Opinions on "Tenancy Agreement"

blued

Jowo wrote: »

Clearly, she intends to claim LHA which she will receive from the council directly. .. Your local council website will explain how tenants/lodgers apply for LHA and the evidence required. I don't believe it can be backdated, either, but am willing to stand corrected on that.

It looks like it can be back dated for up to 3 months here.

http://www.highland.gov.uk/yourcouncil/news/newsreleases/2008/October/2008-10-02-02.htm

It also appears that she could get £65 of weekly rent paid for her.

Jowo_2

LHA is paid directly to tenants. I don't believe that landlords are contacted by the local council to verify the claim. Read the local council website to understand the process. I believe a letter confirming lodgings is sufficient. The LHA direct website will indicate the maximum LHA she will be eligible to receive (there's a shared room rate for those under the age of 25 or in shared accommodation). If a tenant finds accommodation which is rented for less than their LHA rate, they can keep the first £15, too.

Guidance for landlords is to take up previous landlord references (plural) by phone as the current landlord may just fib to get rid of a nightmare tenant, the previous ones will be more candid, especially by phone rather than a brief written reference. Bit late for you now but by insisting on the information in the lodgers application form and by providing a lodgers agreement that suits you,not just her, it shows you are being more business like.

Fang_3

I would have your own lodger agreement drawn up for her to sign, and then you know exactly what has gone into it and what you are actually signing.

Fang_3

blued wrote: »

I didnt realise that the letter would be enough for the LHA. I take it they get in touch otherwise anyone could claim? I'll give her the Lodgers Application Form and ask that she completes the details and then on receipt provide a Lodgers Agreement. Not that a Lodgers Agreement (or her letter) could be used as ID for a bank account anyway so it must be for LHA benefits.

I'll make the notice period 2 weeks. I took a 2 week deposit so this would cover any unpaid rent.

We're going away for a month in October so I think that if she is still there at that point I'll need to give her notice before we leave regardless of what is happening. There is definitely something not quite right about her and the unnecessary lies tell me she can't be trusted. If she'd been upfront with why she needed these documents from the start I might not be having this discussion on here.

I'm in 2 minds about the travel story, she hadn't just come back, it was last year before she moved in to her previous address. She said she was living there as a sub let with another couple and the owner had decided to sell. Saying that she also told me that the lottery numbers that came up for the 2 UK winners on the euro-millions a few months ago (£90m jackpot) were her numbers and that she'd not put them on that night!

Thanks again for the invaluable advice.

Get rid of her! She sounds like a nutjob.

Jowo_2

Fang wrote: »

Get rid of her! She sounds like a nutjob.

Well, I wasn't prepared to spook the OP with 'she sounds like she has the potential to be a psycho' as I felt I may just be transferring pessimism onto the situation based on scant details.

But ultimately the lodger is a bare faced liar and the OP didn't perform any checks on her so the omens aren't good.

However, there's a big difference between being sly and being a bunny boiler. At least now the OP will be a bit more sceptical if the lodger comes up with any further requests, or excuses to explain why she can't cooperate with simple things like a standing order.

clutton_2

dont take her ... your instincts are screaming that there is something wrong... tell her you have a sick relative coming to stay .... anything...

Eton_Rifle

Having read the wise comments above, I'm also now in agreement that you should get rid of her.

She's of dubious integrity and you'd be leaving her alone, unemployed and uninterrupted, in your home all day with all your property and all your paperwork for an entire month.

This is something I'd only contemplate with someone I really trusted.

Jowo_2

We are probably a bit guilty of winding up the OP by now. The only evidence is that the lodger is a bull$hitter and perhaps one of the reasons why this happened is because the landlord didn't employ any screening which will deter many rogue applicants, and will potentially identify fibbers if they've still got the nerve to proceed.

Also, though I don't understand if the lodger was in employment at the time the lodgings were offered, it's hardly a surprise that the lodger needs to get LHA to pay the rent with no income. The best lodgers lead structured lives so if the OP offered accommodation to someone not in full time education or employment, it again increases the risk of a misfit with the household.

blued

When you read through the thread she does sound like a bit of a nutter! Thinking about it I've never been able to take landlord references before because my first 2 lodgers came from their parents home and the 3rd my girlfriend knew already. I realise I should have done more checks and not been so laid back about it but other than paying by cheque instead of standing order there hasn't been any cause for concern until now.

To be fair she seemed fine when she came round to view and stayed for more than half an hour chatting. The industry she said she works in is similar to me and if she went contracting for short periods she could easliy make enough money to live for a couple of months. However she gave the impression she was doing temporary work, if I'd known she was going to be unemployed doing nothing day in day out there is no way I'd have let the room to her!

Maybe she is too embarassed to say this letter is for the LHA. People lie for all sorts of reasons. Her profile on the lodger website said she was 32. I'd guess she's closer to 37. Either that or her paper round was harder than mine!

Whatever happens there is no way she'll be staying in my house when I go away for the month!

blued

Well she wasn't there when I got home last night so I left her a note this morning explaining the forms were incorrect and asked that she fill out the lodger application so that I can have an agreement made up. I also said it was no problem for the bank to contact me directly if they need to in the meantime and asked whether she wanted adding to the electoral role. We'll see where it goes from here...