Guarantor request by LL for student accomodation

missbiggles1

aquitaine wrote: »

I probably should get hold of a copy of this contract. Do landlords seriously expect tenants to find new people should one move out? They truly do not want to lift a finger do they? It's not surprising this business has got such a bad name given the arrogant and high handed way these landlords behave.

Most groups of sharers would be very unhappy to have to live so closely with someone who isn't of their own choosing, although it does happen sometimes.

nkkingston

Well, the landlords expect the tenants to honour the contract and pay rent for the agreed period of time. If the tenant wants to leave and can't be bothered to find someone else, they keep paying rent until the end of the contract (or, if it's joint liability, the other tenants have to pay enough to cover the ex-tenants' share). Letting students find replacement tenants is actually one of the perks of student tenancies that tends to disappear as you move into professional letting.

aquitaine

For anyone who is interested I managed to resolve this by paying the rent in advance in the end. They opposed this vigouously but capitulated in the end. Net result is that son is in property and I have no risk whatsoever from the agreement. Pointed out to son that by moving a sum of money from A to B we have probably lost about a fiver in interest but have totally removed any liability. From unlimited liability to zero liability for a fiver seems a reasonable deal to me.

Thank you to everyone for your thoughts. I think the moral is not to be bullied or intimidated by a grotesque industry which thinks it has the upper hand. I am going to lobby my MP to put a stop to this sort of demand for free unlimited liability by the buy to let industry. It's about time they were brought to heel.

silvercar

I hope you don't have any problems getting repairs done.

I guess the landlord capitulated because he has the parents of some of the other students as guarantors.

Out of interest is your son on his own contract or is it a joint tenancy? I'm just wondering if your son is liable for damage to the property/ others not paying the rent etc.

anselld

aquitaine wrote: »

Pointed out to son that by moving a sum of money from A to B we have probably lost about a fiver in interest but have totally removed any liability.

Your son still has unlimited liability. Not sure what you are expecting him to learn from this.

Marvel1

anselld wrote: »

Your son still has unlimited liability. Not sure what you are expecting him to learn from this.

Before signing, view the property and read over everything

Andypandyboy

Your son has already signed the contract in his own name. He is the one who will now be responsible for any additional rent should someone default or leave the property. You haven't really achieved anything here beyond passing the buck.

aquitaine

Andypandyboy wrote: »

Your son has already signed the contract in his own name. He is the one who will now be responsible for any additional rent should someone default or leave the property. You haven't really achieved anything here beyond passing the buck.

He is a 19 year old with no assets for them to chase, that is very different from putting the family house at risk.

aquitaine

anselld wrote: »

Your son still has unlimited liability. Not sure what you are expecting him to learn from this.

How not to get the family home repossessed. How never to give in to dodgy landlords and estate agents. Valuable lessons.

aquitaine

silvercar wrote: »

I hope you don't have any problems getting repairs done.

I guess the landlord capitulated because he has the parents of some of the other students as guarantors.

Out of interest is your son on his own contract or is it a joint tenancy? I'm just wondering if your son is liable for damage to the property/ others not paying the rent etc.

I don't know and it doesn't really matter. If something happened the landlord would have to claim on his own insurance rather than trying to pursue a penniless student for the money.