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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

6 months rent in advance?

84 replies

spookshowangellovesit · 28/09/2011 14:44

beautiful new house, we saw it and loved it and made and offer which was accepted. we then went through the application process. i passed, my dp didnt on the basis he is on a temporary contract Sad but then we are told the land lord get the last word and can sign a waiver. the landlord agrees to this if we agree to two months deposit.
its a stretch but we agree because we love the house and want to offer some security and build a good relationship with the land lord who was burned by the last tenants.
all is agreed, then the land lord has a wobble and decided that its not ok and now want 6 months rent in advance.......that would be about 12 grand give or take aibu to think this is ur. if i had that kind of money to hand i would be buying not renting and whilst i understand that they have had bad tenants previously and are offering us a chance rather than just saying "no we have changed our minds" this is a really odd demand?

OP posts:
HerHissyness · 29/09/2011 15:35

Firawla, get advice wrt the deposit not being protected. go speak to the CAB asap.

AFAIK, you could be eligible to take the LL to court, but as long as they protect your deposit prior to the court case, you won't get the 3x compensation.

It needs to be protected tho, so if that means giving LL a shove, go for it.

I work as an inventory clerk, LL are good and bad. Many bad, but there ARE some good ones. I (now) have a fabulous one, thank god.

Original poster
spookshowangellovesit · 29/09/2011 15:37

well they backed down over the 6 months. but now want us to move in on the original date that was agreed on which was the first ...that is in fact two days away. i have explained that that would not be possible given the back and forth and the unsureness of the situation.
the quickest we could pull together everything needed would be Wednesday.
they said that is not good enough and it would have to be monday or no deal... really they are going to quibble over two days.
they apparently need tenants in asap, so i said its wednesday or go and re advertise, because we cant get everything before then.
i am really feeling messed around i have tried to be understanding etc but they are just taking the piss now.

OP posts:
AKMD · 29/09/2011 15:41

I would walk away. The LL sounds like a nutter and you really don't want to be trying to live with someone like that owning your home for the next few months.

EricNorthmansMistress · 29/09/2011 15:43
Shock fucking idiots. Are they for real? Hey if it does go ahead next week tell A to check his insurance because if he's insured to drive other vehicles he can borrow my van rather than hire one Wink
Original poster
spookshowangellovesit · 29/09/2011 15:49

so close to walking, we love the place we really do but i dont want a crazy landlord breathing down my neck for 6 months and then throwing us out over nothing after all this effort with a one month old baby. they are talking to her about it now. they didnt tell her it was down to money apparently they told her it was removal issues because if they told her it was money issues she would have rabbited. i understand that they have had some fucking awful tenants but that is not the norm and they need to get a grip.

OP posts:
plupervert · 29/09/2011 15:59

These are all big red flags. Please walk away. These LLs and agents will not stop messing you about, if this is what they risk doing to someone who can walk away!

Firawla · 29/09/2011 17:11

oh god op just walk away seriously the landlord sounds awful all this uncertainty then expecting you to move in 2 days at the latest?? fgs!

thanks hissy i think you're right had better go speak to cab & see what they advise.

bamboobutton · 29/09/2011 17:18

wouldn't re-advertising the house, viewings, someone deciding they want the place, negotiations, credit&referencing checking etc etc etc take more than 2 days anyway?

agree, walk away, these will be nightmare landlords who will be just as difficult when you move out.

HerHissyness · 29/09/2011 17:29

Yep, red flags here.

Usually even the shittiest LL are being nice before you sign on the dotted line/hand over the money.

Tell em to shove it. this will only get worse I'm afraid!

anewmotivatedme · 29/09/2011 17:52

littlegreenapples - I registered every deposit with the tenants deposit scheme, and provided the tenant with paperwork and inventory. Do not make assumptions. I just wasn't going to waste my time with someone I thought was very dodgy.

The tenants who picked landlord up over everything (kitchen unit drawer sticking etc.), tended to get rent reviews more often (annual) and higher. The landlord did not mind if they moved on to another property. The easier going tenants, who always paid their rent on time, were much better looked after by the landlord, as he/she didn't want them to move on.

psammyad · 29/09/2011 17:54

This rings alarm bells with me - but I have had my fingers burned through renting a property (through an ARLA registered letting agent) that turned out to be an illegally sublet council property.

Luckily Angry I'd 'only' paid a month's deposit (which they kept instead of putting in the proper scheme) and month's rent upfront so I was able to get out without losing too much.

But if someone was asking me for 6 months upfront I'd want a LOT of proof that the property was really theirs (you can do a Land Registry check for a few £), work references or financial statements to show that they could afford the mortgage payments & weren't going to be repossessed 2 months down the line.

It could all be fine an above board, and it's not unheard of to ask for 6 month's rent upfront. I have been asked for 3 months deposit in the past. But if the landlord turns out to be to be dodgy or in a precarious financial situation, then it's a lot of money to lose.

If the landlord does a runner and you get an eviction notice in 2 months time, could you afford to rent anywhere else?

psammyad · 29/09/2011 18:06

Hadn't read your most recent posts - now I have they sound like a nightmare.

It's awful when the property is right, and you know that you are a good tenant, but one way or another this sounds like it could only get worse. Walk away for your own sanity.

(I did that with the place that asked for 3 months deposit - moved into a flat down the road, not quite as perfect but lovely landlord. The other flat was still advertising for tenants a few months later...)

Flamingredhead · 29/09/2011 18:07

Consider walking away wish I had done when Ll here kept moving the goal posts but I loved it .Little did I know the stress and sort of Ll he was .

HOuse always has problems 3 weeks no heating hotwater twice in 18!months

littlegreenapples · 30/09/2011 08:01

Spooks: Follow your head and not your heart on this one as it has all the signs of a problem LL down the road.

Firawlw: The TDS was a badly drafted piece of legislation with different county court judges giving different verdicts up and down the country. On appeal, it was decided that LL could register the deposit up to one day before any court case and be covered. It is a lot more complicated than that but you get the idea. LL in the round think there are thirteen months in the year and not twelve and thus believe it is their money and they can invent 98.5% end of tenancy cleaning charges to justify keeping it. The law is being re-drafted, as we speak, and will not be in favour of the LL. I wonder why?

Anewmot: You are in the minority if you registered every deposit. But then again that might have only been two. Letting agents along with their cousins the estate agents are Muppets in the round who believe they have a god given right to ride rough shot over people?s lives and the reality is the majority know jack shit about the law as I frequently point out to them on behalf of friends who have had difficulties whilst being private tenants. Your second paragraph sort of sums them up.

Show me one good LL and I will show you a thousand bad ones. Show me a thousand bad Letting/Estate agents and we will all be here searching for a good one well into pensionable age. And yes Rhino it is a sweeping statement but never-the-less true. :o

Firawla · 30/09/2011 08:48

does that mean we can wait til its properly redrafted & sue then to get it back more easily? same like accident & injury you can do it with 3 years... although tbh i need the money back now Confused but im pretty sure she is not going to give it willingly as she is a total cow

sausagesandmarmelade · 30/09/2011 08:54

It's the landlord's property and he has every right to up the deposit unless you signed a contract.

He owns that lovely home and wants to make sure he's covered if things go wrong (perfectly understandable).

dinkystinky · 30/09/2011 08:58

Walk away OP - with a new baby on the way you just dont need the stress that living in that place with that LL would cause you. Valhalla's suggestions of alternative places to look for lettings are woth a try.

littlegreenapples · 30/09/2011 08:59

Firawla: Have you left the property? What is the ?reason? she is giving for not returning the deposit?

trixymalixy · 30/09/2011 09:11

I would walk away too, major alarm bells ringing here.

I would tell them you are pulling out because their crazy requests lead you to believe the LL has financial difficulties and the risk of repossession is too high. Grin

Original poster
spookshowangellovesit · 30/09/2011 09:29

hmmmmmmmmmmmm dont know what to do really. understand why she is acting crazy but i know i dont need it. so will see what comes back today and that will be what decides it.

OP posts:
HappyMummyOfOne · 30/09/2011 09:32

I think they are trying to put you off without actually turning you down.

A tennant that only has 3 months left in employment with a large number of children would be of cause for concern to the landlord as they will wonder how you plan to pay the rent after xmas.

Original poster
spookshowangellovesit · 30/09/2011 09:36

well happy thats just silly either they want us as tenants or they dont. if they dont they should stop fanny assing around and say so. its not particularly professional other wise.

OP posts:
PrincessScrumpy · 30/09/2011 09:49

It's how they do things in Dubai but not heard of it in the UK. I think they'll struggle to get someone to agree to it. I presume their situation is such that they need the rent income to cover bills therefore they want to relax for 6 months but they're being unrealistic.

Having said that, your dh is on a temp contract which would make getting a mortgage tricky etc and they want to make sure that you have the money with or without a job as it is very tricky to get squatters out and you could move in and after 3 months not pay but not move either. Sadly, people do do this.

dreamingbohemian · 30/09/2011 09:50

I know how hard this is -- last year we found the perfect flat to let but ended up backing away because the landlord was so flaky. We were so tempted to go ahead because it was such a great place but having had horrible landlords before, we just couldn't risk putting ourselves in that situation (I was PG too).

I can't imagine she will suddenly calm down and be reasonable once the contract is signed!

We ended up finding a privately let flat on Gumtree (yes you really have to search for them, but there are some there!) Even though I wasn't working (PG) and DH was low-income, the landlord was happy to let to us without a credit check, he just wanted references from previous landlords.

Doesn't that make more sense? Someone can pass a credit check and still be a nightmare tenant, why don't LL just go by previous references?

anyway if it doesn't work out, see if you can find a private landlord, they are likely to be more reasonable even if harder to find (IME) good luck!

plupervert · 30/09/2011 12:44

Nice one, TrixyMalixy - the OP sounds in need of such a confidence booster! Smile

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