To think it's disgusting the amount of landlords who won't accept DSS?

[7hup]

My friend is 36 and just been kicked out by her boyfriend because she had a mental breakdown and multiple suicide attempts .

She's just been released from hospital and has been given a B&B room as temporary accommodation.

She has to claim universal credit as she is in no fit state to work.

Council said if she can find private housing they will cover her first month's rent/deposit/fees.

No where takes housing benefit.

It's unfair.

There's no council accommodation and no private landlords will accept it.

She's 36. No children. No pets. Doesn't drink. Doesn't smoke. Is quiet and polite. Keeps to herself. Clean and tidy. She just needs a home :(

Its working people too. My Dsis has a kid and can't move out of my mums because she works only 16 hours because of her son so would receive housing benefit. So she can't move either.

Even on Spareroom. Co. UK in our area there are 674 rooms.

ONE takes DSS. And is dou le the price of similar rooms

It's so unfair :(

We took on tenants on housing benefits. My husband said it was snooty not to. They were a complete nightmare unfortunately. Never again.

I've been renting for 11 years. 8 of them as a single parent on housing benefit.

Thankfully I had 3 years of good references, excellent credit and a job when my relationship ended and I needed to begin renting. I had to go on HB later and both the council and shelter advised me at the time not to disclose this, and that I could not legally be evicted for being on HB. I'm not sure what the advice is now.

I've moved 3 times since, all fine. I work full time I a good job, but not good enough to save for a deposit. I work full time and pay 80% of my rent myself now. HB is just a top up. DS is now registered disabled so we are covered by LL's insurance. LL is also a former teacher of DS, so knows us well. We are quiet, neat, clean and make good on the property when required. I get the carpets cleaned annually and give the walls a new coat of paint every couple of years. LL is very happy with us. Out home came with hooks on the walls so I have pictures up!

I actually dread having to move anywhere in case we are not seen as a good prospect simply because of my HB. I've never missed a rent payment once in 8 years (I did before as ex was financially abusive but LA didn't put it in my reference to help me get away from exP).

There is a dearth of affordable housing in my area. Recent developments of apartmentswere all snapped up by overseas investors in the pre sale, meaning no one local could buy. New 3 bed homes round here start at the bargain price of half a million. I can't leave the area as I'm disabled too and my entire support network is here. If I moved away I'd have to go north, then I wouldn't be able to work as I'd not have the support I need for DD and myself that enables me to work.

If there was rent control, I wouldn't need HB at all.

One of many reasons why restoring council housing would be a good idea.

benefits won't suddenly be stopped but anybody could lose their job tomorrow.

Not my experience of benefits at all. I was a landlord for a bit (accidentally) and rented twice to people on housing benefit. Both of them had repeated problems with the DWP stopping their housing benefit for no particular reason, and then taking forever to reinstate. Not their fault - DWP being awful - but definitely frustrating for everyone and more difficult for me than my employed tenants. I did still rent to people on benefits but I think the easier option is to not.

@lampygirl

And getting another rental, at short notice is all well and good if your circumstances are the same as they were when you moved in and you have a decent LL who you don't have to fight for your deposit back.
If your LL decides to withhold the deposit (have had this happen and then got it back because they were being unreasonable) you can't use it for your next rental.
Also as in the tenant @Casschops had, circumstances changed, job lost, now reliant on benefits and excluded from most rental property because of that. Council refuse to home you because you're housed until the day the bailiffs arrive........ Not a lot of choices left.
I live in an area that used to have thriving industry, the latest blow was 250 jobs gone last year from a local employer that used to be the pride and joy of the area. That's all it takes.

DSis took on dss and ended up severely out of pocket and having lots of repairs. She won't take the risk again and I don't blame her. She was trusting and supportive and was left out of pocket.

Unfortunately our experience was the council advised our tenants to not move out when we needed our property back as they didn’t have anywhere to move them to. We had to spend thousands to get our house back - how is that fair?

Also the tenants left lots of damage and didn’t have a penny to cover anything toward the costs. The deposit didn’t cover anywhere near enough and our insurance wouldn’t pay out either.

Unfortunately this puts people of DSS.

Could we stop referring to "DSS" when we mean people in receipt of benefits please

It's really fucking dehumanising

@Bigger I’ve never had my old deposit back before I’ve had to pay the new one. Ever. I’ve still not gone and expected the council to sort me out.

As a landlord I don’t accept DSS. It’s too much of a risk for a variety of reasons. I have to protect my own investment as it makes up part of my own income which I couldn’t do without. However my brother—also a landlord of several properties—does subject to credit rating and references so they are out there.

@Anyfucker the original poster referred to DSS.

I though DSS and benefits were the same thing. Are they not? Why is one dehumanizing and the other not?

As a landlord I don’t accept DSS
as @Anyfucker has pointed out this is an insulting and dehumanizing way to refer to those in receipt of benefits
Mind you, I suppose it's easier to exploit people when you have first dehumanized them so that explains the persistence of this insulting terminology

landlords are part of the reason that people need to claim benefit even though they are working

This is off-topic, but why do people write “DSS”? The DSS hasn’t existed since 2001 and it was a department, not a benefit. “No DSS” looks nonsensical.

I’m so lucky that I’m no longer renting. I do feel for anyone who would like to own their own home, but can’t get a mortgage/afford a deposit. At the very least, England should catch up with Scotland and make it illegal for letting agencies to charge (rip-off) fees to tenants.

I'd like to apologise for my reaction to the first few replies. I'm on benefits too, disability, and I'm just sick of feeling like scum in the eyes of people for an illness I have no control over.

Same as my friend.

She didn't ask for this.

Now she's facing the foreseeable in a really manky B&B whilst lots of 1 bedroom flats in the area sit unoccupied because of this.

I'm just angry at the whole system

Reducing a whole group of people to simply DSS is dehumanising. I know the op did it, we should all quit doing it.

I'd like to apologise for my reaction to the first few replies. I'm on benefits too, disability, and I'm just sick of feeling like scum in the eyes of people for an illness I have no control over.

Same as my friend.

She didn't ask for this.

Now she's facing the foreseeable in a really manky B&B whilst lots of 1 bedroom flats in the area sit unoccupied because of this.

I'm just angry at the whole system

Can we stop blaming this on private landlords, who are not a public service, and instead blame in on the government who bloody well should be but are failing horribly? Also, the employers who are effectively being subsidised by the government by paying workers so badly that they have to be topped up with benefits?

Nobody in full-time employment should be reliant on benefits in order to pay the rent.

Anyfucker I'm on housing benefits myself. I always say DSS

I hear you 7up.

I've been disabled my whole life. I still don't know the exact cause for my chronic pain issues. One man once told me I was a scrounger for claiming DLA as I wore lipstick. apparently disabled people can't wear makeup now.

And yes..."DSS" doesn't even make sense. It stands for department of social security which doesn't even exist any more.

It doesn't refer to a person or group of people at all. Nonsensical and rude.

I think a lot if private landlords would also like someone who will decorate, someone who will replace white goods if something goes wrong, will fix things if something gets damaged and obviously a professional couple are more likely yo have the money to do this.

I'll bet they would! But having been that professional couple with no kids, um, NO, I'm not going to go to extra expense to myself to improve someone else's property when they can turf me out with 2 months notice. I don't know anyone who's paid to replace a LL's white goods at their personal expense without taking it with them when they leave or paying out to decorate beyond what can be taken with them or paying to repair something that they didn't damage themselves. That's the whole point of renting, you don't have the expense you do when you own a place. Keep it clean and in good nick, of course, but it's a business transaction, we paid rent to live mostly maintenance free.

No one is interested in enriching the LL by making improvements on a place when they're struggling to save up a deposit themselves.

I'm sure all the houses we have rented have said professionals only which may be less insulting while still clear enough not to waste people's time.