Should I be a guarantor?

donquine

Grumlethegoat wrote: »

I'm in an awkward situation. My mid twenties daughter, who has always house shared and never been in arrears (as far as I know) has decided she wants to rent a flat on her own. She is currently doing a PGC and gets a bursary and a student loan but won't be officially working until next September. She says she can afford the flat at £625 p.m. and wants to sign up for 12 months (not incl bills) but needs a guarantor. I want to agree to it (which I have done a few times already) but not for that amount of money. If she gets in arrears, I can't afford that kind of money. We don't have debts apart from our mortgage but don't want to end up with a bad credit rating because of something out of my hands. I feel bad because she is my daughter and I don't want to let her down.

£625 strikes me as a lot - and I live in an expensive part of the country for renting/buying.

If my parents had refused to be guarantors when I was a student, I would have been homeless as every LL in my university town demanded this. That said, my rent back then was £230 pcm, which is easier to swallow than £625 pcm!

I think you need to point out that you cannot afford to lose £625 x 12, which is effectively the gamble she is asking you to take. If she did move somewhere cheaper, would be able to stand as guarantor then, or would it still be too tight for you?

MobileSaver

Grumlethegoat wrote: »

If she gets in arrears, I can't afford that kind of money. I feel bad because she is my daughter and I don't want to let her down.

You have answered your own question. If you can't afford that kind of money then you can't be guarantor.

You are not letting your daughter down at all but more educating her in the realities of the world we live in. Everyone has to live within their means, your daughter included.

poppysarah

Grumlethegoat wrote: »

I feel bad because she is my daughter and I don't want to let her down.

Say no.
You don't feel comfortable to do it financially and she's old enough to be managing her own finances.

Living alone is a luxury she can't afford yet.

If she has a childish strop and falls out with you it means you did the right thing saying no.

Jowo_2

According to the rent affordability on this letting agent's website, your daughter requires an income of about £19000 to manage that level of rent. As a student, she is likely to have less than half that - what exactly is the total of her bursary and loan - £5k?

http://www.stoneandco.co.uk/

As well as her rent of £625, there would be council tax of around £100, energy bills of about £50, water £20, tv/telecoms/broadband £40, then groceries (say £200), then contents insurance £15 so she's exceeding the £1000 mark each month even before travel and social expenses kick in.

BTW, there are many unemployed newly qualified teachers...

zzzLazyDaisy

Just a warning about what CAN happen. Admittedly this is a business lease, but the principal remains the same - it may be some time before the LL informs the guarantor that the tenant has defaulted on the rent, leaving the G'tor with a substantial debt.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2796804