Any tips on being successful in getting a house to rent?

n1guy

csgohan4 wrote: »

Also personal preference may play a part as well, so you maybe negatively discriminated against. If there are 20 people and your the only on HB, you will be at the back of the queue

Well we have a viewing today and one on Thursday, if both fall though I will redo my forms minus HB and see how that goes.

paddypaws101

Are you both working? Does your combined income meet the criteria to pass credit checks? If so, I would omit to mention the HB as presumably you are able to pay the rent in full your selves each month and then bank the HB.
The problem with HB comes when tenants have no other means of paying the rent when due and LL has to wait for your HB payments to come through. As yours is just a 'top up' it should not be an issue.

lisyloo

Maybe you're not doing anything wrong, but if there are 25 couples down to see every property then with average luck you're going to have to visit 25 properties !


I think you may need to be quick.
We went to see our current flat and we knew there were people going in after us.
It wasn't anything fantastic but it was the right money and adequate so we called back and said yes straightaway as we knew if we took a couple of days to think about it that someone else would get it.
I'd prefer not to be pressured but if you have a good idea of what you want and a good idea of whether they are asking the correct rent then I'd suggest being prepared to act quickly (if you're sure).

Eliza_2

Sometimes you have to be a bit 'creative' too! I rang for an appointment on the viewing day a few days hence but then said I happened to be passing today and could I just pop in as I was in the area for work. (In fact I had skyved off for the afternoon and wasn't passing within 20 miles!) The house was in the process of being redecorated so they said yes if I didn't mind the mess. We agreed the deal there and then.

I did feel a bit guilty about the people who had booked for the viewing day and for the landlord who had to ring them all and cancel them but hey ho!

I've been here for 17 yrs now! Great for the landlord and great for me!

n1guy

Thought I would update this guy. I have had a bit of luck and as in the past, it came down to who you know.

I phoned a previous landlord to get a reference and by chance, he was moving out of his current house and offered it to me straight away to rent for long term. The only issue is it's in the back of beyond. It's only about 2 miles away from where we currently live but really is in a rural location, your only neighbours would be cows. I'm not sure how i feel about it, it's a fantastic house but I've never lived in the country, the Mrs was brought up in the country so she's fine, I was brought up in a large town although at the min we live in a small rural village and I love it but having no life near me sounds a bit scary.

Its not ideal but we are having zero luck with estate agents even though we have immaculate references. You put your name forward but you never get anywhere, I really don't know what they're looking.

kerri_gt

Given you have to move out of your current property and have limited options thus far, it would seem a bit of a no brainer to accept this property and see how things go. It doesn't sound that far from your current property, how far is it from other amenities? Do you both drive? Can you manage with taxis for a nigh out? Is there any public transport that serves near that property? What does your partner think? I know you said she's fine as she's lived in the country but has she been able to add some pros and cons?
On the plus side, no noisey neighbours, or parking issues to deal with.

n1guy

kerri_gt wrote: »

Given you have to move out of your current property and have limited options thus far, it would seem a bit of a no brainer to accept this property and see how things go. It doesn't sound that far from your current property, how far is it from other amenities? Do you both drive? Can you manage with taxis for a nigh out? Is there any public transport that serves near that property? What does your partner think? I know you said she's fine as she's lived in the country but has she been able to add some pros and cons?
On the plus side, no noisey neighbours, or parking issues to deal with.

I don't drive, its not even on a main road with public transport, its on a little country road/lane which is about 2 miles off the main road. There is a bus stop at the end of the road though which is something. At the moment I either get the bus to work or get a lift from a colleague who passes through.

But not even that there is silly things like broadband speed of 1mb-2mb my kids would hate it as neither Netflix or youtube would work, no mobile coverage etc, But the house itself is perfect for us.

dancing_star

n1guy wrote: »

I don't drive, its not even on a main road with public transport, its on a little country road/lane which is about 2 miles off the main road. There is a bus stop at the end of the road though which is something. At the moment I either get the bus to work or get a lift from a colleague who passes through.

Get a bike.

n1guy wrote: »

But not even that there is silly things like broadband speed of 1mb-2mb my kids would hate it as neither Netflix or youtube would work, no mobile coverage etc,

Diddums. What's the Netflix speed if they live under a park bench?

Slithery

dancing_star wrote: »

Diddums. What's the Netflix speed if they live under a park bench?

In an area with good reception, more than 50x better.

n1guy

dancing_star wrote: »

Get a bike.



Diddums. What's the Netflix speed if they live under a park bench?

You may laugh, all first world problems yes but these things do make a difference, decent broadband speed is even more essential living in the sticks for kids with lack of anything else to do.