letting property via tenant deposit guarantee scheme

want2bmortgage3

already i'm a bit worried about this, the council found me a tenant and we signed the agreement etc and the tenant has now been in the property over a month but i have only recieved about 2/3 of the first months rent, when a whole month was due a few days ago. the tenant told they havent recieved anything more from the housing benefit. so what can i do, is it my business to phone up and ask why the tenant hasnt recieved all their benefit??

Fire_Fox

It is the tenant's responsibility to chase up their LHA, which is usually paid in arrears whereas rent is due in advance. If you think the tenant is receiving LHA and lying, you can ask the council and apply to have the money paid directly to you on the grounds they are in arrears. Use the search function as benefits tenants in arrears comes up time and time again. Have you joined a landlord's association yet?

want2bmortgage3

hi, i havent joined an association yet, i dont know whether she is lying or not, i am planning on calling the council to let them know. the rent is paid to me in arrears, i dont see why they do this as i expect a lot of tenants use the money for other things??

adg1

Whats the thoughts behind the title 'tenant deposit guarantee scheme'? Just a thought, have the council paid you the deposit or is it a letter of guarantee or somesuch written bond?

With regards to the LHA being paid, it can depend on the council and the dates they run their payments - my local council pays tenants every two weeks in arrears, but the tenants are in private rentals where rent is paid in advance and per calendar month, not every two or four weeks. This can lead to a discrepancy in the first few months as the T will only be getting most of whats due to you and not the full amount.

You should be fine to call up the LHA office and see whether the rest of the allowance has been paid to the tenant. It is, though, the tenants responsibility to chase the HB office for their rent.

want2bmortgage3 wrote: »

the rent is paid to me in arrears, i dont see why they do this as i expect a lot of tenants use the money for other things??

They used to pay the HB direct to landlords in the olden days but decided to 'empower the tenants' by making them responsible for the rent being paid. Only when the tenant is then well into arrears can a landlord apply to get LHA paid directly to them as the tenant is then viewed as irresponsible with money by the council.

RecoveringAlcoholic

as i expect a lot of tenants use the money for other things

A steep learning curve.







:beer:

Fire_Fox

want2bmortgage3 wrote: »

hi, i havent joined an association yet, i dont know whether she is lying or not, i am planning on calling the council to let them know. the rent is paid to me in arrears, i dont see why they do this as i expect a lot of tenants use the money for other things??

There is another thread on LHA arrears, read that and join a landlord's association. You sound like an amateur landlord, a professional tenant will see you coming a mile off. The rent should be paid to you in advance but LHA is always paid to the tenant in arrears, basically it's like are refund to them. If you accept rent in arrears you are opening yourself up to abuse.

I don't understand how behind the rent is, if the tenant has been in over a month they should have paid two months rent, have you recieved one full month and a part month or just a part month? If just a part month, why didn't the tenant pay the first month up front as normal?

want2bmortgage3

the tenant has been in since mid november, all i have recieved is half a months rent which was up until the end of november. my first full months rent will be for december and paid to me start of jan. the deposit is not cash, it is just a guarantee from the council. the tenant has to save for a deposit during the first year living in the property.

socrates

Firstly you need to get the written permission from the tenant to be able to discuss their claim directly with the HB Dept.

You are then able to discuss the claim and see exactly what has or has not been paid.

In any case you may want to contact the HB people and ask them to suspend the claim as you do not seem to be receiving your rent on time. Make sure this is all in writing and you have names and direct line numbers.

You can also do this in the form of a written statement in their offices - they will stamp it and give you a copy to prove they have it.

They will then contact the tenant asking them to attend their offices and explain why the rent is not being paid to you.

Trust me IF they are pocketing the rent money and not paying it across to you by suspending it you are stopping their income stream.

If they do not attend - after a period of time you can try to pressurise the HB to pay you the LHA directly - there are no guarantees they will do this.

If they do you will receive all the monies from the date the claim was suspended.

Plenty about this on LandlordZone.com

want2bmortgage3

all ok now the first payment i received early december was from moving in date (mid nov) to end nov, and have just received a full payment for the whole of december, thanks for all the responses.

property.advert

LHA is paid in arrears as stated previously but the claimant can apply for a loan of up to £1500 for a deposit and advance rent as a Budgeting Loan from the Job Centre etc.

Some councils have a scheme where they will advance a deposit and the tenant repays the council through deductions in their LHA.

You should get a deposit and advance rent from the tenant, even if on LHA and if they do not have it, when they could get it, then find another tenant who can provide you with the security.