renting privately

chugalug

Fran, initially its unless there are over 8 weeks arrears (which I think has always been true) but also if the tenant has problems ie mental incapacity or not good with money. The difference is now that default is direct to the tenant unless specifically requested. The Govt apparently wants tenants to take more responsibility for paying their rent. Probably irrelevant in reality as the LA usually takes more than 8 weeks to process and always pays 4 weeks in arrears - unless assessed within 4 weeks (ha ha) tenant will automatically have arrears. I mentioned it in OP case as if he's working he may be able to cover the rent initially so the payments would go directly to him to cover. Hope that makes sense.

gleeb

Thanks for all the advice .. as yet all the properties i've gone for have all gone when i enquired about them (5 so far that were suitable)
Good grief, what am i supposed to do ! .. phone each estate agent on the hour every hour for new properties ?
Will get in touch with Shelter too.. cant live like this ! .. feels like im a burden on everyone .. lol

dougk_2

The problem is not always the landlords themsleves not accepting DSS.

Its often a condition of a landlords mortgage that tenants must not be DSS.
Furthermore many insurance companies will not cover the landlords property if you are claiming DSS, or if they do they bump up the premium for increased risk....which then has to be passed on.

The fact that council tenants can buy the properties (under right to buy) means often the councils have fewer properties of their own and they are either not allowed to or can't afford to build new ones.

Curry_Queen

A few corrections and additions ...

shopaholic_ebayaddict wrote:

Hiya,

Well house rental is my expert topic!!!

When you claim housing benefit you send your tenancy agreement to them to prove you live there - they do not contact your landlord.

They have the right to contact your landlord at anytime, but don't always do it.


you can have the HB paid straight to you and you then pay the landlord OR if you want to be honest with the landlord, arrange to have the HB paid direct to them and they will be pleased as the council is not gonna suddenly cancel/bounce a DD are they?

They may not bounce cheques (although I have heard of an instance where this did happen, but it's very rare) but they can certainly cancel your HB without notice if they suspect your claim may be incorrect.

If you're lucky enough to find a landlord to accept HB you also need to be aware that HB is paid 4 weekly in arrears, whereas most rent is paid calendar monthly in advance. You will have a shortfall to make up every month (although you do get an extra cheque a year to make up for it) unless your landlord is happy accept payments on a 4 week basis.


With regards to credit checking, i don't think they can do a credit search as such - it is one of those thingies that doesn't get recorded as a "search" on they £2.50 credit file BUT if you get an £8.50 one it will be mentioned on there BUT does not affect your rating.

Almost all the agents I've contacted recently do make a proper credit search with Experian etc and it is recorded on your file. They also charge a fee ranging anywhere from £80 - £200 for doing this too :eek:

They also require bank and employee references as well as previous landlord and a character reference. If you're lucky enough to find a private landlord without using an agency then none of this applies as such (I was lucky with my current property) but they're rare as hen's teeth these days as I'm beginning to discover myself :rolleyes:


ONE MORE thing with regards to HB, they have a set criteria on what they will pay in each - phone your council and get the number of the rent officer and ring and ask the MAXIMUM rents they will pay (in my area its £550 for a 2 bed and £575 for 3 - totally unrealistic) but do bear in mind that these MAXIMUMS are only paid to people on income support and VERY rarely will they pay your full rent.

The rent officer will also take into consideration the general state of decor and wear and tear on the property when determining rental value, as well as taking an average cost of similar properties in the area. There is no way to second guess what they might allow as every decision is individual. For e.g. a newly renovated 2 bed house with fitted kitchen, GCH, gardens etc might be valued at £600 pcm while next door an identical property with no GCH, old kitchen units, poor decor etc might only be valued at £450 pcm for HB purposes despite what it's advertised as.


Unfortunately you can't apply for HB until you get the house and so you don't know what you will get until you are comitted!

You can apply for a pre-determined rent assessment BEFORE you commit yourself to renting a property so you will know exaclty how much HB you would be granted.

bigmomma051204

i am currently trying to rent privately through HB aswell.. its a blooming hard process i can tell you!! There seems to be no landlords in my area who will accept HB which is just a slight problem LOL

Re: the "pre-tenancy determination" which previous poster mentioned, the problem that i have found with this is that it u have to fill in form with landlord,allowing a rent officer to have a look at house, then wait (in my region anyway) can be anything up to 2 weeks, in which time if the property is a good deal (which it absolutely HAS to be if you are looking at renting with HB LOL as funds are tight!) pretty much means that it'll be snapped up WELL before you hear back from the rent office!

Its an awful situation and i have been hunting for about 5 months now - in fact pretty much since my baby was born! i am a lone parent with baby of 6 months and not able to work full time as it would decrease my income and i couldnt afford that!! (Oh and before everyone jumps on the " get back to work and stop spunging" bandwagon LOL - i HAVE been for a new deal interview at which the advisor calculated that if i worked full time and used full time childcare, i would have £5.78 a week more than i get now... that doesnt include travel costs to and from work/nursery etc so...)
You would have thought that someone in my situation would be awarded a high-ish number of points through council lists,but no... i am currently in the bottom 3rd of the list. It SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry for turning this into a personal rant - but just so you know that someone out there sympathises!!!!

Laura
xxxxxxx

gleeb

might try and mislead the council somehow .. maybe let them know a few extra facts, namely i have 12 kids, 1 leg , 1 arm, work 1 hour per month, havent eaten for 6 months and kip in a rubbish dump with neighbour Stig .
Seriously tho .. some people have told me to lie through my teeth to get something. Not really something i'm comfortable doing tho !

Curry_Queen

I would be very wary of lying if I were you, although I understand and sympathise your frustrations, but you could find they have grounds to evict you of you were found out

Savvy_Sue

ABSOLUTELY do not lie to get extra points! It WILL end in tears! But DO keep your information on the waiting list up to date with any changes. For example, if your health deteriorates, if the health of whoever you're staying with deteriorates, if someone else moves in with whoever you're staying with. All these things should affect the number of points you have.

Bigmomma, try not to despair about your position so low down the list. EVERYONE who has applied for council housing is on that list. They are not all single parents with one child. So although you are in the bottom third of the list, many of those above you will not be considered for small properties - because they need more space than you do.

Also register with any local housing associations - it may be a common list, but make sure you said you would consider HA properties. And make sure you were not too restrictive in the areas you said you'd live in, if that's a relevant consideration.

All the best!

ianian99

your landlord need not know about you claiming HB. In the form there will be a box to tick if you do not wish HB office to contact your landlord, this option was added to stop discrimination of people on DSS. You will need to supply a copy of your rental agreement or rent book with your landlords details. there is a page in HB clai form for your landlord to fill in but this is only for people who dont supply agreement oir rentbook. Most landlords say no DSS as they think that all people on benefits are scum(my opinion).
anyway hope this helps. I too am in situation like you i.e homeless sleeping o freinds couches etc but due to being a single male with no health, drug or alcohol problems the local council won't entertain me.
Now that the weathers improving i'm thinking of getting a tent and living on campsite for a few weeks - should be interesting!!

good luck