renting privately

gleeb

Due to a recent split with my partner i am in the situation of trying to find somewhere to live. I am on the council waiting list etc but i could well be waiting a while. So i've also been looking at private homes to rent, but quite a few say no DSS.. Now as im working part time (20 hours a week) i would apply for housing benefit but does this class me as a DSS ?

chugalug

IMO when a landlord says no DSS they mean no housing benefit. If you are working part time and have to claim hb why do you have to tell your landlord? You may not be entitled to hb so it wouldnt matter. If you are entitled to hb you can have this paid directly into your bank account and just pay your rent as normal. As long as you keep your rent up to date and are a good tenant I dont see the problem.

filigree_2

Last time I applied for HB the HB office demanded evidence that I was paying rent and how much. I also needed to provide the business name and address of the landlord. Otherwise just anyone could fill in a form and pretend to be a tenant! This was a few years ago but I don't think you can claim HB without the landlord noticing.

If you have a job you can apply to rent somewhere and not mention HB, but the market has got quite demanding recently, friends who rent have to provide employers references and a credit check. If you are on a low wage you might not meet the landlord's criteria.

All I can suggest is to flat hunt in the normal way and hope the landlord overlooks your low wage.

Savvy_Sue

the other thing to suggest is that you contact any local housing associations as well as going on the council list. Sometimes it's a common list but definitely worth doing both.

Fran

gleeb,

Where are you living now?

You could give Shelter a ring, and make an appointment to see someone if they are in your area. They will advise on whether you can be classed as homeless in which case you'd have more priority on council & housing association lists.

gleeb

Fran,

am not 'living' anywhere really.. stay at my sisters some nights, at parents occasionally too , and even back at home (despite the split, she let me sleep on the sofa)
I have already met with the housing advice centre a few weeks ago now .. where they allocated more points. It all takes so long to go through all the processes. very disheartening !

I spoke to a letting place regarding a property today .. first few things i got asked were was i working full time and would i be claiming housing benefit .. was'nt going to lie to them, but needless to say i got a call back to say the property had gone.

Supereye

If you can afford the rent on your own income then I wouldn't mention the HB at all. If you qualify you can have it paid to your account and continue to pay your rent by standing order. It would make no difference to your landlord.

If you cannot meet the rent payments without HB then I advise you to declare it.

Fran

Supereye,

As someone's already pointed out, when you apply for Housing Benefit they want proof from your landlord that you are renting and how much you are paying. Otherwise you could sleep in a garage & claim you were paying £50 pw rent!

gleeb,

Definitely have a word with Shelter too because if you get to see someone they can help negotiate on your behalf & they'll know the best way forward in your area, might know a better way of private rented etc. too.

misty

Hi
I wouldn't worry too much - when you apply for Housing Benefit you have to send in proof of rent this could be a copy of your lease, letter from landlord or rent book. If you send in the lease your landlord need not know if you don't want. Some landlords put no DSS but when they meet you are more willing to adapt. Both my last two landlords said no children, pets or DSS. When I viewed the properties and spoke to them, I explained I was only working parttime due to uni and had a cat neither were put off. One said they weren't bothered about a small housetrained cat it was more to put off people with 3 alsations! I would look at all the properties you like the sound of and hope for the best. Agencies are in my opinion to be avoided as they are less likely to be flexible on deposit etc. My council also runs some sort of rent deposit scheme - they give you the money and then you repay it over a number of weeks/months. You could ask your local CAB as my council don't tell anyone these things exist.

Fran

misty wrote:

Hi
I wouldn't worry too much - when you apply for Housing Benefit you have to send in proof of rent this could be a copy of your lease, letter from landlord or rent book. If you send in the lease your landlord need not know if you don't want.

I seem to remember you have a page that the landlord has to sign which is part of the form. If they don't know you are on Housing Benefit and then you lose your job & sign on for JSA you won't be able to pay your rent if there is a delay in HB/JSA and unless you have savings until the next job you stand to be evicted because you have broken the contract which is the tenancy agreement. It's better to get the property without any deception especially if the landlord specifies no DSS.

loopy_lass

what about getting another p/t jobs so you are full time (perhaps seasonal) so to speak, get a house, then drop to p/t again and tell your landlord one of the jobs fell through so u need to top up with HB..... ;-) worked for me

loops