Unable to pay full rent

[bratzdoll]

I'm a single parent currently on maternity leave so I receive UC monthly to help pay my rent and further bills. I'm private renting but I got the flat through the homelessness scheme (when you're homeless and in temporary accommodation but willing to take a private flat instead of waiting years in temporary accommodation until a council flat is available)

The benefit of private renting through the homelessness scheme is that the council are in contact with Landlords that are happy to rent to someone on UC and are usually happy to negotiate the monthly rent price.

I moved into the flat a few months ago and always pay my rent to the Landlord's agent one day before it's due just so the receive it without any problems or anything.

This month my UC was around £1100 less than it should have been because my employer incorrectly reported that I had earned around £2500 last month
I'm still only receiving SMP so I have no clue how they made such a drastic mistake but this means DD and I are living on near to nothing this month.

I sent an email to the Landlord's agent a few days before the rent was due to let them know the situation. I included screenshots of my UC Payment page so they could see the breakdown of what I normally get and see what was deducted. I did say I was able to contribute a small amount to the rent (less than £200 as I was given less than £400 from UC to live on for the month)
I also let them know that I spoke to my work coach about what happened as she's raised this with the investigation team so hopefully she'll hear back from them soon.

I spoke to the agent on the phone the day before the rent was due (I always speak to the manager btw) and she was very understanding and just said to update her with what happens. The next morning I get an email from her saying the Landlord was not happy at all (understandingly) and that I need to do whatever it takes to be able to pay the rent in full including taking out an overdraft!

I've never not paid my rent since I've lived here and it's not as if I got the dates mixed up or I spent the money on something else. The rent amount wasn't given to me for no fault of my own. I was a bit shocked at the Landlord's response as I'd literally given him more than half of what I received just to be able to contribute something. When in reality I could have kept it and spent that on myself and my daughter as we desperately need it!

There's often a discussion on Twitter about some Landlords and how they refuse to be understanding even in unavoidable situations. I understand I'm renting and effectively helping to pay off his mortgage, but this wasn't my fault at all.

(just in case anyone wants to bash me for being on benefits, I've been working full time since I was 17. It's more or less impossible to be a single parent living on SMP)

I think the only thing not dissected here is why you got pregnant in the first place!

Here we go😴

If you paid £180 for a £900 rental amount, for example I have no idea the actual amounts, then the landlord will think a) you didn't try that hard to pay the rent or b) you are in an incredibly vulnerable financial position and this is likely to happen again. Either way, it is no a good impression to have early on.

Obviously this is not your fault at all, I understand how it feels to have your money messed up and be unable to pay your rent, I've been there. But your landlord is coming from their own perspective. Rent should be your absolute priority above all else. If that means eating from the food bank and getting a voucher from social services or the council to pay for your gas/electric then that's what you should do. If you only get £400 UC you should give them £400 in UC. Giving them half of that seems like a piss take and like you're not prioritising your rent properly.

The end of the month is next week.

You should push UC again as a PP was able to get it rectified quickly and also push your payroll.

I still don’t understand how if they reported you as being paid £2500, that isn’t based off your payslip - which would be surely what was paid into your bank account? You need to redd them up for this and ask that they investigate and give you answers on this urgently.

@Helpstopthepain

What are your employers doing to fix this? Have they given you a timeframe for when it will be resolved?

I've emailed them 5 times! Called multiple times and it rings out and goes to voicemail, I leave a voicemail and no one responds. My line manager has even sent an email to Payroll and has CC'd me in and they still haven't responded.

As mentioned before, they really are terrible when it comes to correct payment or rectifying any mistake they've made. It's so frustrating

@ILoveAllRainbowsx I agree with you given the OP's situation, but I'm guessing that the LL has been messed around in the past and is suspicious now.

Sorry you should give the full amount in rent is what I meant

It was a poor joke at the expense of those putting the boot in @

5 times in how long though? Rent is usually due 1st of month - 5 times in 3 weeks isn’t much. If, however, your rent was due on Monday past (ie 22nd) then 5 times is reasonable.

Some people really don’t understand what it’s like living hand to mouth. You end up living a really precarious life where any change sends your life tumbling like a house of cards.

OP, personally I would be communicating with your employer by phone and backed up with email each day. Let the landlord know that you’re proactively chasing this every day and will communicate that with him every day. You appreciate it’s concerning for him etc blah blah blah and you want to reassure him and demonstrate to him that you’re doing anything and everything in your power to resolve it.

Please don’t take out high interest credit to resolve this. I’ve done this before many years ago and got myself in a right state. At the moment, this is a situation that with time and chasing will be resolved when you receive a back payment.

It’s unfortunate for the landlord but no business will ever run 100% of the time perfectly.

@Bluntness100

I think it is better to try to think of your landlord as a business rather than a person.

So to translate it into a business decision, it’s like going to Asda, trying to buy forty quid worth of groceries with ten pounds rhen telling management you’re good for it and you’ve always fully paid so they should just let you have your shopping

Of course it would be lovely if they said that’s fine, but in reality it’s a business and you used the service Ie you stayed in the property and you owe the money by a certain date.

Some tenants do take the piss, sometimes landlords do, but try to think of this as a business and not personal.

Bluntness you are spot on.

This is exactly how it is.

@bratzdoll I meant.

I have sympathy for both of you really but ultimately you don't know the situation of the landlord.
There could be many reasons why the landlord needs the rent money to pay the mortgage and whether or not they have a contingency plan is noones business. Just how it is noones business why the op doesn't have a contingency plan. What I will say though is that you need to prioritise paying the rent really.
Does the child's other parent pay their way?

You are being more than reasonable. This is your employers fault, not yours.
DO NOT get into debt to pay the rent. Being a landlord is a business and if you cant manage not to receive rent one month you have no business being a landlord.
Just let the landlord know exactly what is happening and that you will pay it as soon as you get your UC.
And ignore some of the comments on here. There are people on MN who are well off and have zero understanding of what it is like to be poor.

@LakieLady I genuinely think I know more than any of the advisors about how the system works 😂 my husband works full time so a double payment will completely wipe out our entitlement meaning we won't be able to pay our bills.

I just wish I could go back in time 3 years ago before we'd ever claimed anything and weren't beholden to this system because it honestly makes me feel sick with stress. I was never ever a benefit snob but honestly I defy anyone to rely on them and not become a more compassionate person.

Rent is usually paid in advance @SunShinesBrightly. But otherwise yes, that’s a fair analogy.

[quote Cameleongirl]@MatildaTheCat has sound advice - write your LL a letter/email explaining the situation and send it to him via the agent. If you make it clear in writing that this is your employer's error and you're doing everything you can to rectify the situation, he'll be more understanding.

As PP's have said, he may have had bad experiences with previous tenants and think you're messing him about.[/quote]
I've written a very clear email to my Landlord's agent a few days before my rent was due detailing everything that happened. I also explained everything I was doing to fix the situation. When I spoke to the agent on the phone she said she had forwarded the email to my Landlord.

It's not as if I sent an email saying 'I can't pay my rent this month soz' or something blasé along those lines

@CHEM20

They will have insurance for this kind of thing

🙄🙄 I wouldn’t have been able to claim in these circumstances under the Rent Guarantee Insurance I had, and I’ve never seen a policy where you would be able Tom

Hope you get sorted, OP… (although if he has a BTL mortgage, as he should, you won’t be paying it off as it’ll be interest only)

You really can't get insurance for this sort of tenancy nor for this sort of eventuality.

However I do think the LL should be more understanding

I’m not a landlord and I’m also working class. I have been on benefits and I have every sympathy for the op.

But ultimately it isn’t the landlord’s fault and she needs to chase her employer and work coach proactively daily - multiple times daily - and keep the managing agency up to date.

Before the rent was due? You should be updating the agent daily.

@Skyll

Rent is usually paid in advance *@SunShinesBrightly*. But otherwise yes, that’s a fair analogy.

Bluntness came up with the analogy - I just quoted her in order to agree! 😊

@TheCheesyBakedBeanGetsGlam

If you paid £180 for a £900 rental amount, for example I have no idea the actual amounts, then the landlord will think a) you didn't try that hard to pay the rent or b) you are in an incredibly vulnerable financial position and this is likely to happen again. Either way, it is no a good impression to have early on.

Obviously this is not your fault at all, I understand how it feels to have your money messed up and be unable to pay your rent, I've been there. But your landlord is coming from their own perspective. Rent should be your absolute priority above all else. If that means eating from the food bank and getting a voucher from social services or the council to pay for your gas/electric then that's what you should do. If you only get £400 UC you should give them £400 in UC. Giving them half of that seems like a piss take and like you're not prioritising your rent properly.

She’s got a young baby and should be eating properly and warming her home sufficiently.

No way should she give the LL every penny of the little bit of money she does have. That’s quite simply the worst advice you could give her for a temporary problem.

You really can't get insurance for this sort of tenancy nor for this sort of eventuality.

You can get insurance for this type of tenancy.

However, you are right that you can’t claim it for one month of late rent.

Rent and/or mortgage should always be prioritised.

Food bank can give electric and/or gas credit for prepayment meters if required.

If you only get £400 UC you should give them £400 in UC. Giving them half of that seems like a piss take and like you're not prioritising your rent properly.

Sorry in what world? I have a very young DD. It's all good and well saying I should approach the council for xyz but do you know how long all those things actually take? You think I should give the Landlord every single penny that I've been given. That's honestly ludicrous

I cannot believe how many are jumping to the landlords defence. He is running a business and has chosen to accept UC tenants. OP has good reason for paying late and has proved this.

I’m a landlord (only one property, still on a residential mortgage and caught up in the cladding scandal) and I make sure I can meet my mortgage payment whether the rent gets paid or not, as it’s always a risk that it won’t. And if my usually well paying tenants have an issue and want to pay late once in a while, that’s fine and I default to the contingency plan once a while.

I’m lucky enough to own two properties and be able to feed myself. I would be horrified if my tenants were going hungry to line my pockets a few days early.