So we're being evicted AGAIN!

[OnandOnItGoes]

3rd rented property in 7 years. Been here for 4 years. Had to leave the last two properties as landlord selling, now we're in the same situation again.

Rent always paid on time and properties always very well looked after so it's not that we're bad tenants, just the never ending game we're stuck in.

We left within the notice period of last 2 properties but can't with this one as rents are £500+ for similar properties and much smaller worse properties with no parking/horrible areas are £200-300 a month more and we simply can't afford it or find one which we are successful for as they seem to only want 'professionals' in high paying jobs.

Council have been no help and have said as both DH and I work, we need to find another rented property. I can only work part time in a low paying admin job due to caring responsibilities as need to be on hand for disabled DC for school drop/pick up and after school as no after school care (teens). We have no family support.

Also worried about being put in temp accommodation as around here it seems to be adapted office blocks with lots of anti social issues. Also as we work I understand we'll have to pay a lot for it!

Section 21 expires on 15th May and I'm aware Landlord will start court process for possession as he's very keen to get us out and get it sold. I assume he'll use the accelerated procedure as he's a professional landlord with lots of properties and is selling most of them I believe.

Does anyone know how long we may have before bailiffs? We're in the South East. I've already looked into storage facilities so we can empty the house but we have no family to stay with so not sure where we'll go from there.

Of course we will continue looking for a property and continue paying rent but any advice on timeline will be helpful if anyone has been through the process recently?

The stress is unbearable and much worse this time due to the current rental market!

https://www.fwi.co.uk/business/markets-and-trends/land-markets/find-out-average-farmland-prices-where-you-live

Check out agricultural prices per acre where you live

People have implied that I am blaming landlords etc. Well, no, they are probably not evil but maybe some are ignorant and I'll prepared? Surely being a landlord is a long term decision. It's not so much that you make a monthly profit in the way you would running a business, but rather that you are building a portfolio of long term assets.

Other countries have professional landlords, often corporations, that can weather fluctuations without needing to evict tenants because suddenly they are no longer making the same monthly 'profit' or can't afford to service the mortgage anymore, or think they can relet the property for a bit more money next month. In my experience, that's a better system that the insecure, amateur landlord system running in the UK

Yes. I was simply explaining why as an add on to your post.
Not a critic of it.
However councils cannot compulsory purchase land at agricultural rates unless it is to be used for agriculture.
If it is to be developed on, the developer/ council has to pay a portion of the profit as that amount is deemed its actual value.
They also cannot compulsory purchase if there are brownfield sites available.

Im sure you know all this already, once again, this is just an add on not a criticism

I agree those are the rules today. But if you go back to the 80s in Wales this is precisely what the WDA Welsh government agency did. Looking at today's prices even at 16k an acre that's a considerable reduction from the 350k a plot not an acre that's been sold now in my area. It's nuts when agricultural land is 10k an acre here and we're talking scrubland not arable. It's a thin scattering of soil on limestone Herdwick sheep can survive on but little else.

The new game estate agents play by me is to put a listing up on Rightmove, then once they have enough interest, they take it down. It might be up for 2-3 hours only.

Why? Because they are listing it at a low price because they need to get someone in, but they/and their EA chums don’t want the market to burst.

It might not be the same everywhere but the bubble is bursting in central Manchester for sure. Despite EAs best efforts to hide it.

I don’t understand how that helps.
Really not being difficult I just don’t get it.

My hope for you that this spreads and soon you’ll grab a “bargain” before it’s taken down. I know time isn’t on your side.

Also, if everyone saw this happening they wouldn’t settle for stupid excuses from LL/EAs about hikes. Loads of idiots in my building agreed to 15-20% hikes (£200-400) at the end of their fixed term contracts thinking they had no option. Less than 3 months later the market is flooded with properties probably cheaper than their original rent was! People need to stop just accepting this false narrative - the market here is falling. Sure it was hot last summer but no more.

I know you probably refresh Rightmove every 15 minutes, so this isn’t helpful, I’m sorry.

Did you not know that the new law means land Lords must give you 12 months notice to find a new home? Contact Citizens advice bureau.

I live in the North (South Yorkshire) and the situation is very similar here there just aren't the properties available. Rents may be less but so are wages it is a complete nightmare privately renting.

I feel gif you, we are in a similar position 8 weeks to completely uproot a family and find somewhere else to live just doesn’t seem enough.
Id suggest taking one of the lowest rent properties for a stop gap while you look for something more suitable. You’ll get peace from the landlord breathing down your neck and be able to choose somewhere a based on your old preferences not desperation.
We have overstayed or notice period fir the same reasons as you, we have had the letter saying we will be taken to court etc but will be long gone by the time any of that comes about.
Try not to stress too much and good luck xxxx

@ThankmelaterOkay
do you mean the rental market is about to burst? can you say a bit more if you've time🙏

Which new law is this then?

Is this true?

First - most landlordes in the UK have one let property. It tends to be situations like a young professional couple in London fall in love. They both own a flat, move into one flat and let the other out until they decide to sell both and buy a bigger house once children come a bit further out of London. Or an older person inherits £200k and with interest rates at 1% decided to buy one property to let out

Has your landlord done the ECIR certificate? My understanding not having one would make the section 21 invalid. X

Could you consider shared ownership? Smaller rent, better stability and no chances of being evicted as its housing association. You would get the rent element paid for if you was claiming UC and be able to decorate as you wish.

This law doesn’t exist.
Notice period for s21 is at least 2months.

So sorry to hear of your problem with renting. As a good Landlord ( all my tenants have been long term, one over twenty years) I can only tell you that LL are selling up because the politicians are making it so difficult to make any profit. If the new proposals of rental properties needing to be C rated comes into force there will be a mass exodus & where will all the tenants go? There is a desperate need for council housing but NONE of the politicians favour building any. Private landlords have filled the gap since Thatcher allowed the right to buy for council properties & then they were not replaced.
Good luck in finding a suitable home for your family.

Completely agree. Landlords should pull themselves up by their bootstraps, get a better job or move miles across the country if they can’t afford to live without less privileged roper funding their mortgage/lifestyle. Buy-to-letters especially should be ashamed of themselves. The housing market wouldn’t be so ridiculous if the leeches didn’t pounce in and buy up all the houses, or charge so much that tenants haven’t got a hope in hell of saving a deposit despite working their asses off. And if there are landlords that own the property itself as an investment and own it outright then the rent should be affordable. All this ‘market rates’ BS is exactly that- BS. It’s time they stopped manipulating the housing market.
“Oh but we provide housing out of the goodness of our hearts”- nope- unless you have built the bloody house then nope.
It should be cheaper to rent than to buy- then we really would see if it’s a choice to rent.

From one renter to another

I’m sorry. It’s shit. I’m sorry

i get everything your saying about the increases, the journey time to get a cheaper home being mental (and unsustainable as that too will go up).
it is shit and utterly unfair.

This is my worst nightmare as a renter. I regularly have sleepless nights about it. The last time we were evicted ended up costing us all our savings we'd have to borrow from family just to get a deposit together.

Yes people need rentals but through social housing not private landlords who can decide to sell up any time.

I think it depends where you live and mortgage rates at the time. Our first house (12years ago) was more expensive than renting an equivalent property due to the highish interest rates. We're in the process of remortgaging currently and our mortgage will be more expensive than the local rent. There's only been a 3year period during my time as a homeowner where my mortgage has been cheaper than rent, and that was about £150 cheaper.

It's shocking but that's what the government has done. Not built enough properties to keep up with demand and then tried to make landlords the bad guy, which is why most BTL landlords are selling up. Contrary to simplistic assumptions, this doesn't make more houses "available", because deposits are out of reach of nearly all tenants trying to pay extortionate rents. The rents are extortionate because usually the terms of a BTL mortgage oblige the landlord to be charging a set amount in rent based on market rates. It's all driven by a lack of houses being built, not by landlords.

I am a landlord, and unfortunately have made the decision to sell a flat I own, effectively making the tenant homeless. He can’t afford market rent. I am a good landlord haven’t passed on rising costs kept the place in good order. The reason for for selling? Owning the flat has become a financial burden with taxes rising and rising. The council have advised the tenant to stay put until he is evicted, until he has CCJs against him for court fees unpaid, meaning even if he finds a private rental he can afford or market rents go down no landlord will ever have him due to finance checks. The system is very very broken when the government thinks everyone aspires to own, many just simply can’t ever own. And sad to say it will only get worse if Labour get in.