Want to rent as self-employed

BadBehaviour

I am looking to rent a 1 bed place and I am currently self-employed. Been self-employed since April 2013.
Anyway the job I do pays according to how many hours of work I put in and according to the amount of work I do and since I've been living with my partner and he has a full-time job making pretty good money, I was happy to just work the minimum to have some spare money for myself. Obviously if I had to pay a rent all by myself, I'd have to work full time as a freelancer and I'd be able to pay for my rent with no problems. This is easily doable.

Anyway, my doubt is that an estate agent will surely want to see proof of income and my income so far hasn't been enough to cover rent expenses because I haven't put in the hours as I said, which I'd do if I was to pay for a rent all by myself. I don't have an accountant as my tax returns are very easy to do. I'm registered as self-employed and all that and I can get the manager of the company I work for to write something stating I work for them. Got my current landlord that would give me a very positive reference and I have a spotless credit file as well. I can pay a deposit but I must admit I can't pay 6 months upfront.

I'm looking to go back to being an employee and keep this self-employment as a way to earn extra money but while I find a job, this would be my only source of income.

Is there any hope for me to rent a property in these circumstances? I don't have a guarantor.

HappyMJ

BadBehaviour wrote: »

I am looking to rent a 1 bed place and I am currently self-employed. Been self-employed since April 2013.
Anyway the job I do pays according to how many hours of work I put in and according to the amount of work I do and since I've been living with my partner and he has a full-time job making pretty good money, I was happy to just work the minimum to have some spare money for myself. Obviously if I had to pay a rent all by myself, I'd have to work full time as a freelancer and I'd be able to pay for my rent with no problems. This is easily doable.

Anyway, my doubt is that an estate agent will surely want to see proof of income and my income so far hasn't been enough to cover rent expenses because I haven't put in the hours as I said, which I'd do if I was to pay for a rent all by myself. I don't have an accountant as my tax returns are very easy to do. I'm registered as self-employed and all that and I can get the manager of the company I work for to write something stating I work for them. Got my current landlord that would give me a very positive reference and I have a spotless credit file as well. I can pay a deposit but I must admit I can't pay 6 months upfront.

I'm looking to go back to being an employee and keep this self-employment as a way to earn extra money but while I find a job, this would be my only source of income.

Is there any hope for me to rent a property in these circumstances? I don't have a guarantor.

No problem at all.

If you are renting by yourself and you can show you earn at least 30 times the monthly rent as annual income you should have little problem finding a tenancy. The problem is most self-employed people make a loss in their first year and show no profit and in their second year they might break even or show a low profit so you may not be able to show a decent income despite your cashflow being okay.

Another way of doing it is offering 6 months rent upfront. You'll need to show you have 30 times the monthly rent as savings.

If you are renting with your partner you don't need any income at all if your partners income can pay the rent.

ManuelG

HappyMJ wrote: »

No problem at all.

If you are renting by yourself and you can show you earn at least 30 times the monthly rent as annual income you should have little problem finding a tenancy.

*How* much?!?:eek:

Edit: Ah, annual

I thought you meant for a £600pcm house, you'd have to earn £200k pa

BadBehaviour

So if I get a job earning 15K a year and rent a £500pcm property I should be ok? Even if I had just started doing the job?

HappyMJ

ManuelG wrote: »

*How* much?!?:eek:

Edit: Ah, annual

I thought you meant for a £600pcm house, you'd have to earn £200k pa

LOL yes... or I suppose another way of saying it is monthly salary must be 2.5 times the rent but self employed people don't have a monthly wage or salary they earn variable and irregular amounts throughout the year so it's much easier to work from self assessment returns that show annual profit then divide by 30 to work out a maximum budget. I wouldn't want to rent to close to the limit as it wouldn't leave much for other expenses though.

HappyMJ

BadBehaviour wrote: »

So if I get a job earning 15K a year and rent a £500pcm property I should be ok? Even if I had just started doing the job?

You'll need to have at least worked one day and hopefully have a written contract and even better would be to have a payslip by the time you sign the tenancy showing your monthly salary.

theartfullodger

Easy: Just produce copies of your last 3 years tax returns showing the income you claim, job done!

MartiMcfly

Freelance workers are nothing unusual, as long as you have accounts, and pass credit check, you may have to get a reference from old landlord, but thats about it