Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Houseshares have to be better than this, right?

85 replies

Cremeegg30 · 24/01/2021 09:08

Does anybody live in a semi-decent houseshare?

Since October I've lived here to save money due to having some debts to pay etc.
Finally getting into a better financial position now and working 2 jobs. I'm on a good wage now and could afford to rent my own place, but I would like to buy a place and don't want to keep flitting between places so I am a bit torn.

Anyway the house.. it's totally my fault for moving here, it was cheap, no deposit, flexible contract etc.

I viewed it virtually due to covid and also as I was abroad.
I pay £375 per month for a room including all bills.
For starters somebody has engraved something phallic into our front door and the landlord hasn't bothered to do anything about it.
We had a cleaner who wasn't exactly the most competent but she hasn't been since before Christmas. The agency have ignored the several messages I've sent to ask when and if she's returning.

There was a huge hole/leak in the ceiling when I moved in, which I was told would be getting fixed. It was finally done so last week, after 4 months here.

1 oven and limited cupboard space for 6 people. I have 1 shelf in the fridge but people still dump their stuff onto it.

Toilet is sometimes left pretty dirty. People also don't use air freshener so sometimes when you walk past the loos which you have to to get to the kitchen you get vile odours. Live with 5 men and one urinates without closing the door.

My room is right next to somebody else's so I previously had a couple having loud sex at 3am, now I have somebody who sounds like he's throwing things against the wall every time he opens his wardrobe etc.. I'm sure it's not him, just the walls are paper thin. The night he moved in I didn't know anybody had, heard a huge bang from the initially empty room from next door and thought something had collapsed in there.

The whole house just smells bad. The internet is dire despite me reporting it, when I moved in my drawers were broken and I couldn't actually close my window as a tree had grown over it. I had to cut away at the tree to be able to close it.

The street is filled with litter. I honestly think I've chosen the worst street in the town. All in all it's a depressing place to live and doesn't feel like home.

The landlord clearly doesn't want to spend a penny on the house and it shows.

I have a house deposit, a 15-20% one at that but atm my credit rating isn't high enough, though it's going up.

Not sure what to do, it could be 6 months or more before I can get a mortgage. Don't want to move again then move yet again.

Any advice welcomed.

OP posts:
AllMyPrettyOnes · 24/01/2021 10:06

I'd move, personally. Sounds quite depressing, and made even worse being in lockdown with little reason to leave the place.

overwork · 24/01/2021 10:11

Gosh, move - ASAP. You don't have to live like that, and honestly, no one is counting the number of house shares you live in! I lived in house shares till I was 34, some okay, some great. None were as bad as you're describing. Personally I preferred living with girls. And I made some lovely friends along the way. Don't stay there. Also take a look at money saving excited for tips on building your credit score. Good luck!

CuriousaboutSamphire · 24/01/2021 10:14

Are you paying your rent through Credit Ladder... it should help with your credit rating, is safe and backed by HMRC, Experian etc

Moorhens · 24/01/2021 10:18

I have always preferred house shares to lodging

For me lodging always felt like I was in someone else's house, and in the way. If you go down the lodging route check the expectations of you eg. Can you leave food in the fridge? Are you expected to eat in your room? Have friends round?

Some people are looking for a lodger who they can chat with, others are very much expect that you don't cook anything requiring more than half and hour in the kitchen, don't go in the living room, don't eat in the dining room and don't leave your toothpaste in the bathroom

I did lodge with people who were absolutely lovely and saved me from a tough spot accomodation wise

As with anything it just depends on who you live with house share/lodging wise. My last house share i had no more issues then I do living with a spouse (eg bickering about the heating!)

I think it depends on your personality mix, eg I found a house that was a low pressure social so you could watch TV in the living room but no one was offended if you didn't. It wasn't like living as a student but equally they weren't offended if you had a friend round.

I will always be grateful to that house for getting me out of a rut, and allowing me to save and ultimately get a whole new life.

tara66 · 24/01/2021 10:23

Not read all PPs but have you tried communal meetings with the other lodgers to discuss how things can improve and complain to them? Regular meetings might help. Have ''rules''?

tara66 · 24/01/2021 10:24

I mean the other house sharers - not lodgers.

Catchingfire123 · 24/01/2021 10:27

Depends, work out how long it will take to get a deposit together, if it’s a year I would stick it out, bit like student accommodation. Means to an end.

However if it’s 2-3 plus years away move for sure.

maddiemookins16mum · 24/01/2021 10:33

@BubblyBarbara

I know it’s not very cool to say but I would find a sexual partner to shack up with even if temporarily
Bloody hell, would you give that dangerous advice to your daughter?
Simarilion · 24/01/2021 10:50

I've lived in lots of house/flat shares and always been much, much better than you describe. Viewing in person and not sharing with too many people is key. Sharing 1 toilet between 6 people is always going to be minging! I'd leave and also report to HMO as quite possibly below legal standards. In terms of your credit rating - is there anything you can do to actively improve it? Maybe look at Martin Lewis Money Saving Expert for advice.

Mummyoflittledragon · 24/01/2021 10:58

It sounds as if this place is definitely not up to standard in many ways. One toilet for 6 is not legal. It is one bathroom per 4 people.

I know moving again is not good for your credit score. But would you not feel happier spending an extra £50 a month and living in a decent place? I’ve only ever lived in shared as a university student and it was dire, no central heating and little tenants’ rights at the time. So demoralising to still be living like this in your 30s.

You’re locked down atm, which makes it worse. This could happen again in the future, hopefully not but who knows with this pandemic.

Mummyoflittledragon · 24/01/2021 11:02

I forgot to add, as for your credit score, doesn’t Martin lewis recommend getting a credit card to improve it? The idea with the credit card would be to spend little on it and pay of in full each month. May also be useful to get a small loan. But as Simarilion, you can get good advice from him / Money saving expert.

Bubbles1st · 24/01/2021 11:02

I don't which town you're in but that's sounds like a dump for the price! Leave get yourself somewhere nicer and safer. Try being a lodger rather than in a house share - the Expedia worlds apart.

WitchesBritchesPumpkinPants · 24/01/2021 11:08

Not everyone is on your salary money bags 🤣

SnuggyBuggy · 24/01/2021 11:09

Ideally you move in with friends or at least good acquaintances. The next best option is people with a similar lifestyle and values. If that fails then as few people as possible and female only.

It's difficult and can be a beggars can't be choosers market sometimes though.

wendyleen · 24/01/2021 11:09

Ugh! Sounds awful.

I'd move and find a room with an en suite.

WitchesBritchesPumpkinPants · 24/01/2021 11:12

@Cremeegg30

There's nothing to be embarrassed about!

I have sore eyes, going to put my phone away after this...

But have you considered looking for a live-in job? Maybe as well as OR instead of your current job(s). Plenty of people looking for live in help with kids or elderly relatives (not all are personal care either). There are some really nice jobs out there, with plenty of free time to work another job

Snd I'm sure it'll have been mentioned, but you need a mortgage broker, not a bank.

Whatever you do, don't stay there!!

Good luck.

peak2021 · 24/01/2021 11:13

I would move if I were you. Whilst I have heard of many bad experiences of house shares, yours is worse than most.

Hapixmas · 24/01/2021 11:17

@BubblyBarbara

I know it’s not very cool to say but I would find a sexual partner to shack up with even if temporarily
Eww what a horrible thing to suggest.

Not to mention we are in the middle of a pandemic.

SchrodingersImmigrant · 24/01/2021 11:23

Finding a secual partner to shack up with is just shared house with added work😂

Ikora · 24/01/2021 11:42

The house itself sounds grotty but if you had great housemates then it would be tolerable. I lived in a bit of a dump many years ago but it was really cheap and my housemates were fantastic. I actually ended up marrying one :) he is sat next to me now 20 years hence. He was my partner on the cleaning rota.

Hopefully you can find a less grotty place but the housemates can be good or bad regardless of how much you pay. I preferred mixed house shares.

Palavah · 24/01/2021 11:47

@Cremeegg30

Yes for sure, I've just been rejected by a bank for even a 40,000 mortgage with a 20% deposit. I've been getting agreements in principle but not sure I'd be likely for even a high interest mortgage?
Have you identified what you need to do to improve your credit file? Check out money saving expert - lots of tips on there.

If you have debts then - unless they are om 0% interest - you are better paying them off from your savings. Then divert the monet you would have spent on repayments to a help-to-buy ISA.

And yes, move. There's no shame in moving and no brownie points for sticking with a grim houseshare.

ShandlersWig · 24/01/2021 11:53

I've used London and Country many times and would recommend them. A big positive is you have a low purchase price and a big deposit = low LTV. You need your application to be reviewed by a human, as with a poor credit score you'll be up againt 'computer says no' scenarios.
Don't apply for any more without proper broker advice as having a few rejected applications won't help. You may be closer to a purchase than you think, so definitely worth taking the time for specialist advice to get a proper idea of timescales.

Gson · 24/01/2021 12:02

Don’t feel embarrassed about moving again! You moved into a grotty house share with 5 men who aren’t clean. Get out of there - you can 100% find something nicer.
I was in a house share for 2 years with 2 girls and it was gorgeous. My landlord and landlady were lovely and furnished it beautifully and fixed anything that was broken etc. We put our own stamp on it and it really felt like home - we all sobbed when we left.
You can definitely find a good house share or as another poster said, you can become a lodger in a house with a family maybe?

RincewindsHat · 24/01/2021 12:05

Move asap - I have lived in a similar houseshare years ago and it never gets better! Look, even if you got a mortgage in 6 months, what if it takes you 6 months to find and complete on something you want to buy? Move out now, you don't have a lot of stuff, and be happy in a better rental for a while.

Sparechange · 24/01/2021 12:18

@Gson

Don’t feel embarrassed about moving again! You moved into a grotty house share with 5 men who aren’t clean. Get out of there - you can 100% find something nicer. I was in a house share for 2 years with 2 girls and it was gorgeous. My landlord and landlady were lovely and furnished it beautifully and fixed anything that was broken etc. We put our own stamp on it and it really felt like home - we all sobbed when we left. You can definitely find a good house share or as another poster said, you can become a lodger in a house with a family maybe?
It’s not just a case of being embarrassed

Moving frequently negatively impacts a credit score
When you’ve already got a bad credit score, it is just another reason for banks to reject you.
Unless things are really unbearable, it’s probably a quicker route to home ownership if you can tough it out and get a mortgage sooner

Swipe left for the next trending thread