To say about bloody time? No DSS landlords breaking the law.

[Whatisthisfuckery]

A judge has ruled that landlords and letting agents refusing to let to people on housing benefit is unlawful.

It’s about bloody time it was made clear that it is not acceptable to discriminate against people who are on benefits. Housing is not just a privilege for those who are employed and able to work.

Obviously this clarification in the court will not solve the housing crisis, for people on low incomes especially, and much more needs to be done to make sure people have access to benefits without lengthy waits that then create rent arrears etc, but it’s a step in the wright direction.

www.bbc.com/news/education-53391516

I do think it is weird that people renting are very much them and us - and LLs are not. I know full well the tenants I had when I was LL thought I was loaded and nothing would make them change their minds. I found it very eye opening - it was like I was given the role or parent all of a sudden!

@IceCreamSummer20

I do think it is weird that people renting are very much them and us - and LLs are not. I know full well the tenants I had when I was LL thought I was loaded and nothing would make them change their minds. I found it very eye opening - it was like I was given the role or parent all of a sudden!

When I rented, I never really saw my landlords, but didn't have this view that they were all filthy rich. I also didn't have much money, but prioritised rent money. I saw it that I needed to rent somewhere and it was a transaction, like any other good or service I'd procure. My friends who rented seemed the same. This seems to have changed as I've got older.

I renovated my flat before tenants moved in and got a request for a rent reduction as there were stairs leading up to the flat (which were there when viewed property), they found one of the rooms too small (same size as when viewed) and that the flat hadn't been repainted again within six months! I was told they've paid their rent so hope I enjoy going shopping (like a month's rent would begin to cover any of the costs of a re-let)! I've also been called out in the early hours of the morning to let tenants in who have mislaid keys, asked to provide cleaning equipment etc etc. The "I will look after it like it's my own home" statements etc - why is that a golden standard and not what you would do, when it's effectively your home?!

I do find it strange that if you sign a contract to say you will pay your rent or have use of a place that if you break the contract and don’t pay or go over the contract terms then the council encourage you to further break the contract and stay in the home till the landlord has exhausted all avenues, at great expense to get you out.

Why do they tell people this.
I am interested to know what advice they give their own tenants who don’t pay the rent.

People shouldn’t have to pay £300+ more than the mortgage payments on the house.

LL have to pay tax on rental income, therefore they usually charge more than the mortgage to cover the mortgage, letting agent fees and insurance costs after tax has been deducted.

Actually no, it isn't "just another one" - because being on benefits, in and of itself, isn't a protected characteristic

It's indirect discrimination, because some "protected" groups (single parents, 90% of whom are women, and disabled people) are far more likely to be on benefits than other groups.

Equally Icecream the idea that all LLs are on the breadline struggling to cope with their many bills and rotten tenants is farcical. The notion of LLs needing to parent tenants is an appalling condescension. I wish my children were handing me £800+ pcm...

"I do find it strange that if you sign a contract to say you will pay your rent or have use of a place that if you break the contract and don’t pay or go over the contract terms then the council encourage you to further break the contract and stay in the home till the landlord has exhausted all avenues, at great expense to get you out."
This more than anything! It is beyond ridiculous.

I think locked2020 that having encountered this situation over many years the Council understand that when these cases are further investigated the reasons for non-payment etc are complex and are often out of the tenants control. The majority of tenants really want to pay their rent, nobody wants to get rent arrears, to be kicked out and made homeless. LLs are often very quick to issue a Section 21 with an all or nothing attitude...working with tenants and Council and external authorities often results in better outcomes for all rather than blanket demands.

@locked2020 I know I’ve rented too for many years and was renting while I was a LL as the home was my only one, it wasn’t my second one or a stack of properties. However I had tenants call me about the smallest things, they took off fittings like taps, which I had to replace, let the garden grow wild, flood areas, put paint on all the carpets, and rent arrears. It wasn’t worth it for me to challenge or go through courts, so I just paid. Some tenants were absolutely fine but none of them looked after the property like a home. It’s well known tenants put much more wear and tear than home owners on a house. It’s a shame it’s no good for anyone, tenants should feel more proud and happy they they live os that they take care of it.

the council encourage you to further break the contract and stay in the home till the landlord has exhausted all avenues, at great expense to get you out
Why do they tell people this

Because once a tenant's evicted there's every chance they'll become the council's problem and they'd rather avoid that?

Don'dusturbme...I know that because he bought the house outright for £38,000 15 years prior to my tenancy
How do you know that it wasn't a loan his parents gave him that he now repays monthly?

You don't want the risk? Don't be a landlord
Every landlords take risks. Are you saying that LL should be prepared to lose money every year just to accommodate people on benefits? This statement is as ridiculous as saying 'if you don't like renting, buy or live with someone else'.

I don’t think it is about what landlords believe it is what the insurance companies have based their information on
And insurance will exclude games on DSS because they are statistically more likely to cause financial hardship to landlords. The same as premium are massive higher for you get driver because there is evidence they are more likely to crash. It doesn't mean that every new driver will crash.

@bearnecessity in my (albeit limited) experience, the council wouldn't divulge information, I tried working with the tenant (who lied) etc and in the meantime I wasn't getting paid, tenant was punching holes in walls, sampling different colour paints alll over walls and stealing furniture etc and telling me I should be grateful when she eventually told me her plan to shaft me as "she would have been in her rights to keep me hanging even longer". Another issue is that rent is paid in arrears, whereas private tenants pay in advance - government put too much risk on landlords and if that changed, that would do far more to make it an equitable market for renters. There are good and bad landlords and tenants, but it does seem the current measures penalise good tenants (with crap landlords) and good landlords (with crap tenants). More should be done to protect tenants from poorly maintained and dangerous properties and to protect landlords from non paying and destructive tenants.

Lockdown ....I agree..

Don't disturb me....your first point...he is now a 70 yr old property developer with multiple properties.I know the factual history of the property which does not seem to stop you challenging it.

Point two..no more a stupid notion than the assertion hat all LLs are losing money...

The biggest joke in my opinion is that if a tenant is in arrears and the LL wants to evict that the LL still has to make repairs, keep up gas certificates etc.

@AskingforaBaskin

The biggest joke in my opinion is that if a tenant is in arrears and the LL wants to evict that the LL still has to make repairs, keep up gas certificates etc.

Yes. Far better to just let the LL's inflict carbon monoxide poisoning or dangerous living conditions on people...

The law on repairs, and especially on gas safety, should never be flexible. It's hardly fair on the neighbours if the street blows up just because LL and tenant are squabbling

When does this actually come into force?
I’ve just used OpenRent to advertise my house & there is an yes / no options for “accepts DSS”

I wonder how you can comply with the new rules as well as your mortgage company and insurance company.

I just think this, like all the other rules and regulations that those who think they understand BTL and want to penalise landlords come up with. It will just end up taking property off the rental market and with even less supply will just increase rents further

Like previous rules that were meant to push landlords to flood the market with cheap properties. It didn’t work out and all that happened was a lot of landlords swapped their long term rental properties for Airbnb’s/Holiday let’s and took their properties off the rental market or just added the extra costs to the rent.

I wish they would think through these new rules from both the tenants and the landlords perspective and have a little more imagination as to what landlords will do faced with the new regulations

It’s not a new law yet. One case has been taken through court and the judge has agreed its discrimination

There’s probably a mountain of appeals and legislation stuff to be done before it actual impacts people day-to-day sadly

Nothing will change. It's just a process change