Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to want to go outside and slash down the SOLD sign outside our rented home?

287 replies

rocket74 · 09/02/2013 09:03

I am so so upset. Our happily rented home for us with 2 small children has been sold and we will have to move out. We wanted to stay here indefinately. Been here 3.5 years but never realised when we moved in our rent was paying for the owners care home fees and that when she died it would be sold. Thought they meant it when they said long term rental.
So gutted. Some couple came round with their kid and dad who was obviously putting up the deposit for them. Alright for some!!
ABSOLUTELY bereft - we have tried looking for somewhere new - but we need an extra £400 month to get somewhere even vaguely similar as rents have gone crazy in this area - Brighton and Hove.

I just want to scream and slash the sign because if I don't I will end up slashing something else - which won't help issues.
Our little boy loves this house - he has autism - and the garden is big enough for him to run and do his laps - as is the living dining room.
I just want to be able to provide him with a home to suit his needs but I don't see how. I'm just crying all the time and feel totally hopeless.

Will I be done for criminal damage if I do smash down that fucking sign?

OP posts:
EchoBitch · 09/02/2013 18:47

You are renting,you have to move.

Sad

Really,but it's true...sorry.

EchoBitch · 09/02/2013 18:52

My neighbours have to move.

They are lovely and i will miss them,they have DSs of 5,8 and 10.

They need to move by April.

The landlady has a pregnant daughter and wants the house for her.

Unfortunately that's life.

SilverMoo · 09/02/2013 18:52

EchoBitch - Err, I think OP has gathered that much... Although correct me if I'm wrong... Hmm

Matildaduck · 09/02/2013 18:57

Shame on those that suggest she stays put. Op rents a house, she doesn't own it, she signed a contract stating what the rules were and she must stick to that.

If you don't like the rules buy a house or get on the social housing list.

You had 3.5 years at reduced rent i think you own them!

JakeBullet · 09/02/2013 19:02

Sigh......Matilda you haven't read the thread have you? The OP has been on the social housing list for a long time, she has not said she will stay put at all. People are simply saying that if she goes to the council and asks for advice they will tell her to stay put otherwise she will be considered intentionally homeless. Councils will not rehouse on emergency accommodation basis you have been evicted and have nowhere to go. It's not right but it's how things are.....

SilverMoo · 09/02/2013 19:02

"I'm a goader, but I'm ok,
I troll all night & goad all day"

That was an apt little rhyme that was made up on mumsnet last week, I think the goaders are starting to appear in force this evening, take no notice OP Smile

Original poster
rocket74 · 09/02/2013 19:24

I am taking no notice but this theory of reduced rent is a bit odd.
Why is it reduced - once you move into a property most decent landlords do not hike your rent by £100 pcm every year do they if you are a decent tenant. I know no one this has happened to?
I don't think £995 a month for a standard semi on the outskirts of town with is a reduced rent at all.
We have maintained the house and had a good relationship with the landlady.

I don't want to stay put - i just don't have the £3600 to hand to pay for deposits, rent in advance and agency fees. Why is that so hard to understand?

And why - when we tenants have to divulge every details of our lives to be allowed the luxury of renting, do landlords not have to divulge what the conditions of the rental terms are. We did not find out until this summer what our rent paid for and that our tenancy was unfortunately dependant upon an old lady with dementia staying alive. It made us feel unsettled and uneasy to think this was the case.

OP posts:
Matildaduck · 09/02/2013 19:29

Jake please don't sigh at me, i have read the thread. All of it! My comments still stand. She should honour the agreement that she made.

It's about being a decent grown up human being. Op is never going to get a council house, she lives in Hove. She must and will move to another rented house.

expatinscotland · 09/02/2013 19:36

My sympathies, rocket. Private renting sucks in the UK.

JakeBullet · 09/02/2013 19:58

You couldn't have paid much attention if you missed that the OP was already on the housing list and has been for some time. .....so yes I do feel like sighing when someone makes a judgement about something which has been answered several times on this thread already.

And the council WILL tell her to await eviction before they help....it's wrong but there it is. Most people have no option but to follow that advice....especially when they are coping with a disabled child which limits their options.

Cosmosim · 09/02/2013 19:59

OP, are you divulging every detail of your life? You informed your LL when you got pregnant, how long you were going on maternity and discussed how this impacted your finances with your LL?

Of course not.

The UK doesn't have a very thorough credit check system. Which is why LLs ask for bank statements to verify you're not spending more than you're earning (and can afford the asked for rent). At the start.

Mimishimi · 09/02/2013 20:15

It would be good if England did have really long-term rental lease periods like those on the continent, where five to ten year lease contracts are quite common. It's written into the contract though and even then, they usually have a break clause with 3 month notice etc that can be made by either party. How long one stayed in the last place is no indication for how long you will be able to stay in the next.

MmeLindor · 09/02/2013 20:24

You know, it is possible that the OP just wanted a wee whinge and was never intending to tear down the sign.

And yes, I have sympathy for you, Rocket. Renting in UK is dire, and those who are posting from the comfort and security of their own home might not realise that.

fuckwittery · 09/02/2013 20:31

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Matildaduck · 09/02/2013 20:37

Jake catch up love......she will not qualify for a house in Hove period. She can wait until they drag her onto the street then what do you think will happen? Will they will magic up a house?....build her a new one?

It's not a judgment it's an opinion. I gave my view on treating the landlord badly.

Really go sigh at yourself!

splashymcsplash · 09/02/2013 20:40

Op it sounds like a tough situation, but your anger is rather misplaced. Maybe better to channel your energy into finding a new home?

JakeBullet · 09/02/2013 20:42

whatever

Graceparkhill · 09/02/2013 20:42

I expect you have already considered this but just in case...
Have you considered trying to rent the adjoining semi? You said it became vacant every 3 months or so. I am sure that landlord would be delighted to have long term stable tenants.

propertyNIGHTmareBEFOREXMAS · 09/02/2013 20:44

I feel very sorry for you OP. Unfortunately though the house is not your property and as such you have no reasonable expectation to stay. The new family moving in will most likely have a mortgage which they will have to work hard to pay off. I hope that you find somewhere else to live soon.

Alittlestranger · 09/02/2013 20:51

The OP hasn't been on a reduced rent. She agreed a market rent with the landlord when she moved in and since then rents in the area have gone silly. It's common for landlords not to try and play catch-up with every localised bubble when they have a good tenant in place.

I despair at the ignorance of people who say "play by the rules of private renting or buy your own home/get a council house".

zwischenzug · 09/02/2013 20:58

Yes YABU not to happily bend to the whims of your property owning overlords from the land and property owning class of this country.

You should keep up with the developments in society, we now have two sorts of people:

  1. Those who own land and/or property.
  1. Those who have few (if any) enforceable rights and are to be milked for every penny by those in group 1.

You should be grateful that they have allowed you to exist inside their investment for 3.5 years, and I hope to god you weren't rude enough to put any nails in the walls or god forbid, paint any walls.

Remember your generous masters have been subsidising you with the lower than market rate rent you mentioned. Clearly they have been losing money hand over fist while you have been enjoying a standard of living you neither deserve nor can afford.

Your impudence is disgraceful, landlords should not have to worry with the trivialities of the lives of those who pay the profit on their investment (remember it is their investment, not your home).

That is all.

dikkertjedap · 09/02/2013 21:16

Well, I must say, tenants (both private and state sector) at least have many more rights in the Netherlands (and schools are generally quite good as well) - maybe think of moving there????

(customer service is absolutely dreadful in the Netherlands so it is not all perfect Grin)

Mosman · 10/02/2013 03:04

You should keep up with the developments in society, we now have two sorts of people:

Oh no wait, you've missed one, the group that move into somebody else's property that they have worked for 20 years to part own, are charged by the bank an extra % for the privilege of not loosing everything they spent 25 years working and saving for, delayed having children until they could afford this investment and then this group of people pay their rent as and when they can be arsed to drag themselves to the bank as direct debit forms are too much trouble.
I'd hate for them to be left out whilst we're making sweeping generalizations.

SunflowersSmile · 10/02/2013 08:50

Lordy me this thread gone odd.
Interesting thought of someone up thread saying check out next doors rental.
I imagine you have already done so Rocket.
Hope you find somewhere quickly. If you have good relationship with LL may as well ask them if they know of other reasonably priced properties for a good tenant.
Good luck again!!

springlamb · 10/02/2013 09:37

But on the more practical side, ie putting a roof over your head...
I'm presuming here that you have an income sufficient to pay a Brighton rent, so have some mortgage-ability.
Have you looked at the homebuy website, search for 3 bedrooms under the Brighton & Hove local authority. There is a 50% share of house available in BN2 for £124,995. Look at that garden! Even taking into account the rent on the other 50% you may be better off anyway.
Is something like this a possibility? You will have some deposit back from your current landlord to take into account.

Swipe left for the next trending thread