Rent reduction

[Peachplum29]

For the next 3 months I’m going to have a drop in income and I’ve worked out a budget and worked out all my bill payments etc and I realised I’m going to over spend. Would it be unreasonable to ask my landlord for a 3 month rent reduction of £50 to then pay an extra £50 a month rent for 3 months there after to pay it back? What would be the bestway of going about this?

For the next 3 months I’m going to have a drop in income and I’ve worked out a budget and worked out all my bill payments etc and I realised I’m going to over spend. Would it be unreasonable to ask my landlord for a 3 month rent reduction of £50 to then pay an extra £50 a month rent for 3 months there after to pay it back? What would be the bestway of going about this?

I am a landlord and my tenants asked for a small rent reduction when their financial situation changed. I agreed as they had been good tenants up to that point and wanted to keep them in the flat and to be honest it would cost me way more both in time (conducting viewings, vetting new tenants) and financially (rental void, agency fees etc).

No harm in asking if you have a good relationship with your landlord.

I don't think it's unreasonable but I'd really try and avoid it. I rent (have been here 9 years) and unless I had absolutely no other option I would avoid my landlord knowing I was struggling financially as it might mean they give you notice and you end up in a much worse situation. I think particularly as you have only been there a relatively short time I'd really look at all your other options first.

My partner is a LL and has done this for a tenant before - however, that tenant had been living in the house for a few years and had always been a good tenant so it was no issue.

8 months really isn't that long, you can ask but I'd be concerned as a LL that with the rising costs of living that you wouldn't be able to pay it back or continue to pay your rent in the months after.

I think it really depends why aswell, if it's something that is clearly temporary that you could explain to them (emergency car repairs or similar that's a one off) but if it's to do with a drop in income or rise in bills etc then I'd be concerned that you would be struggling every month. Be prepared to fully explain though as if you just say to them that you're going to be short for your bills for a few months unexpectedly, I doubt they'd be impressed.

Is there anyone you could borrow the £150 from and repay to them in the following months?
Or a low interest credit card/overdraft?

Landlord here. Simply say what you've said here. I'd rather know you're struggling and help than you not be able to live and risk losing an honest tenant.

Honestly, we're not all arseholes.

I would be very careful, landlords sometimes look for any reason to evict. Very much depends on your relationship with them and how reasonable they are.

Times are incredibly tough financially for a lot of people so it's not unreasonable.

We are landlords, if you explained all that and put it in writing that you'd be paying £50 less than the set amount for three months and then paying that £150 back over the three months after that then that would be fine.

@AlannaOfTrebond

I'm a landlord and if one of my tenants asked me this I would do my best to accommodate their request as long as they had a good payment history.

In fact I have done this in the past for tenants temporarily struggling.

Yep, me too. I reduced rent by about 80% for a couple of months of the first Covid lockdown as there was some uncertainty about my tenant's job (he had just finished one and was about to start another, so missed out on furlough). They are good, loyal tenants and I didn't want to lose them for the sake of a couple of months of lower payments. I would absolutely have been open to this arrangement if they had asked about it.

I am a landlord and I would want to know the full story behind the reason why. If it was unfortunate circumstances outside of the tenant’s control then I would be agreeable. But if it was a lack of planning by the tenant then perhaps not.

A good LL will facilitate payment of rent and £50 a month less is better than you getting into worse difficulties later.
I'd happily accept this if it was temporary.

What is plan B if your landlord says no?

If the drop in income is down to reduced hours could you take a second job?
8 months isn't that long.
Asking the landlord would be the absolute last resort

My parents are landlords and I’m sure they’d be amenable to this if it was a tenant who was otherwise paying on time and taking reasonable care of the property. It’s not easy to find good tenants either and they’ve had some horrible experiences. Maybe being able to tell your landlord what will be different in 3 months that will free up extra ££ would be a good idea. Do you have much of a relationship with your landlord?

This would make me worry about you as a tenant to be honest. If finances are so tight I would be concerned about your ability to pay the extra after 3 months.
I would seriously consider trying to earn the money. It is 17 hours at minimum wage over 3 months so less than 6 hours a month. Are you able to get an hours overtime here and there or a temp job as others have said doing deliveries etc

I’m an accidental landlord.
I’d say yes. I’d be pleased that you’d worked out your finances. I’d be a bit concerned that it was symptomatic of wider money issues but I’d lose more money getting a new tenant in /new letting agreement /loss of income/ council tax if it was empty for a couple of weeks so as long as you were looking after the place I’d want you to stay. So not only would it be the right thing to do it would be financially to my benefit to agree.

I think some of the previous responses are harsh. Sometimes life doesn’t go to plan. Everyone needs a break sometimes.

Eight months isn't a very long time in many landlords' eyes. Especially if you're on a rolling contract.

The risk is not so much that you are marking yourself out as someone who can't afford the property (which may be a temporary issue), but that you're asking for a £50/month decrease. Why are you unable to get such a small amount of credit through the usual channels? Most people who are able to get a small overdraft or put other items on their credit card so they can pay their rent would do so and only flag up their difficulties to their landlord as a last resort.

Put another way, if banks won't lend £150 to you, and family or friends won't lend it either, why would your landlord think you're a good risk.

No it isn't unreasonable to ask. Many landlords including my previous one reduced rent during the pandemic (I didn't actually ask for this, he offered!) Not all landlords are complete arseholes. If they rely so much on their rental income that they'd notice the loss of £50 a month then landlording probably isn't a viable business for them.

I wouldn't, I'd cut it from somewhere else, you are highlighting yourself as a risk after only 8 months.

I'm friends with a couple of accidental landlords and they just break even or sometimes less each month, I wouldn't want to mop up your £50 decrease pm.

I’m a landlord, I would say yes.
If you are taking care of the place but be prepared to explain in full. I.e. why you are having a drop in income for the 3 months & why it will be okay in 3 months time.
I have one tenant still paying off Covid related debt, they have also had a recent bereavement so it’s a slow process.

I think it depends on your ll. Mine would grudgingly say yes, we've been here since 2012 and not planning on leaving, we're good tenants, and i think he'd take a three month hit over the alt- a missed payment, court action, etc.

But you do need a plan if he says no.

Do you have any LOW or NO interest credit cards? Can you get one and put £50 of shipping on a month?

If you are going to have problems it’s a good idea to speak to your Landlord. My tenant couldn’t pay when first lockdown hit, took weeks to sort out UC so missed a months rent then paid a bit extra each month. I’d have been very happy with £50 less for 3 months then caught up in another 3 months.

Why do you think your landlord should sub you for 3 months?

Why not ask Tesco if you can have your groceries now and you'll pay for them when your financial situation improves? Or your gas company? Or your water company?

Honestly, landlords have their own bills to pay, their own families to support. Paying for the roof over your head should be a priority.

Effectively you want a loan of £150. Surely you have family or friends you can ask for a loan, rather than asking your landlord and risk being served notice.

I accept for a long term tenant (3 years+) who had religiously paid in full and on time, a landlord might be prepared to do this on the very short term to retain a good tenant. But after 8 months to want to start underpaying your rent, you'll be a big risk to the landlord and he'll likely want to replace you with someone more reliable.

Thanks everyone. I do have a good relationship with my landlord so far, had no issues. I understand rent is a priority bill, I haven’t had this type of issue before so wasn’t sure what to do regarding this

People how say no outright because landlords have bills are a bit understanding of landlords cost. Asking them to leave and the cost associated with that and reletting would be way more than £150 and only asking for 3 months.

I wouldn’t risk pissing off my LL for the sake of £150 over 3 months. Especially when you’ve only been there a short time. It’s a relatively small amount, so would be better to borrow it or make savings elsewhere. Rent is a priority cost that should be paid above other things. You don’t want to give your LL the impression that you see rent as negotiable or not a priority.

From the LL POV you could give notice and leave before the end of the 3 months, leaving them out of pocket. I imagine they’d also want to know the circumstances and frankly whether it’s an unavoidable situation out of your control or whether it’s wholly or partially your own fault.

I don't think you've been there long enough, but no harm asking. When one of our tenants (long term) struggled to pay for a few months he offered to do some improvements to the property in lieu of rent, which worked out really well, but he was a qualified builder.