Can't afford to heat rented house, can't afford to move.

anewloginapparently

Hi my partner & me live in a rented terraced house with our cat. The house is 170 years old and listed with big draughty (and almost rotten) sash windows and has no central heating downstairs, only upstairs (the 1 bedroom & bathroom).

The trouble is, like now when it's cold the downstairs is pretty much the same temperature as the outside! Even sat with multiple blankets & hot water bottles it's pretty unihabitable. The upstairs is OK with the central heating on, but downstairs we only have an open gas fire in the living room which provides hardly any heat anyway and the landlord provided two plug in raditors. The kitchen has no heat source at all. The house of course also has terrible damp and pealing wallpaper, even mushrooms growing out of the kitchen wall!

Last winter our electric bill ended up being hundreds more than the estimate, about 100% more usage than the estimate said! We put this down to the electric radiators so haven't used them at all this year. We complained to the letting agent but they just said they'd pass it on, of course we had a rent increase of nearly 10% too!

This year we've just been using the gas fire when downstairs, though you have to sit right next to it for any heat! We've just recieved our gas bill though and putting our actual meter reading makes it 5 x the estimate, an extra £390 of gas used in just 3 months!

So now we can't afford to be downstairs at all basically.

We'd like to move but I am a nursing student and my partner a health care assistant on a low wage so between us have hardly any money. We've always paid our rent on time and have been excellent tenants, but we can't afford the £700+ we'll need for a deposit on another place, + of course admin fees and moving fees. We have £700 in deposit in this place but of course we won't get that back til after we move out, so unless you're cash rich or have people to lend you money (we don't) how on earth do we raise the money we need to move to somewhere warmer?

millym

Sounds awful! If I were you, I'd go and rent a room in shared house for 6 months or whatever it takes to save for a new place. You would get your deposit back, plus have the advantage of splitting bills with others in the house.

Flibsey

I agree with Millym, as it's just you guys and the cat is there anyone who'd be willing to mind the cat for you for about 6 months or so just until you're on your feet?

HappyMJ

The house sounds lovely. There are only a few months of winter left so it won't too expensive for much longer then you will have 6 months of mild to warm weather when you don't require any heating. I'd get a halogen heater and use it only whenever you require heat. It'll heat you rather than the space so you should feel warmer. You need to compare and switch gas and electricity providers to get the best deal.

elff

Our local council paid the deposit for the flat we are in now... It would be worth checking to see if you council have a simular scheme?

19lottie82

Op if you're a student visit your uni/college finance office and see if they can help, many offer extra discretionary loans / burseries to student in dire straits. Good luck.

BitterAndTwisted

Also a visit to the Old-Style part of the forum to check out the "Preparing For Winter" thread about some really clever ideas on trying to make where you are now more comfortable. Few of them entail spending much money and if they do entail spending any most of what you may need can be got from charity shops for nothing much.

Living in an old house can cost even people in a home with central-heating a ruddy fortune, never mind a couple of students.

Still, I'm living in a flat with no heating on at the moment because I can't afford it either. I'm sitting here on the comp in 11 degrees and I don't feel cold because I'm well wrapped-up. Granted, that's not anything like the temp outside.

tbs624

HappyMJ wrote: »

The house sounds lovely. There are only a few months of winter left so it won't too expensive for much longer then you will have 6 months of mild to warm weather when you don't require any heating. I'd get a halogen heater and use it only whenever you require heat. It'll heat you rather than the space so you should feel warmer. You need to compare and switch gas and electricity providers to get the best deal.

my bolding. Really ....? Did you intend to be patronising to the OP or perhaps it's just that your definition of "lovely" is different from most other people's - see quote below. OP also sounds as though she and her partner will most definitely be classed as being "in fuel poverty"

anewloginapparently wrote: »

The house of course also has terrible damp and pealing wallpaper, even mushrooms growing out of the kitchen wall!

As two of the other more helpful posters have said OP - try the Uni accoms/welfare office and check out whether you'd qualify for a bond guarantee from the local Council.

If you're not still stuck in a long Fixed Term tenancy & want to move then you could rent direct from a private LL who self manages- the admin fees will be much lower, probably just covering the true costs of a third party credit reference. Ask to see an EPC before you rent any other property.

In the meantime, ask the LL in writing to come and look at the damp and to deal with any rotting window frames.If insulation is poor you could remind the LL that s/he can claim a LL Energy Saving Allowance against rental income on her tax return and that some of the utility companies are offering cheap/free insulations materials

As a temporary measure to increase warmth downstairs you could also try getting some thicker curtains ( charity shops are a good source)

Has that gas fire been subject to an annual safety check & certification btw?

If your LL won't deal with repairs issues then you can contact the local Councils EHO and/or private sector tenancy relations officer and ask for their support. They can assess the property under HHSRS ( Housing Health & Safety Rating System) & insist on the LL completing certain works although unfortunately many Ts find themselves on the receiving end of a retaliatory Intent to seek repossession notice.

BitterAndTwisted

A room or a couple of them in a shared house with fellow student (because of CTax issues) could be the cheapest and easiest way of getting out of there. Some don't even ask for a deposit, especially if there's one or two of the usual cant-cope-and-must-go-back-to-Mum's threads that turn up on here so often after the first term.

BigAunty

Join a credit union. These are banks that are purposely set up to help those on low incomes with their savings and giving loans. You may have to be a member for a while to prove a history of savings before they will lend you the money (not all have this requirement).

Download the MSE budget planner, fill it in and work through the site to identify ways to up your income and slash your spending. Anything from cheap recipes, changing tariffs and suppliers, and a million other thrifty tips.

Does the nursing college or Uni offer student accommodation?

19lottie82

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

A room or a couple of them in a shared house with fellow student (because of CTax issues) could be the cheapest and easiest way of getting out of there. Some don't even ask for a deposit, especially if there's one or two of the usual cant-cope-and-must-go-back-to-Mum's threads that turn up on here so often after the first term.

OH isn't a student tho so would be liable for council tax if they moved in to a student flat. But if it was a bedsit then the landlord covers the council tax, right?