To not tell my landlord about pregnancy?

[swiftt]

Not sure if I’m overthinking this or not.

I rented a flat for years with a great landlord, was sad to leave but I moved to save some money. Needed to move again quickly in December so I’m currently in a flat that isn’t ideal. Been in touch with my old landlord to ask for a reference for council housing list, then I mentioned that I needed a 2 bedroom place, and it turns out they have the perfect place coming up to rent in May. They’re happy for me to move in if I want to, so I said I’d cancel my council application. I’m due my first baby in June. The landlord asked if I was still in the same job, and I said yes (which I am). By the time I see them in May, I’ll be heavily pregnant.

Do I forewarn the landlord about the pregnancy? I haven’t mentioned it because I didn’t think it would make a difference and thought maybe it’s even obvious as when I moved out of the last place, they knew it was because I was saving for a deposit and now I’ve told them I need 2 bedrooms and was considering council housing - so clearly a deposit is out the window for now. I will still be able to afford the rent whilst I’m on mat leave etc, but my income will be topped up by UC - so does the landlord need to know that, or am I over thinking?!

YABU - tell the landlord
YANBU - don’t tell the landlord

@DinoHat you can maybe it’s just because I’ll be on my own so only one income but I’ve checked it all out.

Stay on the council list anyway.

I'm pretty sure the council will only allow you to bid on one bedrooms as they dont count the baby as needing a room for a few years yet - but theres a security that comes with being on their list.

I do still have my application in with the council. I’m not in a position where I’m going to be homeless, I’m in a 2 bed flat at the moment. It’s just not ideal as it’s first floor, no garden and bloody expensive electric storage heating. And it’s huge, so costs a fortune to keep cosy in the winter. My plan was to move by next winter. If anything does fall through with this house, I’ll have the council list as a backup.

@DinoHat I’m confident that OP would be covered by the equality act if the LL decided to boot her out because she was pregnant. It’s a protected characteristic.

That may well be and I wouldn't disagree with you because when a tenant is pregnant there isn't a child in the property in the legal sense. When there is a child in the property - ie after the birth - it could be deemed breach of tenancy terms and argued that the tenant knew the terms when they moved in.

[quote BrightYellowDaffodil]**@DinoHat* I’m confident that OP would be covered by the equality act if the LL decided to boot her out because she was pregnant. It’s a protected characteristic.*

That may well be and I wouldn't disagree with you because when a tenant is pregnant there isn't a child in the property in the legal sense. When there is a child in the property - ie after the birth - it could be deemed breach of tenancy terms and argued that the tenant knew the terms when they moved in.[/quote]
I’m not aware of any provision that would bring a tenant into breach for having a baby. It might be factually true but can you seriously imagine any court allowing eviction proceedings on the basis a child has been born? Everyone has a right to a family and a home life.

Generally only tenants over 18 are named on a tenancy agreement, that’s certainly been my experience both professionally and personally - because they’re the only ones capable of acquiring legal rights too occupy. It’s not necessary to legally regularise a minors rights of occupation as they don’t have any.

I’ve certainly never seen a landlords insurance policy that stipulates only over 18s can reside in a property. I understand only they could be liable for rent and that makes sense. Not to say they don’t exist but sounds strange to me.

Assuming OP is a single parent - beyond being pregnant she could then argue she’s being discriminated against for that.

Either way, I don’t think you’d be successful serving a s.8 on the grounds of a baby.

unless you are somewhere with an overriding 'no children' condition, you don't have to say anything.

babies/children are not left to scream for hours while the owners are out, don't chew or claw carpets or woodwork and if they do excrete in the wrong place it gets cleared up. That's why pets are an issue to landlords but children are not.

reaction of the landlord to this news should be no other than 'congratulations'.

no-one is getting evicted for any reason at the moment, anyway.

I’d say tell them because some landlords don’t rent to people on UC. It’s not fair but they do it. You definitely need to tell them though.

It has no bearing on my ability to pay the rent
This is all he needs to know.

You mentioned being able to pay during your maternity leave but as a Landlord, I'd be more worried about afterwards. Will you be able to afford rent and childcare even with help from UC. What if you decide not to return to work?

I’ve certainly never seen a landlords insurance policy that stipulates only over 18s can reside in a property.

No, but it's not uncommon for an insurance policy to want to know whether a child is living there because the risk of damage when there are children around is higher. So the overall risk is higher and they will want to calculate a premium that takes the additional risk into account.

If the landlord doesn't know they can't get the correct cover. It would be unlikely to invalidate the entire policy because the landlord would have given information in good faith, but it could mean that damage wasn't covered which isn't fair on the landlord.

And it's not unreasonable for landlords to say "No children". My last flat didn't permit children because it was a very old building and the soundproofing wasn't great. Tenants with children weren't permitted.

@dontdisturbmenow I guess you could use that angle for all tenancies, regardless of pregnancy or not. What if I get fired or made redundant? I don’t foresee any problems with paying the rent. I was a tenant of theirs for almost 4 years in a much lower paid job too, rent was never late or not paid and I also decorated and generally improved the place. I’m not telling them because I’m worried, I just don’t want it to seem like I’ve deliberately concealed it so I am going to mention it.

guess you could use that angle for all tenancies, regardless of pregnancy or not. What if I get fired or made redundant?
Indeed, that's why if so have a choice of tenants, which I do because demands significantly outweighs supply, I will pick a couple with both professional roles where the chances of them not being able to paying rent is reduced if of course not eliminated.

I'd be very concerned renting to a single pregnant woman when the rent is significantly more than what is paid by UC.

Saying that, you've been a good tenant for some time, he knows you well and you seem confident you'll be able to pay.

Personally, in that case, I wouldn't tell him anything. He might worry, want to ask you questions he has no right to ask, when all this is irrelevant if indeed, you are totally certain you'll be able to pay the rent in full on time.

@dontdisturbmenow but that’s the thing. The rent isn’t ‘significantly more than is paid by UC’. I will still have income whilst I’m off, and that income more than covers the rent. If I were concerned about not being able to pay the rent, I wouldn’t be accepting the place and would be trying to get somewhere cheaper through the council. I do still want to mention it out of transparency, otherwise when he lets me view the place next month and sees that I’m heavily pregnant, he may then be concerned that I’ve tried to conceal it for the reasons you’ve mentioned re: affordability.

It seems that whilst I don’t have an obligation as such to tell the landlord, I think I will do so just for transparency’s sake.

OP isn’t entering into a new tenancy - she is in an existing one. The LL would need to start eviction proceedings to get her out. They’re not likely to do that speculatively - it’s expensive.

[quote swiftt]@NeverDropYourMoonCup but the rent will be paid by my income. I’m still employed, I’ll just be on maternity leave. I’ll be getting UC to top up my income, it won’t be my only income.[/quote]
And if it doesn't come through? Or you lose your job/get made redundant/your employer closes AND the UC doesn't come through? Sounds ridiculous if you've never been totally dependent upon benefits before, but it's a reality for thousands of people.

That's why many landlords won't rent to benefit recipients - their landlord insurance won't cover them because they're too high a risk.

@DinoHat no, this would be a new tenancy beginning in May. I am currently renting through an agency, but my old private landlord has offered me one of their properties with a lease beginning in May. There is no contract yet.

@NeverDropYourMoonCup then they can ask for a guarantor if they’re concerned. I would understand your point more if I were a brand new prospective tenant. As I’ve said, my ability to pay the rent isn’t an issue here.

Sorry my mistake

You’ll need to tell them about the UC as lots of mortgage and insurance companies don’t cover tennants claiming benefits. You could put be putting his asset at risk and that’s awful.

I’d never not think to mention a child if renting as likely more wear and tear with children.

Why would you NOT tell your LL?
If they're happy to have you no problem.
If they kick up a fuss then you wouldn't want to be living there anyway.
Children and pets are of the same category - could have material impact on the state of the house.

Why did you take your name of the council list. A property with them would be a secure tenancy

@Chloemol because I wasn’t likely to even get a property with them for months, and would then possibly have to accept a place that I wasn’t 100% happy with?

To update, I’ve told landlord and it’s absolutely a non-issue. They congratulated me and talked about a move-in date, and that was it. Panic over!