Bad Credit Means Being Treated Like A Criminal

ACG · 9 October 2019 at 5:08PM

Im not sure it is a case of being treated like a criminal but to look at it from the landlords perspective, you have a history of not paying debts.

If you rent a property and do not pay the rent, it could easily be 6 months plus before they get you out. In that period of time you may owe 6 months rent, you may have trashed the place, court costs, legal costs, bailiff costs.

That could theoretically be £10,000 plus.

Not many landlords could afford that hit on income and those costs without struggling themselves.

So does the landlord:
1) Take the risk
2) Find someone who on paper at least is less of a risk?

I say that as someone who now does mortgages primarily for people with bad credit, so definitely no judgement.

Smodlet · 9 October 2019 at 5:12PM

PaulMNorth, please come back and tell us how you get on. Openrent cannot be the only LLs' site out there; you will find something.

[Deleted User] · 9 October 2019 at 5:15PM

People who have been declared bankrupt still manage to rent so it’s not impossible. Do you currently have an income?

PaulMNorth · 9 October 2019 at 5:27PM

pelirocco wrote: »

A company director is not liable to a failed company's PAYE / NI or Tax

Its probably because a directors guarentee is nearly always required when buying a large priced item for a company these days
At it getting CCJ stage is not a sign of poor management its a sign of not having the money to pay it ! , and not having the money isn't necessarily a sign of poor management . they could have lost a contract , but not able to loose the costs involved in running the contract quickly enough or had a customer go under and not paying them

Best pull those Judgey pants out of your ar5e

Exactly this. I paid a supplier for an extremely expensive piece of equipment and myself and one other were Guarantors for the business loan.
We lost contracts due to take overs and some customers went bust themselves. In short, exactly as you said I could not pay the amount monthly without those customers (my income was directly related to the business income).
We sold the equipment for as high a price as possible and paid the lions share back to the supplier (around £95k on an initial £180k loan) but in small comparison about £6k was left and that is what I got the CCJ for. It was either pay my mortgage or pay the supplier.

I sold the house to clear all outstanding debts and found myself in this situation.

A new mortgage is the aim, but the banks have said I need to wait at least 3 years despite earning more than enough to pay it. I just wish there was a scheme where money could be held for the LL to protect against any misuse of property and allow people with available funds to rent a property.

PaulMNorth · 9 October 2019 at 5:29PM

Lover_of_Lycra wrote: »

People who have been declared bankrupt still manage to rent so it’s not impossible. Do you currently have an income?

Yes, and a pretty good one. I am having some response now through directly dealing with landlords which is good. :j

Smodlet · 9 October 2019 at 5:35PM

PaulMNorth wrote: »

I just wish there was a scheme where money could be held for the LL to protect against any misuse of property and allow people with available funds to rent a property.

There is: As already mentioned by some who are LLs (G_M, Adrian C) the 5 weeks' rent amount thing is a limit on the deposit that can be extracted from a tenant against damage.

If you find a LL willing to accept rent in advance, you can pay however many months' worth you can agree on. I hope this is clear. I'd definitely try contacting LLs directly as a starting point.

MovingForwards · 9 October 2019 at 5:36PM

Speak with a whole of market adverse credit mortgage broker to see what your mortgage options are and how long you have to realistically wait.

I've a CCJ, slightly less than yours was, I rent through an agency, thankfully they carried my paperwork forward from one rental to another, but I'm also a joint tenant so if I stop paying they go after my co-renter!

I do understand why you are frustrated, I had exactly the same issues, had phones slammed down because I didn't have a guarantor etc, but you will find somewhere. You just have to keep trying.