Renting Out Our House - Can We Credit Check Prospective Tenants?

pbartlett

Cakeguts said:

lumencreative said:

Cakeguts said:

t all seems very very much more complicated than just selling your house and moving to another one.

Out of interest, what makes you think selling a house to buy another house is any less complicated? We have sold a house previously (after renting it out actually), and it was the most stressful experience I've ever encountered.

This is what the OP is wanting to do. They want to let their current house, then move and then sometime in the future sell their current house after as you say renting it out.  

I just wanted to point out that in order to sell a rented house you do better if you first have vacant possession. Getting vacant possession could take the best part of a year during which time if you have a non paying tenant you will not be getting any rent.  You could also find that when you get possession the tenant has trashed the house or the house is in such bad repair that you need to replace the kitchen and bathroom and all the floor coverings before you can sell it.  Worst case you can finish up with a damaged interior and no rent for about a year.  Who wants that with a property if they have moved over 100 miles away?

If the abolition of Section 21 goes ahead then it won't be a year - you will never get vacant possession until the tenant decides to leave (assuming they abide by the letting contract)

Grumpy_chap

theartfullodger said:

You can ASK to credit check prospective tenants, but they don't have to agree to it 

In exactly the same way a prospective tenant could ask to credit check a prospective Landlord.

Shame more don't.  Remarkable the arrogance of some landlords.

Artful: Landlord since 2000.

Actually, some process by which this can happen would head-off a lot of problems.
There seem to be too many people that save £50k, think they are loaded, take out a BTL mortgage and buy a place at £250k.  Then scrape together the money for the other costs they never thought about before getting the property let to an unsuspecting tenant.  
The LL is barely breaking even, or maybe needs to make a small contribution each month to cover the costs of the mortgage (especially if repayment).
Then, some small maintenance bill comes up, the LL can't afford it, the tenant gets fed up with the poor service and the whole thing enters a downward spiral.

This creates havoc for good LL's who are then tarred with the same brush.

lookstraightahead

Grumpy_chap said:

theartfullodger said:

You can ASK to credit check prospective tenants, but they don't have to agree to it 

In exactly the same way a prospective tenant could ask to credit check a prospective Landlord.

Shame more don't.  Remarkable the arrogance of some landlords.

Artful: Landlord since 2000.

Actually, some process by which this can happen would head-off a lot of problems.
There seem to be too many people that save £50k, think they are loaded, take out a BTL mortgage and buy a place at £250k.  Then scrape together the money for the other costs they never thought about before getting the property let to an unsuspecting tenant.  
The LL is barely breaking even, or maybe needs to make a small contribution each month to cover the costs of the mortgage (especially if repayment).
Then, some small maintenance bill comes up, the LL can't afford it, the tenant gets fed up with the poor service and the whole thing enters a downward spiral.

This creates havoc for good LL's who are then tarred with the same brush.

Just a brilliant summary 

[Deleted User]

Grumpy_chap said:

theartfullodger said:

You can ASK to credit check prospective tenants, but they don't have to agree to it 

In exactly the same way a prospective tenant could ask to credit check a prospective Landlord.

Shame more don't.  Remarkable the arrogance of some landlords.

Artful: Landlord since 2000.

Actually, some process by which this can happen would head-off a lot of problems.
There seem to be too many people that save £50k, think they are loaded, take out a BTL mortgage and buy a place at £250k.  Then scrape together the money for the other costs they never thought about before getting the property let to an unsuspecting tenant.  
The LL is barely breaking even, or maybe needs to make a small contribution each month to cover the costs of the mortgage (especially if repayment).
Then, some small maintenance bill comes up, the LL can't afford it, the tenant gets fed up with the poor service and the whole thing enters a downward spiral.

This creates havoc for good LL's who are then tarred with the same brush.

Seems to be more of a concern about stress tests and lending than anything that could be resolved by tenants making checks.

Grumpy_chap

[Deleted User] said:

Grumpy_chap said:

theartfullodger said:

You can ASK to credit check prospective tenants, but they don't have to agree to it 

In exactly the same way a prospective tenant could ask to credit check a prospective Landlord.

Shame more don't.  Remarkable the arrogance of some landlords.

Artful: Landlord since 2000.

Actually, some process by which this can happen would head-off a lot of problems.
There seem to be too many people that save £50k, think they are loaded, take out a BTL mortgage and buy a place at £250k.  Then scrape together the money for the other costs they never thought about before getting the property let to an unsuspecting tenant.  
The LL is barely breaking even, or maybe needs to make a small contribution each month to cover the costs of the mortgage (especially if repayment).
Then, some small maintenance bill comes up, the LL can't afford it, the tenant gets fed up with the poor service and the whole thing enters a downward spiral.

This creates havoc for good LL's who are then tarred with the same brush.

Seems to be more of a concern about stress tests and lending than anything that could be resolved by tenants making checks.

Maybe the lack of understanding by some LL's as to what their obligations are and the financial burden that can be imposed without warning.  Too many sucked in to the idea that it is money for old rope, then learn the hard way and the tenant suffers.

A good LL needs to have a generous financial buffer and any issues that need sorting can be just put right quickly, then the tenant stays happy and is more likely to continue paying rent.  A financially stretched LL can't fix things even if they want to, then the tenant gets disappointed and starts with the withholding rent route for LL failing to meet obligations and the spiral is only ever downwards