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Rent and Unemployment

Started by bgmnts, May 27, 2020, 06:08:23 PM

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bgmnts

Just a quick thing, has anyone here managed to move into a new flat/house whilst being unemployed? Universal credit can offer housing support to a certain value, more than enough for some properties, but I imagine its virtually impossible to get a landlord to agree to let a space to someone not currently working.

Just wondering if anyone has manged this, and if so what did you do?

Cheers.

weekender

Not done this exact situation, but I rented for a good while (c15 years) and can suggest the following are considered from the landlord's perspective:

-Previous references essential
-Ongoing commitment to monthly payments essential
-Decent deposit will be looked on favourably
-Background to being on Universal Credit important.  If it's a short-term thing because you've been furloughed, and you have good prospects (plus all of the above) then I'd be compassionate.

Appreciate you might not want to go into your - or your friend's - personal circumstances, but from everything I know about landlords, that's the priority order.  I'm saying this as someone who rented for 15+ years, in about 5 properties, and always had amicable relationships with the landlords etc.

So not impossible, but you've got to prove to them that they're going to get a return on their investment.  Think from their perspective a bit as well - is it better to get £0 rent for 6 months, or £300 a month from a reliable sensible tenant with references who just needs a break during this crisis?

Bazooka

A guarantor also is required in 99% of scenarios.

Endicott

Good advice from weekender, you need a sympathetic landlord, they are few and far between.

25 years ago I rented a room in a shared house. The landlord had links to local housing associations and would take tenants who were DSS. Not exclusively, when I moved in only one of the other three wasn't working. I was there about a year or so, and when one guy moved out the next tenant had just come out of prison. He was a enough nice guy, he tried unsuccessfully to teach me guitar, but he was a complete alcoholic and he sometimes would scream in his sleep. It put the willies up my pals and they wouldn't visit me. He was still there when I left though.

The next new one to move in was a twat on the long term sick. Openly admitted he was playing the system. Norwich fan to boot.

bgmnts

Decent advice lads, cheers!

flotemysost

If you're moving somewhere that's managed by a lettings agency then yeah, the majority of them will require six weeks deposit, credit checks, and usually a guarantor if you're unemployed (who will also be subject to credit checks/three months' bank statements, etc.[nb]Although based on my experience no one really reads these properly, they just have a laugh at the transactions with Lovehoney and stuff like that[/nb]). When I worked for a lettings agent we would process contracts for unemployed tenants, but they always had guarantors who had to be able to prove that they could amply cover the rent.

Of course not all rental agreements involve an agent, I think if you search on SpareRoom and similar sites you can filter out anything involving third parties, but in my limited experience I'd imagine there's a margin for being screwed over there (e.g. a friend of mine who paid cash in hand to her live-in landlady - the landlady didn't allow my friend to register to vote, as that would give the council a heads up that she had a tenant living there and she'd lose her 'single person' council tax discount).

Not to say you can't also be screwed over by a letting agent, obviously.

privatefriend

Universal credit is paid to you, not your landlord (although this is possible), basically if you can get away with not telling them you're unemployed then do so (make up some lie about being freelance or something). Most agencies ask for payslips etc so it's still difficult.

Small Man Big Horse

There's two rooms going in my place, but sadly the landlord informed me she won't be taking on anyone who's on universal credit, or who is black, as I've just discovered she's a hateful racist cunt.

Twit 2

Danger Man is my landlord. No complaints.

Shoulders?-Stomach!

Depends on your locale. Further south and east, payslips and even bank statements seem to be common, along with a number of frankly impertinent and illegal requests. Further away from that shitfest, easier.

A long while back I was 'between jobs' (got laid off then had mental breakdown without realising) and lied that I'd just started working somewhere on the assumption the letting agency would be too feckless to bother checking (ie. doing the work we were paying them for on the application) Just as clockwork they didn't bother checking that because I had a guarantor. Hard to genuinely advise to lie but if it gets you in somewhere in these current conditions and you can get on universal credit then that seems preferable to sucking dog shit from  a sewer whistle.

Twit 2

Rent one of those shipping containers and fill it with cum.

Dex Sawash

Sounds like a sufficient deposit

chveik


earl_sleek

Quote from: Small Man Big Horse on May 27, 2020, 07:34:37 PM
There's two rooms going in my place, but sadly the landlord informed me she won't be taking on anyone who's on universal credit, or who is black, as I've just discovered she's a hateful racist cunt.

Damn, that's my least favourite type of racist cunt.

Quote from: Small Man Big Horse on May 27, 2020, 07:34:37 PM
There's two rooms going in my place, but sadly the landlord informed me she won't be taking on anyone who's on universal credit, or who is black, as I've just discovered she's a hateful racist cunt.

Jesus wept.  What about dogs and Irish?