To accept tenants with DLA?

[thatverynightinmaxsroom]

I'm a LL of an inherited property, not a professional landlord, and I'm really very ignorant about this.

I've been asked if I'd accept a tenant whose rent would be paid directly by DLA.

Is there any reason I wouldn't or shouldn't accept?!

Hi,

Zebra, what you say is interesting. Many individuals who are in receipt of PIP (DLA is for individuals under 16) or ESA will have some form of therapeutic, part time paid employment. In addition, they will almost certainly have a network of support around them which will ensure that the individuals look after themselves, look after their accommodation and pay the rent and all the bills.

Therefore, to some extent, individuals who have disabilities and/or are in receipt of disability related benefits, may be very desirable tenants.

I know some landlords complain they can't get rent protection insurance if a tenant is on benefits, but IME I've never been able to get rent protection insurance for any prospective tenant as it's not offered unless tenant earns 3x the rent or in the case of sharers 2x rent for entire place. Which in London means no-one earning under 35k is insurable.

So given that, it's all about risk of default. People living solely on disability benefits are more likely to have stable incomings given the amounts of cock ups with HB (9/10 of recipients work) and then have to deal with tax credits which appear to be a Kafkaesque nightmare.

Tenants are supposed to be able to claim HB without having to tell the landlord so as to avoid discrimination against them, but it doesn't work as landlords have to ask when they move in, and then the benefits office write to ask the landlord how many rooms are in the flat! Luckily for my two tenants who had that happen I already knew they were planning claims.

I'm on PIP and am a landlord precisely because we have no idea how long I'll be able to manage other work and have had to quit jobs previously.

You are a GF.

I hope you get banned. It isn't normal in any way to tell someone on an internet board to fuck off and die.

May be different in other cities but here social and council housing rates have risen to about the same as private rents -everyone's got a mortgage to pay.

May be different in other cities but here social and council housing rates have risen to about the same as private rents -everyone's got a mortgage to pay.

Definitely not the case here. My flat would cost three times as much were it a private let. What private landlords charge - on top of the discrimination - is absolutely disgusting. I guess sleeping at night while they're raking it in off the back of other people is just too easy for some people.

I have reported the bleating.

London has problems. Not news.

Anyone got any ketchup? Because I think dolcezza99 has a massive chip on their shoulder.

@dolcezza99 "when you rent out at the same rent as social housing come back to me..." (or words to that effect)

Don't know if you actually bothered reading my posts, but for 7 years I didn't put the rent up once, and for 12-18 months I was renting out for significantly below market rent to my tenants. I was probably renting out the entire time for less than I could have got if I'd taken on a tenant on HB, frankly. So in my case, your suggestion that I was profiteering from others misery is totally inaccurate.

Once again, despite your venom, I am sympathetic to your situation and think it's wrong that there's insufficient social housing available to help people like you. I hope you do get something appropriate sorted, despite the fact that you've called me a vile, disgraceful, scum, money grabbing arse hole and wished bankruptcy on me.

London has problems. Not news.

I agree. House prices and rents in London and SE have been an issue for years.

Ps @PigletwasPoohsFriend I'm sorry to hear about your illness. I can't think of anything more constructive to add than that, but wanted to at least acknowledge it and let you know you have my sympathy.

Dolcezza, you don't understand how the world works. People will want to make a profit from renting their properties out to tenants. That is totally understandable and totally fine. Landlords are normal people who want to have more disposable income, just like everybody else! If the rent on a property is too high, then you don't move in - problem solved.

Thank you @TheVoiceOfTreason

I understand perfectly how the world works, thank you Nancy. As I've said before, when you have been on the receiving end of victimisation and discrimination by money grabbing scum landlords, when you have been in the situation that no letting agent in town will touch you because you're on housing benefit because the landlords are too selfish and greedy, then come back to me and have this discussion. Because until you have, your arguments mean nothing, because you don't know a thing about how this works.

I think you are a bit too emotional and need to take a bit of time to understand that landlords aren't charities and life isn't a Disney film. Most want to make a profit, and receive the rent reliably each month from their tenants. Benefits don't always come through reliably, and landlords don't want to take that risk when they don't have to. That doesn't make them evil.

Yes, I understand that. I fundamentally disagree with it. I think what they're doing - making a profit out of other people's misery and discriminating against disabled people - is wrong on a moral level. Not sure which bit of that you're having so much difficulty with.

They aren't discriminating against disabled people, they are discriminating against people that are more likely to have trouble paying the rent. Unfortunately disabled people fall into that bracket because of how the benefit system works. It's a sad reality.

Come back and talk to me about this when you are a landlord who has had tenants default on the rent due to benefit sanctions and delays.

Oh, a dent in their massive profit - what a pity.

You come back and talk to me when you've faced homelessness through discrimination and no fault of your own, because a landlord decided to sell up (making 200,000 profit in the process, thank you) and because landlords are too precious to realise that disabled people, with, I hasten to add, a perfect rent record, need somewhere to live too. You come back to me when you've experienced that horror. Your example of maybe losing a month or two's rent isn't a patch on that, and never will be.

I'm not a landlord because I don't agree with exploiting people's basic need for a roof over their head because I can't afford it, but if I were there is no way I would accept someone on benefits as a tenant.

Rightly or wrongly, the perception is that people on benefits are less likely to be "good" tenants, as in they will not trash the place, not piss off the neighbours, and pay their rent on time, every time.

I accept that in many cases this is unfair, and there are lots of honest people who need benefits to survive, including those with disabilities. But it's a percentage game: why accept a 10% risk of someone causing you problems, when you can find someone with a 5% risk elsewhere?

And I suppose all you "benevolent" landlords, acting like you're doing people a favour by being so "nice", are renting out your properties at the same rents charged by social housing? No? Of course you're not. You're using people to pay off your mortgages and make a profit and you don't have a leg to stand on, sorry. Come back to me when you're genuinely helping people. Landlords are vile, all of them, making profit from the misfortune of others. End of.

And those of us on the thread who have said that we do rent out at social rent level?

You seem to be conveniently ignoring those posts to fit your own goody agenda.

No one is laying my mortgage - like the other poster the property was inherited. Lucky old me for having grandparents bring me up so I could get an inheritance sooner eh...

*goady

And those of us on the thread who have said that we do rent out at social rent level?

Not one person has said that. A couple have said their mum rented out the family home at less than market rent or such like, but didn't clarify what that was. Could be a tenner a month for all we know.

The differences between social housing levels of rent and private rents in this part of the world are about 3x. Show me one private landlord who's renting out at a third of the price s/he could be making, rather than exploiting people for all they're worth, and I'll eat my hat.

I accept that in many cases this is unfair, and there are lots of honest people who need benefits to survive, including those with disabilities. But it's a percentage game: why accept a 10% risk of someone causing you problems, when you can find someone with a 5% risk elsewhere?

It's also completely inaccurate...

Someone with a job has means to move elsewhere. Someone disabled and reliant on benefits has far, far less choice. Therefore in my experience, and in the experience of many on landlord forum, they are more likely to keep the place in a better condition because they want to stay.

Working people are also more likely to have fluctuations on circumstance and the most nightmarish time to have a tenant on benefits is when they are claiming for the first time because it takes an age to sort out.

Long term benefit claimants who are disabled whose circumstance are sadly not going to improve are actually good tenants to have because their circumstances are stable.