Rental help and advice

djh77

LittleMax wrote: »

That is a good point, people moving to a 2 bed from a 3 bed is not unheard of - after all you yourself did. But I am sure will become more common after April ... however HAs are going to have to think carefully about their arrears policies. At the moment they won't allow a swap if any party is in arrears, yet if they block a move they will be compounding the arrears.

Yeah, we are on homeswapper and bedfordshire homefinder. No luck yet, been trying since September, but will keep going. As you have said hopefully, and I don't mean this in a nasty way towards anyone that will be in that situation, in April some people will have to downsize which will give us more of a chance. Although, yeas quite what they will do about the arrears is going to be interesting...........

iluvmarmite

Your HA sound a bit silly for want of a better word, when we moved into our ground floor flat the windows had no keys, the HA said we were perfectly within our rights to change the window locks as long as we gave the new keys to them should we ever leave so the new tenants could have them.

If we want to fit a new kitchen or bathroom we are allowed as long as we sign a form stating we either leave the new one or put the old one back if we leave, it's no skin off their nose and in fact saves them money as they won't have to replace the kitchen themselves as they do every 10 years or so.

You say you sleep in the small room so I assume you use a double bed, if so then there must be room for 2 singles and there would be even more room using bunk beds, also you say there would be room for your bed plus a Moses basket so there should be room for a toy box.

I understand the kids won't be able to run around in the room but they can do that in the rest of the house, if they like to watch telly in their room then you can just hang one on the wall.

Helen2k8

You might have some luck advertising to swap for a three-bed, if someone else needs to avoid "bedroom tax" by downsizing?

In the meantime, I sympathise but I'm afraid needs must. I would stick with the security of the HA as long as the area is nice etc.

If bunk beds won't fit in the smaller bedroom, you could have a double bed for the two kids (even if they're boy and girl this won't matter for another couple of years)?

You could consider cosleeping with new baby - needs thorough research on your part.

Depending on size and layout of living room, you could have a sofabed, or curtain off an area with a single bed or daybed?

Have a google around "tiny homes" or minimal living for space saving ideas?

There is no point being angry that other people have played the system - it doesn't harm them in the slightest, but drives you mental.

djh77

iluvmarmite wrote: »

Your HA sound a bit silly for want of a better word, when we moved into our ground floor flat the windows had no keys, the HA said we were perfectly within our rights to change the window locks as long as we gave the new keys to them should we ever leave so the new tenants could have them.

If we want to fit a new kitchen or bathroom we are allowed as long as we sign a form stating we either leave the new one or put the old one back if we leave, it's no skin off their nose and in fact saves them money as they won't have to replace the kitchen themselves as they do every 10 years or so.

You say you sleep in the small room so I assume you use a double bed, if so then there must be room for 2 singles and there would be even more room using bunk beds, also you say there would be room for your bed plus a Moses basket so there should be room for a toy box.

I understand the kids won't be able to run around in the room but they can do that in the rest of the house, if they like to watch telly in their room then you can just hang one on the wall.

The HA are not the greatest. We are not even allowed to fit a shower ourselves, has to be done by a plumber.

The issue with the bedroom is that we can only just get our double bed in. To have 2 singles in there they would have to be pushed together. They would have no play area at all. We will have room for a moses basket, I hope!.

debrag

djh77 wrote: »

Which comes back to our conditions. I work nights, sometimes I do twighlight overtime shifts, so when I have to sleep in the day, what are the wife and baby supposed to do with no 'living' space?

I already know what the answer is going to be, not the HA's problem, nothing in the law that states otherwise etc.

Sleep in one of the bedrooms during the day? Put cot and single bed in small room use that.

why can't the living room be the new baby's room? that way you still have a room to sleep in?

Plenty of people have no 'living space'

debrag

djh77 wrote: »

We are lucky that I do earn quite a decent wage and that renting privately, if I had to, would not really be an issue.

I have just spoke to our HA, and actually spoke to someone quite helpful. She suggested intermediate (I think) rental. Anyone got any idea what that is?

http://www.homebuy.co.uk/intermediate_market_rent.aspx

djh77

debrag wrote: »

Sleep in one of the bedrooms during the day? Put cot and single bed in small room use that.

why can't the living room be the new baby's room? that way you still have a room to sleep in?

Plenty of people have no 'living space'

Door out to a balcony with a key that, for H&S reasons can not be removed. 2nd floor flat. Not suitable for ANY child to be using as a bedroom.

djh77

Without starting a new thread, does anyone have any experience of a rent-to-buy scheme?

I am thinking of this: http://www.renttobuyguide.co.uk/

Looks a bit too good to be true though? What are the downsides to it? As I have said I can't get a mortgage at the moment due to my bankrupcy in 2007. However the mortgage advisor I saw a couple of months ago said that in another years time once the bankrupcy has been discharged for 6 years then she would be able to sort me a mortgage out. Obviously I need a deposit, and she said something like 20-25% would be required, but if I was to go with one of those schemes for 5 years then I could save that money in that amount of time.

Is it all legal and above board though?

HappyMJ

djh77 wrote: »

Without starting a new thread, does anyone have any experience of a rent-to-buy scheme?

I am thinking of this: http://www.renttobuyguide.co.uk/

Looks a bit too good to be true though? What are the downsides to it? As I have said I can't get a mortgage at the moment due to my bankrupcy in 2007. However the mortgage advisor I saw a couple of months ago said that in another years time once the bankrupcy has been discharged for 6 years then she would be able to sort me a mortgage out. Obviously I need a deposit, and she said something like 20-25% would be required, but if I was to go with one of those schemes for 5 years then I could save that money in that amount of time.

Is it all legal and above board though?

It is legal and above board but I doubt it's cheap. You would be better off saving 10% and buying through a traditional mortgage.

djh77

HappyMJ wrote: »

It is legal and above board but I doubt it's cheap. You would be better off saving 10% and buying through a traditional mortgage.

I won't just need 10% though. Because of my bunkrupcy which will be off my credit file this August, I have been told that I would need somewhere between 25-30% deposit.

It is definitely something that we want to do, this whole situation has bought itself to a head and made us focus where are priorities need to lie, in terms of having a nice house in a decent area for our children to grow up in. To save a 30% deposit (an average 3 bed house around our way in a nice area will cost in the region of £180,000) will take us, I believe, about 5 years when you take into account solicitor's fee's etc. Obviously I could go down a shared ownership route.

But, anyway, the 5 years of saving do not worry us, we will live with our current conditions for that time, but was just wondering if it is a viable option to use the rent to buy scheme for 5 years whilst we save, then the rent goes towards the cost of the property.