To give someone a chance.Tenants

[Teenangels]

Tenants

Our last tenants have just left our property.
They left with rent arrears if 2 months (they could not pay because in their words they had their wedding to pay for, both in full time employment).
A neighbour that we know, from when we lived at the property, is being evicted on a section 21, we know she is a great tenant but their landlord is terrible think no carpet etc, repairs not being done.

We knocked on her door and said that we are looking for a tenant, would she like to rent ours for less than she is currently paying, we showed her around and said that we would decorate and put new carpets in as the tenants ruined the new ones we put in our letting agent is saying that we are stupid.

We would like the new tenant to make it her home for her and her kids.

We trust her and know that she will look after the house.

Are we being unreasonable to trust someone after the shitshow we have just been through.

I have property that I rent out. One of my principles is that occupancy is of uttermost importance - miss one single month, and your profit nosedives. So, when my new tenants moved in 2 years ago I told them I would not raise the rent for 3 years if they paid on time. This has given them budget security (during a time of huge rent increases), but has also given me income security. I generally charge less than the going rate anyway, simply because I don't want to be one of 'those' landlords who are squeezing the living daylights out of renters.

So I absolutely say go for it - don't be influenced by a bloody estate agent, who sounds as venal as they come. Look after your tenant and they will usually repay your trust.

OP I think what you are doing is a kind and decent thing. The agents are only annoyed because they didn't find the tenant themselves so they might be missing some fees (?), plus no doubt they like to think they're the experts. They didn't do well with the last set of tenants though, did they? You have a good reference from this lady's current landlord, plus you know her personally, I would trust my gut. I am sure she will be very happy and probably a long term tenant.

Can you sack your agents? Sounds as though you don't need them and it will save money! Check your contract first.

I manage my own rental property. I paid the agent to do the background check but i did the viewings with them. I do my own inspections every 6 months. The most likely thing to go wrong is plumbing or electric so i have a plumber and electrician that i trust and also a handy man. I set areminder for the safety certificates in my calendar. Same family there for two years now paying on time.
Op i think you've done the right thing

It sounds OK, however, I have got to an age where I just don't trust anyone anymore.

I would proceed, but with caution, and with some sort of paperwork in place - I don't know what that paperwork is specifically, but you do need to protect yourself as much as possible. A tenancy agreement, even if it's an off the shelf one.

Kids can damage properties, even well behaved kids. All they need to do is accidentally leave a tap on upstairs and they could have water through the ceiling damaging stuff downstairs. A child can swing a door and shatter it (the glass part). You think modern stuff is deigned to prevent this, but it doesn't always. I know 2 people who have done this!

Just be careful and remember that no good deed goes unpunished.

Regarding your previous tenants leaving with arrears, surely that is the job of the letting agent to pursue?

Check with your insurance, mine won't accept tenants on benefits. Shame.

@Teenangels

I'd go for it!

yes, sadly, she might let you down, but (as you know) so might any tenants.

of course the EA is trying to put you off, less money for them.

you're not stupid, you know you need an agreement & to find out what other safety checks & stuff you need to do.

you're very fortunate to have been able to buy your new house without selling this one & it's lovely to pass some of that good fortune on.

if you're going to redecorate, I presume you let her have some input, that would be amazing for her & her kids!!

with the carpet, I'd get it professionally deep cleaned & see how it comes up. She might prefer not to have a new carpet yet, so she doesn't have to worry about the kids quite so much? You can put one in later on instead.

id definitely do it, it's no more risk than any other tenant & a lifeline for her & her kids.

Depending on your individual circumstance you might need to check (if you still have a mortgage on it) if there are any restrictions on renting it to someone getting any form of benefit. Mine does, but I'd ignore that because if absolutely necessary I could pay the mortgage off.

check for CCJs etc or you inherit a problem. and ensure deposit contract etc and that you have gas safe, electric and all inspections up to date.... or they can refuse to pay rent if you have not done your bit.

@DoodlesMam aside from the fact that you’ve resurrected a zombie thread, not giving the right certificates does not entitle a tenant to pay no rent! It just means any eviction notices would be invalid until the correct information was given

Our last tenants were professional people earning over 70K, passed all the checks and knew how to play the system, paying £1 more than being in 2 months arrears.

Zombie but can anyone clarify what this means? Does paying £1 pm mean you have made an effort to pay?

didn't realise it was a dead thread it just got suggested to me. I have been a landlord since 1997 so yes, agreed. But if they do refuse to pay rent and you didn't have a gas cert it would be harder to deal with an eviction. and you could be in trouble seperately.

@Teenangels
Just wondering how you got in with your tenants? Hope it worked out x

It has worked out very well, our tenant has not missed a payment.

We are going to do an inspection in a couple of weeks and if the house is clean and tidy, I will pop back with a gift card for just eat or Uber eats.

Knowing that we will have a great tenant for a good few years is amazing.

To be able to serve a S8 eviction notice for rent arrears, those arrears have to be a minimum of 2 months rent equivalent. in the right circumstances an S8 eviction is a quicker process than an S21 (no fault) eviction which is usually served when a landlord needs their property back for themselves or a relative or is selling it. An S8 for rent arrears is 2 weeks notice compared to an S21 which is a minimum of 8 weeks notice.

If you serve an eviction notice under S8 for rent arrears (there are other reasons an S8 might be used but they’re usually deemed to be “fault” eviction reasons) and, before it goes to court, the tenant gets those arrears under the 2 months value, even by £1, the eviction will not be awarded automatically and the landlord will have to issue an alternative eviction notice (they will usually serve an S21 at the same time as an S8 to cover this eventuality).

How wonderful.
Thank you for giving them a chance.

A section 21 is a no fault eviction and if the tenant had struggled to pay rent in the 8 years they’d been there, the landlord would have evicted via section 8 accelerated proceedings long ago. If the tenant was bad enough to have breached their contract they also would have had a section 8. OP is offering their property at a lower rent then the current rent they’re paying.

Sounds like a win for everyone to be honest! I would still do a basic affordability check and employer reference as well as right to rent which is a legal requirement. Hope it goes well.

Please do. My family got evicted after nearly 6 years because our greedy c**nt landlords wanted to rocket the rent by 400 a month (they inherited the house so no mortgage or owt) we were nearly homeless so if you are kind enough to do this you should, it would really help the lady

I'm a landlord, do it, our tenant's of 8 years are perfect. They moved in with no deposit, it needed decorating from top to bottom, which we would have done but they asked to as excited to do so. So we didn't charge the 1st month rent. They have been there for 9 years

I do think it sounds positive. It’s a bit cheeky expecting a new tenant to replace carpets though. I’d agree a colour scheme and pay yourself.

This

Er, it's already done, and working out well!

Can't you see the OP's update?

Will you get the 2 months arrears back from the previous tenants? I'd take them to court to get an attachment of earnings!