Estate agent rental checks, how in-depth are they?

StrugglingStudent88

Hi, I'm looking at renting a house but am worried about the checks done by the estate agents, they want to change me £175 to do the checks and if I fail then I lose this money.

I don't have a great credit rating so am worried I'll fail and lose my money. I know which service they use to check on potential tenants...

I can't post the link because I'm new, but its the tenant assessments for letting agents by the company Let Alliance.

Their website says they check...

. Affordability check
. Electoral Roll check
. County Court Judgements / Bankruptcy Orders / IVA’s check
. Non disclosed information check
. Cross application check
. Previous / Current / Future Employers reference
. Previous / Current Landlord Check
. Full Guarantor references if required

I don't have any County Court Judgements / Bankruptcy Orders / IVA’s so I know that will be ok, but what is an affordability check? They don't want any bank statements or wage slips so I don't know how they will see how much I'm earning?

Any help would really be appreciated.

Thank you

BitterAndTwisted

The affordability check is normally that you're expected to have, and be able to prove, that you have an income 2 1/2 times the annual rent. Without bank-statement and wage-slips I can't imagine how they're able to confirm it. Bit that's not to say you can't offer them. I know of a couple of agent swho haven't done the most rudimentary checks. And did not disclose that information to the landlords.

Are you certain that you can afford to rent somewhere on your own with all the other bills as well as rent? It's en expensive business, which a lot of people on average wages can't afford the luxury of.

StrugglingStudent88

Thank you for your reply

At the moment I won't be able to afford it, and that's why I'm so worried... you might think I'm crazy but stay with me a minute....

I'm in University at the moment and working part time, however I'm due to have a baby March 3rd. Once the baby is born I will be eligible for income support and housing benefit (this is all checked with my local council, but you can't have the housing benefit until you have rented the house etc and I have had the baby).

I plan to rent the property from Feb 1st, I have more than enough money saved up to pay for the first 4 months worth of rent and bills etc however hopefully will only need to pay for max 2 months (as my housing benefit covers the rent).

I know lots of people frown upon telling agents you are in full time employment when really you will be DSS but this is actually the advice I was given by the CAB... so I did what they told me really, but now I'm worried about the checks!

tbs624

As part of the referencing process, your employer would normally be asked to confirm your hours of work per week/month so lying to the LA/LL from the start is a daft idea and I find it incredulous that a CAB worker would tell you to do this.

Is the father of the baby going to be making any contribution to your living costs, so as to lighten your personal financial load?

Edit: as you're on a limited budget have you considered going direct to a self managing LL? Although they will probably also want to undertake a third party check on you, they are more likely to only charge you the actual fee rather than the fee plus monumental agent mark up for doing very little.

BitterAndTwisted

The sort of information you have disclosed to us will be revealed very, very quickly after the most cursory check by the agent. I have two pieces of advice for you:

One: Be completely and utterly candid with the agent about your circumstances before you hand any money over for credit-referencing. They should tell you whether you have no chance ot whether there might be a landlord or two on their books who might consider you. It might be a matter of of offering your x months of rent in advance or providing them with a guarantor.

Two: Think very hard indeed about whether you actually can rent a house and whether your LHA entitlement will cover the prospective rent. If it isn't you will be expected to make up any shortfall from your income. A parent and new-born will not qualify for the full rent of a house. You could be lucky and get the equivalent of a one-bedroomed flat.

mqandy

In my experience the checks basically consist of 'Did the £175 charge clear? Yes? Good.'

Once we paid all sort of acceptance checks and admin fees only to be told the house we'd viewed that afternoon wasn't actually available after all. They seemed a bit miffed that I wasn't going to take No for an answer when I asked for the fees back!

StrugglingStudent88

I've read a lot of posts here where people have been given similar advice from the CAB. One of the main reasons being landlords/agents being unwilling to rent to DSS.

The rent is £425 a month and I will receive £103.80 in HB each week, leaving me less than £10 to make up on the rent myself. I qualify for the HB for 2 bedrooms as I am entitled to a room for myself, and another for the baby (once he has been born).

The baby's father is also in University and when they calculated the amount he would need to contribute it was around £9/week I believe, we are no longer together.

I have been looking for a self-managing LL since October, I have yet to find a house come up in the right area that isn't with a letting agent. I have found a few in our borough however I need to be near to the train/bus station as I do not own a car and I would also like to be near to my parents as I will need help with the baby once he has arrived.

I have no idea how they will check my income, the form that I have to fill in just asks who my employer is, how much I earn etc and for my NI number. I have bank statements and wage slips for the past 3 months as I was working full-time up until now and this is what I expected the agent to ask for, surely calling my employer wouldn't be enough of a check would it?

The form also asks for previous landlords and luckily with my previous landlord I paid my rent without fail every month and left the house looking immaculate, I only moved out because I was living near my University and needed to return home because of the pregnancy.

domcastro

Most agents get an employee reference too. I was recently going to rent somewhere and they actually contacted HR of my job and asked them my salary and to confirm the length of time I said I'd be there. They also rang a landlord from 3 years and credit checked me.

You will probably be only given a 6 month contract at first - if in this time you have reverted to HB then you probably will get a s21 and asked to leave at end of contract. Lots of landlords do not want HB tenants.

Also on another point, do you have lots of student loans to pay off? Did you pass your course. It's a shame you have invested in an education and now going down the single mother HB route. Make sure this is temporary and that you make the most of yourself and your education when you are able. Don't get caught in the HB rut. good luck

PS Don't leave uni if you are in the middle of it. You can use the virtual learning environment from home - these should have your lecture notes. Scraping a degree is better than no degree. The uni might waiver fees etc if you tell them your story - they have to help people out

StrugglingStudent88

Thanks for your reply

The woman in the CAB told me that LHA will be paid directly to me and as such the landlord would never need to know that I had moved from employment to benefits.

I am in the middle of my course at the moment, I can assure you that becoming a single mother claiming benefits is not the road I had hoped to go down, however when I found out I was pregnant I made the decision to keep my child. I have actually been really surprised at the reaction of a lot of people who seem to think that I am reckless and irresponsible to keep a child whilst still in University, it's made me quite sad really because I have never claimed any benefits, worked and paid tax since I was 18 and no one in my family claims any sort of benefits.

I do plan on finishing my course and (fingers crossed) becoming a physics teacher one day, I just need help at the moment. I have spent a lot of time talking to advisers and reading information online. I have found that as a single parent I am entitled to LHA and IS even though I will still be a student so am hoping to complete my course and not rely on any sort of benefits once I have completed my degree.

domcastro

Have you contacted the Uni? I would speak to them - I would also speak to the Student Loan / government maintenance grant people. With the increase in student fees, universities have to prove they are helping the "less fortunate" (lol sorry!)

BitterAndTwisted

There are landlords who are willing to accept tenants who need LHA to make up their rent. The main risk, which some are prepared to accept, is that LHA payments are made direct to the tenant so there's no absolute guarantee that the tenant will run their affairs satisfactorily and be able to pay their rent in full and on time. Juggling finances can feel like a full-time job for some especially because LHA is paid in arrears and rent is due in advance. But that's not to say that there's no landlord out there who is willing to accept you.

If all else fails offering your parents, if they're willing and able, to act as guarantors will swing things in your favour.