Transfering from assured tenancy to fixed term?

[Flowerywoman]

I really need some.help, I am downsizing.from a 2 bed to a 1 bed because I am now a single.female.living alone who does not need a two bed.property I pay rent and I. Am quite happy here but moving for a change and to give a family a 2 bed, I do however want.to choose the right tenancy with the next housing association +I tried.homeswapper, useless) my rent is £580 per month, the.propety I like and have a viewing for is.a lot more but in a much nicer area.ams a new build however it's a fixed term m five year tenancy, should I not do this and apply for homes that advertise assures tenancies like the one I have had for 10 years ? (There are many offering those tenancies) ti have severe anxiety and do not want to make.the wrong decision
Thank you

Sorry.for my.mistakes my phone is faulty

[HennyPennyHorror]

I would think that a fixed term tenancy is more secure...the landlord can't suddenly give you a month's notice. If the property has problems and you want to get out of the tenancy, it would not be hard if the problems were down to the landlord's negligence.

I would snap up the fixed term.

[Flowerywoman]

Thank you very much for your response, I thought that, with the fixed term, the landlord can throw me out whenever they want for no error of my own (section 21) and not renew my five year tenancy, or jack up the rent prices significantly every months which I wouldn't be able to afford, I can't work a full time job, only part time due to my mental health problems.
My current housing association have been great, repairs have been completed with no problems and I have the right to exchange if I wanted to, right to acquire and live here uninterrupted for as long I need to.
Sorry if I'm completely wrong, I've been nervously surfing the internet, I've been anxious because the viewing is Wednesday and I am worrying. Thank you so much for your quick response I really appreciate your message.

[Flowerywoman]

I also thought that with an assured tenancy, they can't give you a month's notice, they can only try to evict you with a court order due to something like rent arrears? Thanks again.

[JoObrien7]

@Flowerywoman

Why don't you buy a property? The most rent my tenants pay are £550 a month and that is half the mortgage on the property. There are a lot of incentives to buy a new property and there is also help to buy. I have never rented but my mothers grandparents did but my Dad's parents owned their property so that made my parents want to buy theirs.

[Flowerywoman]

I live in London it's very expensive and I am not mentally ready to buy a property yet

[JoObrien7]

@Flowerywoman

I didn't read the bit about you have mental health problems. I assume you claim benefits? I would never give my tenants a 5 year fixed tenancy just incase they don't pay their rent which has just happened in one of my properties and will have to evict her. I have given this lady plenty of chances to pay her arrears but she has not so I will now have to sue her for the arrears and evict her. Having said that I have some tenants who have been in some of my properties for over 10 years and they are on 6 months tenancy which I let roll over if they pay their rent on time and look after the property.

[kristallen]

JoObrian7 is there a difference in when rental increases can happen between say a 6 month and 5 year contract?

[Flowerywoman]

I work and don't claim benefits, I can only work part time however, or when I can (sometimes more than part time)
I have always paid my rent
I just don't know wether it's secure long term go move from an assured tenancy to a fixed term, the property I'm moving to will be my home for quite some years until I can buy a property. I am currently 29 years old.
Sorry to hear about your nightmare tenant! That sounds terrible, also, thank you for your replies

[Flowerywoman]

I don't know

[JoObrien7]

@kristallen

I have only increased the rent on some of my properties by £150 in the last five years. I don't run this as a business as such, I got these properties so that when they increase in value which they have I can sell them and make a profit. I might sell 2 houses next year but I want to see what happens with Brexit first.

[JoObrien7]

@Flowerywoman

Unfortunately this can happen when you are a landlord. When I first got these properties I did them all up new central heating boilers, new windows and doors, kitchens, bathrooms etc. Over the years some tenants have ripped the doors of the hinges, let their dogs foul the carpets and even grown weed in the loft so I have had to evict them. Because of this I now do only the essential repairs and tenants have to carpet and decorate their own properties. I am not a bad landlord but some of my tenants have been bad and they certainly know how to play the system.

[BigChocFrenzy]

OP:
In your position, you need security above all else

So I strongly recommend you only move to another assured tenancy at another housing association,
because this gives lifelong tenancy, so long as you pay the rent etc^

Fixed term means you may be forced to leave after 5 years, even if you've been a good tenant
So you could find yourself then desperately hunting for a new place

btw, consider whether you really need to move, if you are happy where you are,
especially if the rent would be more.
You have to think of yourself first, as you are vulnerable, not some unknown family wanting a 2-bed

[BigChocFrenzy]

And definitely avoid private LLs

• some are fine and do all repairs promptly (I was an LL and I always did)
  but as you know, even from some of these posts, some LLs will not
  and you don't sound able to cope with the stress & expense of handling repairs yourself

[Flowerywoman]

Thank you very much, I will do just that. You've made all the difference
I will call tomorrow to cancel the viewing and only bid for assured tenancies
Thank you very much

[Manderley7205]

I agree with the above poster.

See this GOV.UK link with regard to the difference.

www.gov.uk/housing-association-homes/types-of-tenancy

The tenancy you have now - assured - is not something to let go of. I doubt there are many landlords offering assured tenancies now.

Good luck.

[Flowerywoman]

The association I was going to go with seems to just want people's money without doing any affordability assessments

[JoObrien7]

@Flowerywoman

Yes good luck to you.

[Flowerywoman]

Thank you very much, surprisingly quite a a few appear every week on the bidding cycle, I will only apply for those from now on. I will check out the link now thank you

[tattychicken]

Flowery you need to check with your landlord. An Assured Tenancy is more secure than a fixed term. If you're swapping ie mutual exchange, you can poss keep your assured tenancy, but it's quite complicated and depends on when you started your existing tenancy amongst other things. So don't automatically assume you're taking on the fixed term.
I would do the viewing, and if you like it, apply for the property, but make it clear you need the tenancy issue clarified before you can decide whether to proceed.

[Flowerywoman]

Not an exchange it's a new housing association with fixed term, I will call the council tomorrow, explain and cancel the bid and appointment

[Flowerywoman]

Can someone help me with what to say to the housing officer? She basically lied to me yesterday saying there is no difference with the tenancy and it's just as secure and misleading me, because I called her with my concerns as soon as I got the nomination letter. I wil have to call her in the morning and explain why I'm withdrawing the bid I'm not sure how to word it because she's very pushy.

[Phimma]

London rent £580? That doesn't seem right it's so cheap.

[Firefliess]

Most housing associations will not kick you out at the end of a five year fixed term tenancy. They will normally just renew it for another 5 years. The only exceptions are usually when they think you can afford to buy a house or if you're underoccupying (which obviously isn't relevant in a one bed)

But you're right that technically they could do so. Some are kinder to people who want to downsize like you though. They may be prepared to offer the same tenancy that you already have, so it's worth asking. Your current landlord and/, or the council may also give you help in downsizing, possibly even money to help with the move. So I'd contact them and see.

[Flowerywoman]

£585 per month 2 bedroom flat in E14 area, assured tenancy, been here 11 years.
I am prepared to move to a more expensive one bedroom property I'm order to give my home to a family that needs it and I don't mind the change, I just can't handle insecurity it' would weigh on my mind a lot. I hope they can offer the same tenancy, I highly doubt it.

[Flowerywoman]

I don't think it's up to the council, I think the association decides whether it's a fixed term or not and the housing officer explained that most new builds now only offer fixed term tenancies. I wi have to explain why I have to withdraw and only bid for the lifetime tenancies from now on, they come up every week. You've all been so helpful I've felt quite alone with this process and vulnerable and the housing officer was very pushy and not very understanding, she was misleading by saying it's basically the same and most people prefer fixed term over assured not considering my circumstances