House rental cost on SOA

MrsST

We are still in the very early stages of sorting out our BR but we are planning on formally renting a family member's home and they will be renting elsewhere.

My query here is, we *could* rent a property for less than we are paying this person, but we aren't talking hundreds of pounds difference. The main reason we have chosen this plan is that it saves us running into any potential difficulties once we are BR with a Landlord terminating an agreement.

Bearing in mind that this could put our monthly expenses up by approx £50-£75 more than we could get a rental property for, will this cause problems for us with an OR? Do they expect you to rent the cheapest possible property if you are going BR?

By the time we actually go to court, we will have been in the property for approx 3-4 months, with a formal tenancy agreement in place and bank tracked payments.

Frankly at the moment, I feel like my head is going to explode with the worry about how this is going to be regarded by the OR.

Can anyone help me please?

TIA

MrsST

Just thought I'd add that the cost of our rental is the amount that this person needs to cover the rent on the property that they are taking on. Not sure if that would make a difference.

dalip

MrsT no expert but would not think i will be a problem. The OR normally knows what the rental prices are for your area so providing they are within that it should be ok Even if it's not they will just cut your rent allowance down and you can pay the extra out of your surplus the same way others do for sky ect. I thnk i've read somewhere that they normally allow about £750 but as i said i am no expert on houses. By replying i have bumped this up so you may well get more "professional" advice later this morn.D

MrsST

Thanks dalip.

The rent would be £725 p.c.m., which is £75 more than we have been paying on our mortgage. It's quite a reasonable price for private rental around here.

This housing situation is worrying me so much at the moment as I just want to know where we are going to be living, so we can get started with the necessary BR paperwork.

Thanks for bumping this up

tigerfeet2006

If it is a normal rent for your area then I thing you have nothing to worry about. aS dALIP SAYS THE or KNOWS WHAT IS A REASONABLE RENT FOR YOUR AREA (oops! baby helping!!) As long as the house is not to big for your needs then you will have no problem

redrabbit29

I don't think £50 is much to spend for:

- Peace of mind that you are not renting off some money-grabbing landlord/estate agent
- Peace of mind that you are not going to get your deposit stolen
- If someone goes wrong you know it will get fixed as you trust the person
- No dodgy estate agent fees and contract fees
- Much more accessible if you wanted to put a picture up or even move furniture out or change something
- A far less stressful experience.

Well worth it.

MrsST

Thank you both.

The house is slightly bigger than what we have now, but only just! We gain a box room, lol! It is priced reasonably though compared to what we would pay for a slightly smaller place.

norby789

Hi
My rent is £800 pcm and the OR did not question it at all.

Phil

LilyBart

Hello again MrsST,
We're worried about that too. Our rent is £1150pcm (don't faint, Dalip). That's £50 lower than advertised and £100-£150 lower than local average. It's fractionally higher than mortgage, but £500 lower than mortgage plus secured loan, if you see what I mean, and has reduced OH's travel costs. My big fear is the OR will say, why not rent something smaller. (We gained an extra loo.) But I should have thought that your argument about renting from a relative who knows you are going bankrupt and the security that represents is very persuasive.
Lily

poppysarah

Just make sure you have a proper tenancy agreement.

Scarlett.1974

As long as you're not renting a 6 bed detached with indoor pool and room for a pony then the OR will have no problem with whatever your rental costs are.

Lilybart - I'm assuming you're down south somewhere with those figures?

Our rent is £620 and pretty average for the area. However, we could have found somewhere around the region of £500 (slightly worse area, smaller garden, no downstairs loo etc....) but the OR didn't even question it at all.

Really, as long as you're not taking the pee, then your rental costs are what they are and the OR will have no issue with this