Advice needed RE: family member giving false refs??

Jowo_2

Credit is linked to an address - for example, CCJs go against a person's name at a certain address, so too do loans, etc. I don't really know the specifics of a check but it does seek to verify that a person lives at the address.

Landlords often check the electoral register, too.

zzzLazyDaisy

I am sorry, I know I am probably being thick, but I cannot see how OP can claim to be her sister's landlord at her current address.

The new LL/agency will almost certainly check the reference against the land registry title deeds and immediately discover the name and address of the true owner of the property.

There may or may not be any come-back on OP, but that really isn't the point. The real point is that pretending to be the LL isn't even going to get past the starting block.

Or am I missing something?

RAS

Credit checks inlude a list of all the places you have lived over the last 6 years.

And once the agency pick that up, they will check the land registry, at the major cost of £4, and find that you do not own the house.

If you live in a "town", you can pretty much assume that once that comes to light neither of you will be able to rent through any of the local agencies.

Your sister needs to look for a private rental that does not go through and agency, in the local papers.

amarrah

Thanks for spelling it out in simple terms, guys - I'm a bit dense today...blaming my migraine

If I can find a private landlord or an agency (somehow) that doesn't require a homeowner for a guarantor then I will try and get her to do things that way; with me as the guarantor, provided then they will be happy enough with no landlord reference?

No wonder there are so many people on the streets if it's this hard to get a property once you've made a few mistakes in the past

zzzLazyDaisy

amarrah wrote: »

If I can find a private landlord or an agency (somehow) that doesn't require a homeowner for a guarantor then I will try and get her to do things that way; with me as the guarantor

PLEASE think very very carefully about being a guarantor. Once you have signed the guarantor agreement, you cannot change your mind, and you cannot terminate it without the LL's permission. You are stuck with it for as long as she is in the property.

Worse, if she defaults on the rent, the LL is under no obligation to take any steps to rectify the situation, and they don't have to tell you about the arrears immediately. So she could be seriously in debt before the LL starts to chase you, and you are likely to find yourself in court.

I speak from experience - my cousin stood G'tor for her bf. He is on LHA. They split up and he stopped paying the rent. He is still getting the LHA but he is spending it. After two months arrears the LL can apply to have the rent paid direct to them. It is now four months down the line and the LL has taken no steps to contact the LHA, and has not taken any steps to evict. My cousin has since lost her job, and is facing potential bankruptcy.

Things change, if you can't afford to pay her rent for her, don't stand as G'tor.

However you may find that some landlords who advertise privately (ie not through an agency) will not ask for a G'tor.

Jowo_2

zzzLazyDaisy wrote: »

...
The new LL/agency will almost certainly check the reference against the land registry title deeds and immediately discover the name and address of the true owner of the property.

To be honest, the verification of ownership via the Land Registry as part of a tenancy check is a new one on me and one I've never heard of. I can believe that a landlord wanting a letting agent manage the property would have to provide proof of ownership but can't see why it forms part of a background check on a tenant.

zzzLazyDaisy

If the LL is asking for a reference from the previous LL, I would have thought that they would do a quick £4 check to find out the LL's name and address, and contact them direct for a reference - or at least to validate the reference received. Otherwise any tom !!!!!! or harry could write a reference pretending to be the LL (which is what OP was planning to do). I may be wrong, I'm not a LL, but personally I wouldn't take the risk in OP's shoes.

amarrah

I couldn't see why it would either, but you never know do you? And I'd rather not risk it.

I was just thinking, that if a LL would just give me a ring/write a letter to check that my sister paid the rent in full and on time then credit check me, that would be fine and I could handle that - I thought that the LL would only start potentially checking references in more detail, should there ever be problems with her paying the rent - and as long as we both made sure that didn't happen, we'd kind of 'get away with it' (for want of a better term of phrasing!)

I don't want to take too many risks as I have to think of myself and my own family as well.

Jowo_2

amarrah wrote: »

..
No wonder there are so many people on the streets if it's this hard to get a property once you've made a few mistakes in the past

Many of the actual street homeless are there because of multiple complex factors, such as family breakdown, mental illness, addictions and so forth. This is not to say that some ended up there after losing their properties for various factors, including financial, but it's not the case that those on the street are all spontaneously kicked out by cruel landlords...

The local council is obliged to offer accommodation to those in priority need, such as the homeless and those with dependents, though those who squander their LHA on things other than their rent are regarded to have made themselves intentionally homeless.

Jowo_2

zzzLazyDaisy wrote: »

PLEASE think very very carefully about being a guarantor. Once you have signed the guarantor agreement, you cannot change your mind, and you cannot terminate it without the LL's permission. You are stuck with it for as long as she is in the property.

.

The OP is adamant that her sister has made a one-off mistake that won't be repeated and if she's happy for a landlord to take a punt, should have no reservations in exposing herself to the risk.