Taking the under 35 benefit cuts too far?

alexann12

I just need some advice relating to renting a flat. I've lived in my current flat for 7yrs so don't know much about renting at the moment as you'd expect. I'm not on benefit, female, 30yrs old, single with no kids. I'm a mature student and a very responsible individual money wise. I also work part time to top up my student loans. But money wise, i'm doing great.

I've recently decided to look for another flat mainly due to the fact my current landlord is the landlord from hell and yes, I have tried every possible avenue available to me to resolve the many issues that I have with him e.g neglect of property, difficult neighbours etc I have even spoken to the council about this and other issues and even they have given up. My landlord is a law unto himself and thinks he's untouchable.

I have nothing against DSS tenants as I know people on benefit who work hard but unfortunately struggle to make ends meet and others who've lost their jobs due to the recession. I was once one of them but years ago. However the tenants my landlords takes on are the reason why alot of landlords and agents won't take DSS. They don't always pay the rent, destroy the property....you name it, they do it.

I'm not on benefit. I've paid my rent every month without fail for 7yrs and my flat looks the way it did when i moved in. It's in excellent condition. My landlord seems to hate the working class tenants he has and because we pay our rent from our own pocket not from benefits, we have every right to complain when things are not as they should be and believe me, my landlord has broken almost all the rules landlords have to follow. He even tricked some DSS tenants into paying for loft insulation that they did'nt ask for (he obtained their benefit details, NI numbers etc underhandedly to obtain money/grants from the government to install insulation) but failed with me as i cottoned on and luckily due to not being on benefit, i'm not entitled to freebies like loft insulation.

He then tried to get me to pay for it myself by sending the loft insulation company to my door without my permission! I did not even ask for loft insulation or express an interest in it at all. If I had to get insulation, it would be for a property I actually own. I know it saves on heating costs etc but as i'm planning on moving out, there would be no point in getting it anyway. But if my landlord was to pay for it and insist it's put in, that's his decision as the property is his. I'm not stopping him. However he is dodging paying for it and trying to get his tenants to pay for it...somehow.

If i request insulation, then he'd have every right to suggest I pay but the bottom line is, I never requested it. So I'm fed up/at the end of my tether overall, and am looking for another flat.:(

To my dismay, I have come across landlords and estate agents who understandably due to the benefit cuts and recession, are stricter with who they take on. But it's ridiculous and I wanted clarification on some issues. Like i mentioned, I am not on any benefit and have been offered an excellent reference by my current landlord, despite this i'm being told by agents and landlords, that because i'm under 35, they cannot take anyone who's single, with no kids and under 35 on, due to housing benefit cuts to under 35's (they are only allowed enough benefit for a room in a shared house) That's fair enough but what's this got to do with me personally? :mad:

So basically anyone single, no kids and under 35 cannot rent? This seems abit much as i'm working and am in receipt of sufficient students loans and a good reference from my landlord. Also generally what can i expect nowadays when looking to rent e.g paperwork, proof etc. Any advice on what to expect when dealing with agents and landlords would be helpful.:)

sandsni

If you're not applying as a housing benefit tenant, then why are they quoting all that benefits cut stuff to you? It makes no sense. Except that they are saving all their single room properties for what they think will be an influx of HB applicants who only qualify for a single room rate.

Either that or they are making a huge assumption that you will end up having to apply for HB in the near future and not get enough to cover the rent.

If you've made it clear to them that you're not on or applying for HB, then what they're saying is absolutely irrelevant in your case. All they need to know is that you pass the reference and credit checks and have the means to pay the rent for the full fixed term. How can benefit cuts affect the ability to pay of someone who isn't on benefits?

My brain hurts just trying to figure out their logic :-s

19lottie82

I don't really get what your point is here, sorry.

Nada666

19lottie82 wrote: »

I don't really get what your point is here, sorry.

The point is perfectly clear. Have you actually read the post?

alexann12

sandsni, thanks for your reply. This my point exactly. I had one bad tempered estate agent basically turn me down due to my age? It's like they're assuming the worst. Then she says after I challenged this theory of not renting to under 35's even those not on benefit ''Well what happens if you become unemployed?'' Umm...I'm at uni working towards a degree that will make it unlikely i'll struggle to find work and will be earning good money.

She even went as far as saying without a partner, i'd be unable to pay rent! I've lived in my current flat, without a partner or flatmate for 7yrs and managed???:mad::mad::mad: I hear alot of landlords and agents are doing this, i guess to protect themselves..just in case.

braun_2

19lottie82 wrote: »

I don't really get what your point is here, sorry.

I don't get the point either.

If you are a student/part time worker then you are at a higher risk of not being able to keep up with rent payments. When I was a student I had a student loan that more than covered the rent but I still had to get a guarantor to sign.

Not sure what this has to do with housing benefit

alexann12

Braun, my post did explain things. I'm getting turned down by estate agents and landlords not because i'm a student/part time worker and I might add, I'm not your typical student as i'm 30 and financially stable thanks to years of working and good money management on my part. It's the housing benefit cuts to under 35's that is being used as an excuse. Straight away when I mention my age not anything else even the fact i'm at uni seems unimportant, it's because i'm under 35 that they are being difficult. I'm not on benefit so don't know why i'm being turned down because of HB cuts that don't apply to me as i'm not on benefit? Please re-read my post if you're still unsure.

braun_2

alexann12 wrote: »

Braun, my post did explain things. I'm getting turned down by estate agents and landlords not because i'm a student and I might add, I'm not your typical student as i'm 30 and financially stable thanks to years of working and good money management on my part. It's the housing benefit cuts to under 35's that is being used as an excuse. Straight away when I mention my age not anything else even the fact i'm at uni seems unimportant, it's because i'm under 35 that they are being difficult. I'm not on benefit so don't know why i'm being turned down because of HB cuts that don't apply to me as i'm not on benefit? Please re-read my post if you're still unsure.

How are you financially stable? Part time work that doesn't cover the rent? Student loans that you have to apply for each year and only have a limited amount of times you can claim them. Savings which will run out without a steady income?

These are not attractive options to a LL or LA. I highly doubt your age or marital status has anything to do with the fact that you are having trouble finding somewhere new to rent. Maybe they are mentioning HB cuts as in their eyes you are a high risk of progressing onto HB.

sandsni

braun wrote: »

How are you financially stable? Part time work that doesn't cover the rent? Student loans that you have to apply for each year and only have a limited amount of times you can claim them. Savings which will run out without a steady income?

These are not attractive options to a LL or LA. I highly doubt your age or marital status has anything to do with the fact that you are having trouble finding somewhere new to rent. Maybe they are mentioning HB cuts as in their eyes you are a high risk of progressing onto HB.

It's a sad state of affairs if people are being turned down on the presumption that they will inevitably end up on benefits. By that logic then no one over 60 should be able to rent, no woman of child-bearing age (as she might reduce her working hours if she has a child at some point in the future), and no one with any hint of ill-health in their past (or any close relative that might need care resulting in the applicant possibly giving up work to look after them). In the current economic climate you could argue that no one is a good risk as people are losing their jobs all the time and anyone could be next.

The OP said benefit cuts were being cited as the reason for not considering them, not the fact that they were a student or in part-time work.

braun_2

sandsni wrote: »

It's a sad state of affairs if people are being turned down on the presumption that they will inevitably end up on benefits.

This is the world we live in... LLs want professionals who earn at least 4x the rent. A lot of ads stipulate no DSS and no students. Credit checks ensure a certain level of fiscal responsibility.

I still have no idea why you are banging on about HB when OP does not claim it and is "financially responsible"... you will have to spell it out for me

moneyistooshorttomention

I can see the point clearly that OP is making - and it's exactly what I had anticipated would happen and what I would have had to do myself if I were a landlord and an under-35 came looking for self-contained accommodation subsequent to this Government rule change I'm afraid.

Once it became clear that the Government would be refusing to pay full rent for those under 35 and unemployed (on the excuse that even a one bedroom flat was "too big" for them and they would therefore only receive the shared accommodation rate) then I could see that many landlords would be likely to refuse to rent a one bedroom flat to an under 35 in the first place JUST IN CASE they become unemployed and, with that, aren't given sufficient rent money to cover their rent.

It's absolutely wrong and I would certainly be feeling very upset about it if I were an under-35 - with the mere fact that the Government wouldn't accept that I needed self-contained accommodation until the date of my 35th birthday (as well as afterwards). I would be ticking off the days and years on my calendar and moving to a flat literally on the day of that 35th birthday.

So - I sympathise OP and have to say that, if I were a landlord, I would be having to get absolute "cast iron" proof from someone that they would never ever be unemployed (at least till they hit 35) before I could consider renting to them precisely because of these Government rules.

I think OP's problem is that they have no way to prove that they will be a student (ie have a student loan coming in) until they are 35 - because, presumably, they will have finished their studies long before then.