Renting tips

newstart2011

Hi everyone, i am hoping to move in Jan with my 2 yr old son to a rented property to be clsoer to my mum. I have found my perfect house so have my fingers crossed it will still be available when i need it!
I have never dealt with a letting agency and dont really know what to expect. Will they credit check me? I currently have terrible credit. I'm paying my debt off but i would never be able to get credit anywhere! what will happen if i dont pass the credit check? Also i've seen the same property on a different website and the rent is £50 a month less than what is advertised on the letting agency. Can i negotiate rent in any way?

charlie792

Yes they will credit check you and you will most likely have to pay admin fees for this (mine were £200 non refundable), if you don't pass the credit check it is unlikely you will be able to rent the property however in some instances they may ask for more than one months rent in advance etc. Its probably best to be honest with you're letting agent upfront and explain your situation as they will be able to advise you before hand if you should be able to meet the requirements, for me they wanted 3 months bank statements and 3 months wage slips.
If the property is advertised at a different price then you could always print the page out and take it into their local office then if they argue about it you can show them that.

newstart2011

thank you for your reply. i'll contact them nearer the time and be upfront with them! will also take the print out of the different price.

Bartman_2

hi,

Basically I don't want to repeat what chalie has written but yup hes right, they may instead ask you for full months rent they actually might ask you for guarantor, that needs to be a home owner as well as working.

defo print out where you have seen the property which is a lot cheaper, and defo bargain with them!!

I have currently moved into a rented property which I LOVE and if the agency knows that you like the property they will usually work with you to allow you to move into the property.

Good luck with it all!!

Tiddlywinks

Don't wait until January to approach the agent - after all, over one week at the end of Dec will be taken out by the festive season and that's only a few weeks away.

If you approach the agent now, at least you will know one way or the other whether you can rent with your financial situation plus the LL may be willing to hold it until Jan anyway.

If you wait then someone may get in first or the agent/LL may not approve you for the house and then you will be a bit stuck.

piratefairy

Some letting agents will not negotiate at all - you can onlky ask.
I remember the first rental i found, thought it would be perfect, had plenty of savings and a steady income and even so, was told in no uncertain terms by the agent that they wouldn't even bother credit checking me as the salary i was on wasn't high enough for their credit check co to even bother.
I offered to pay them the 6months rent upfront, as well as deposit etc, and they refused that as well. Which seeemed weird to me, but hey.

G_M

Also i've seen the same property on a different website and the rent is £50 a month less

The agent doesn't set the rent, the landlord does.

Who/ where is the 2nd website?
Possibly the LL is advertising himself at the lower rent as he'll save the agency fees by finding tenant himself. Go via the agent and the LL has to pay the agent their fee so is less likely to accept a lower rent.

Re credit check (really it's 'tenant vetting'): Most agents do them, some LLs do them. The actual cost is between £20-50. Agents add on whatever they want to cover their overheads and profit.

But be upfront about your record and ask. There's no point paying £X only to be rejected when the predicted result comes back. If you have CCJs - tell them. Bankruptcy? Tell them. If they say "OK your CCJ was 5 years ago so we don't mind" then when the check comes back showing your CCj, they should still accept you. But if the result shows the CCJ was actually 6 months ago, they'll say"You lied. No property." And you're out of pocket too.

Geenie

Aside from what the LA's/LL will ask of you, read up on what you have to ask of them and don't get bogged down by how nice the place looks and wanting to be near your mum.!

Ask to see the Energy Performance Certificate, Council Tax Rates etc, so you don't get any nasty surprises with this cold weather and future bills etc.

Where is your deposit going to be protected, and will they let you have the details within 14 days? Read the small print on the LA's agreement, as they can charge money to renew AST's, even though in law they roll on after the initial 6/12 months. Like signing any contract, get information and look up online what are your rights, the LL's etc, so you know what to expect.

Look in every cupboard, turn on every tap, shower etc and ask to get the central heating going. You may turn out to be a pain in the ar*e to the LA's, but being informed may mean you pick the right place for you and your child, and are not on here posting later down the line about problems.

Good luck OP.