. I suggest that you post on the Bankruptcy & Living With It board - there are people on there with CCJs and worse who may be able to offer more constructive advice.

G_M

From your point of view I can quite see what you mean and how you feel.

From a LL's pov though, I just want to find a no-risk tenant, which is in any case always difficult.

I take up references (avoiding where possible the tenant who give his brother's details as the contact for employer or previous LL - yes, I've fallen for that in the past).

I try to check salary via pay slips - though a surprising number of tenants don't have them. And I look at credit referencing reports.

Negative factors in any of the above ring alarm bells, and since I usually have several prospective tenants, the one with a CCJ is unlucky. There is a limit to how much time one can put into investigating a tenant's background.

When getting permmission for a credit search, I always ask if it will show anything negative. If an applicant told me he had a CCJ I would tell him to save his money and would not do the credit search (yes, they cost though not much). If he had NOT told me, and then the search threw up a CCJ, I'd be even more wary!

Gareth78 wrote: »

So as a LL, you would see a CCJ on my credit file and immediately think i was a bad debt waiting to happen?

It doesnt matter that its the ONLY bad thing on our credit file. Or that our income is more than twice our outgoings? Or that our mortgage has been paid in full and on time every month for 8 years? Or that my wife, being a teacher, has one of the safest jobs in the country? Or that we have just signed a 12 month tennancy agreement with our own tennants?

Do these things not matter to landlords? Do they not look at the bigger picture?

samanthaxxx

My partner and I have just been turned down from renting a house because of a CCJ on my partners credit file for £258.00 which was satisfied 5 years ago. We have offered to pay a whole years rent in advance (£12,000.00) from our savings but it is still a no no.

We were told by the letting agent that it was the landlady's prerogative!!

I am so angry!!

:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

N79

Gareth78 wrote: »

I understand this but surely the circumstances of the CCJ should be taken into account? I (foolishly) put principles ahead of our credit score as the reasons behind the circumstances leading up to the CCJ were, in my opinion, the fault of the lender. Yes, they gave me opportunity to pay but I refused, believing (again foolishly) that I would win the case. As it happens, I didn't and we ended up with it.

As I say, the CCJ is the only bad mark on our credit file(s) and I would be disappointed if a LL just saw the letters "CCJ" and said no without investigating first as the previous poster seems to do.

I'm sorry Gareth but you have a fundamental misunderstanding of your obligations.

Clearly, you believe the original debt was not owed and you rightly challenged it. Your creditor took you to court.

However, you do not get a CCJ for losing in court. You get a CCJ when you fail to pay an amount that a court has ordered you to pay. So what happened in your case is the following.

You said you don't owe the money, your creditor says you do. You go to the court to resolve your dispute. The court says that you do owe the debt. You still refuse to pay, thus placing yourself outside of the norms of behaviour expected. This is why LLs now consider you a higher risk - you have a track record of failing to pay your legal obligations.

The first thing you can do to help your matters is to pay off the CCJ so that it is satisfied.