Got a letter from my landlord this morning...

tbs624

Alasia - don't feel you have to keep justifying yourself. On a public forum you will always get posts from people who (a) simply enjoy trying to kick others when they are down and (b) make huge assumptions about the lives of others & really have very little idea of what it means to be "on the breadline" . Take the content of the positive posts and ignore the rest

Re-assess your budget and confirm in writing to your LL what your plans are with the arrears, and your understanding of what he has said to you. Keep a copy of your letter for your own records. Good luck.

tbs624

alasia wrote: »

ETA: just seen the above post; if my tenancy is affected by the MS then...whoops!

Mystery shopping would not be classed running a business from the property.:)

clutton_2

ok - i am not trying to belittle the OP - but i have a lot of experience of folks in dire straits like these, and it does not do them any good at all to only listen to the positives... they need a balanced view of positive and negative if they are to change their situation

re rent arrears.... why dont you go to the local authority and ask them to pay the landlord his rent directly to him, as you are so much in arrears... take the recorded delivery letter with you...... legally they have no choice other than to do this as you may be more than 2 months in arrears.... surely this will take some pressure off ..... as you will then only have the repayment schedule arrears to think about. how old are you ? is this the first time you have had to manage on your own ? all these factors will be taken into account if you are willing to ask the local authority to pay rent directly to the LL.

OP has also been given a lot of advice as to other sources of internet help with menus and budgeting, but, appears to not have investigated them - of if she has - she has not come back and told us so....

clutton_2

something about this thread has just not rung true with me... and whilst i very rarely search posters back-posts i have done so today .. and i think all is not what it might seem ......

sorry but i cannot copy and post links for some reason, but have copied some of OPs other posts

On her thread called ""

My credit file seems clear (ish)...why cant I get credit??""

she writes...

"Thanks, I do have a basic account with halifax so Im not too fussed about not being able to get a current account...the reason I want to regain my credit rating is mainly so I can get credit if needs be in future - a motgage etc. ""

a mortgage ??????? when she cannot pay her rent ???


On the same thread she writes ""

I have recently seen my credit report for the first time on experian. Despite inputting all my previous (many!) addresses for the past 10 or so years, all it shows me on my report is a cleared "satisfactory" avon account from 2005 and a ccj for under £200 from 2008.


It shows me as financially linked to my ex and Ive filled in a form to be disassociated from him, and about 75 linked addresses (mainly duplicates) and LOADS of searches on my credit file for the past year.

So my question is, is that it?

According to the report, if I pay the ccj (which I can easily do) I will have a clean credit record, is this right?

I was under the impression I had debts, as I remember having a joint loan with my ex of £1000 which defaulted - but as they are still sending letters to my mums address maybe that loan is still in the salvageable stage where I can offer a payment plan?""



So why haven't you done that for your landlord since last November ?


So OP has money to "easily" pay off an old debt to allow her to get more debt.. but cannot pay her current rent ??

as i said a long long time ago on this thread... priorities girl......


I also wonder how much money OP spends on dial-up costs to play online bingo, online scratch cards, and online football quizzes and online betting........



LOADS of searches on her credit file shows us someone utterly out of control with money..... and possibly with gambling issues.....


The only having 2 pairs of knickers simply did not ring true with me......

sausageandmash_2

clutton wrote: »

ok - i am not trying to belittle the OP - but i have a lot of experience of folks in dire straits like these, and it does not do them any good at all to only listen to the positives... they need a balanced view of positive and negative if they are to change their situation

re rent arrears.... why dont you go to the local authority and ask them to pay the landlord his rent directly to him, as you are so much in arrears... take the recorded delivery letter with you...... legally they have no choice other than to do this as you may be more than 2 months in arrears.... surely this will take some pressure off ..... as you will then only have the repayment schedule arrears to think about. how old are you ? is this the first time you have had to manage on your own ? all these factors will be taken into account if you are willing to ask the local authority to pay rent directly to the LL.

OP has also been given a lot of advice as to other sources of internet help with menus and budgeting, but, appears to not have investigated them - of if she has - she has not come back and told us so....

Read the OP, HB already pay the LL direct

meg72

wrangler5 wrote: »

For heavens sake. Do i have to do everything for you people? LOL

A simple search online (which the OP seems capable of) will reveal just how easy it is to feed a family on under a tenner a week.

http://www.approvedfood.co.uk/


Here you go, http://www.approvedfood.co.uk/PASTA__SOUPS_AND_RICE/Ainsley_Harriott_Moroccan_Medley_Cous_Cous_110g 6 meals for 99p each pack serves 2 so that's 12 meals and all you have to do is get a few tins of spam & a bag of spuds. How much cheaper do you want it?

Yeah and £5.25 delivery. A few tins of Spam (disgusting stuff) at
£1.58 a tin. The OP is feeding kids not dogs, Having said that I dont think even my gannet of a dog would be too happy with this.

tbs624

clutton wrote: »

ok - i am not trying to belittle the OP - but i have a lot of experience of folks in dire straits like these, and it does not do them any good at all to only listen to the positives... they need a balanced view of positive and negative if they are to change their situation

You may have experence of being a LL to "folks in dire straits" but that does not mean that you have a full and clear understanding of how it may feel to be in their shoes.

You have made assumptions in the thread (ie that the OP would necessarily have an iron) and you have twisted what the OP said about her kids' birthday presents. Another poster made quite unpleasant comments, which seemed designed less to help than merely to pass personal "Daily Mail style" comment and those are the negative posts to which I referred. The positive ones were those which told her how to get her benefits entitlements checked and suggested specific threads elsewhere on the forum.

clutton wrote: »

re rent arrears.... why dont you go to the local authority and ask them to pay the landlord his rent directly to him, as you are so much in arrears... take the recorded delivery letter with you...... legally they have no choice other than to do this as you may be more than 2 months in arrears.... surely this will take some pressure off ..... as you will then only have the repayment schedule arrears to think about.

Erm, see post 1 Clutton

alasia wrote: »

...as far as I know the landlord is getting my rent paid as he applied to get the HB sent to him directly,

clutton wrote: »

OP has also been given a lot of advice as to other sources of internet help with menus and budgeting, but, appears to not have investigated them - of if she has - she has not come back and told us so....

She *really* doesn't have to "come back and tell us so" - she's absolutely not accountable to other posters on the board. If her internet access is limited maybe she's way too busy actually looking up 1001 ways with a mouldy carrot and Lidl's mark downs.

Clutton, you are acting like some workhouse committee secretary - you are not her LL and she is not in debt to you. Yes, she has to prioritise retention of the roof over her head but do you want her to touch her forelock and back out of the thread muttering "thank you ma'am, ever so........."

If we knew more about the situation we may discover that the LL is falling short of some of his own legal obligations. His manner of dealing with things as reported by the OP on here certainly seem less than professional to me.

Any LL who has Ts who are on low incomes and/or reliant on benefits runs a higher risk of arrears accruing but they do buy property in cheaper areas and generally do okay out of LHA claimants.

clutton_2

Landlords ""generally do okay out of LHA claimants. "

Ask National Landlords Association how many millions of pounds landlords are in arrears with LHA claimaints since it replaced housing benefit ....

no - i am not her landlord.... but someone needs to get her to face reality as far as money is concerned..... she has no idea.....

have you actually looked and seen how many online sites she subscribes to ???? Dial As You Go is not cheap....

one email onto Freecycle would get her a free iron...



tbs - assumptions you have made

LHA tenants are in every type of property in a wide variety of districts.
There have been times in my life when i did not have enough to eat and no job.
Professional tenants are just as likely to stop paying their rent as benefit tenants.
Not only benefit tenants use Lidl or Aldi.

Maybe my tone is less than sympathetic, but, i really dont think this young woman has any handle at all on the reality of her financial situation

Maybe her time would be better spent freecycling for free stuff for her family (yes even food) than playing silly computer games

tbs624

clutton wrote: »

tbs - assumptions you have made

LHA tenants are in every type of property in a wide variety of districts.

Here we go again - I said that LLs buy up cheaper properties to let out to LHA tenants. That does not mean I assume that only cheaper properties have LHA claimants living in them. Job loss/change of circumstance can happen to any T (or indeed home owner) and in some areas the anomalies around LHA and BMRAs means that some claimants can afford to rent property of a better standard.

clutton wrote: »

There have been times in my life when i did not have enough to eat and no job.

And Mrs Thatcher was a woman but did other women no favours No assumption made on my part - my previous comments were in response to what you have posted up in this thread.

clutton wrote: »

Professional tenants are just as likely to stop paying their rent as benefit tenants.

I've previously highlighted that one in other threads so no assumption there.

clutton wrote: »

Not only benefit tenants use Lidl or Aldi.

Now you've lost me in your assumption of my "assumptions" - did I say that was the case? I have been known to darken the doorsteps of those two fine emporiia myself (Netto too if I'm 'fessing up) and yet am not in receipt of benefits.....

clutton wrote: »

Maybe my tone is less than sympathetic, but, i really dont think this young woman has any handle at all on the reality of her financial situation

Under stress, many folk find it hard to see the wood for the trees. Many of us are less than perfect human beings.

clutton wrote: »

Maybe her time would be better spent freecycling for free stuff for her family (yes even food) than playing silly computer games

Hang on Clutton, she won some vouchers for McCain's chips you know

As Colin said

Colincbayley wrote: »

Clutton, I think you are being too harsh with the OP mate. I am no soft touch, but cut her some slack. Looks to me as though the poor woman is doing all that she is capable of.
"There for the grace of god go i "

clutton_2

if my choice of language has been too blunt, i did not intend that to be offensive, since one or two posters think i am being too harsh.. perhaps i ought to leave it there .. i have said what i think .. i hope OP can solve her problems and i will follow the outcome with interest