Renting my property to husband’s ex

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Name change for this post as some details are quite outing. For context My husband and I have been married for 8 years, I have one daughter from my first marriage and he has two daughters with his ex wife, all kids are early to mid teens, my DD lives with us 12/14 nights and my step DDs are with us 50/50. Our blended family works really well, the girls are very close, go to the same school and have mutual friends. Co-parenting with our respective ex’s is pretty amicable and we all live within 15 minutes of each other.

Now on to my dilemma, after dropping the girls off to his ex wife’s house, the girls Mum has told him that her landlord has given her notice to quit her lease and she is really struggling to find somewhere to rent that she can afford. She is single and working full time in a relatively low paid role so I totally get that it is really tough for her. My husband pays her maintenance weekly at £200 pw even though we have 50/50 care as he earns much more than her, no issue with this. I own a rental property in our town which I purchased before I met my husband there is no mortgage on it. My husband has asked if I would rent it to her for below market rent to help her out. Property is currently being let out but lease ends in September. On one hand I totally understand why he wants to help her the girls need a stable home and there is a housing crisis, on the other I am nervous to get involved in business/ finances with his ex, seems a bit too entangled. Wwyd in this situation?

I would just like to clear up that my SC mother is NOT lazy or irresponsible, she works in a care home often night shifts when the girls are staying with us, it pays shit money but it’s essential and hard work. My reticence to rent my property to her is not because I think she will intentionally stop paying rent or be a bad tenant she is pretty sensible I think. I don’t even really care about the money as poster are right I don’t need it and my daughter will have more than enough. It’s purely because it’s bloody AWKWARD! We get along well but she’s still an ex for a reason and I’m not sure it’s very good for her self esteem to have to rent from me.

No my husband cannot buy another house for her to live in. Yes he makes more than her but it’s not a giant pay check each month, he pays her maintenance and his share of bills here plus his own personal expenses and saves most of what is left for his girls future.

I have spoken to DH properly and raised my concerns, he does agree with me and said he got a bit carried away as he was panicking that his girls might end up moving far away or in a hostel. We will help her in some way most likely offering to pay 6 months rent up front to hopefully secure a decent rental. I don’t want my SC mother to be homeless that will never happen, she is a good Mum, she just hasn’t had the same opportunities as others.

Projecting much? This woman everyone is so quick to vilify has asked for nothing. Ops husband has asked op. Her landlord isn't kicking her out for property damage or rent arrears yet people are so quick to SURE she'll wreck her kids new home just to piss off op and refuse to pay rent to sour a currently good co-parenting relationship .

Do you use a property management company OP?

If so you will not have to deal with her and it won't be awkward.

You are very financially secure and I think it would be nice to offer a lovely home to her.

You didn't answer the question is some of the money you get going to your SC too?

I think if this was a man saying they had separate savings for their biological child there would be different answers.

Are prenups legal in UK? Surely when you married your DH you realised he came as a package?

Exactly this.
Why bother marrying at all if you aren't going to share things?

I don't get it. Why not just stay as long term partners?
Are pre-nups actually watertight in the UK? I didn't think so.

Complaining that she now sounds like an arsehole, because someone points out she's doing nothing for herself and lapping up hand-outs, doesn't really achieve anything does it...

Unfair comment

If he’s giving her £200pw why does she need it at below market rate? I wouldn’t do it, what’s to say she won’t take the mess and try skipping payments? Why should you be out of pocket each month to help his ex?

Again, it's not to help the ex as much as it is to help the children she shares with the OP's husband - the OP's step children.

Sorry yes I do use a property management company, DH actually suggested that we could forgo using them and paying the Gardner and that would almost make up for the loss on rent if we did agree to a lease with her.

As for uni fees for my SC, my husband is saving for them, it’s nowhere near the same amount as my daughter has but I will most likely top it up so they have comparable experiences at uni, They will all be receiving a car when they pass their tests, but it won’t be super flash and there are conditions on receiving such as maintaining grades and having a small part time job.

Are you serious? The lady is working FT

Heartless insensitive post. Consequences of actions?????? The lady is working FT in a job that doesn't pay well. What has she done wrong????

Yes. 🙄
Soon someone will be on to ask if the ex has considered selling her own organs to raise some cash yet.
If not, she really isn't trying hard enough for goodness sake!

She must be on universal credit. With a tenancy agreement rent will be paid.

My thoughts too. OP doesn't need the money. No biggie

And only has her children 6mths of the year.

And gets her rent paid by UC

And gets £1000+ UC top up per month

And £200 CB per month

And £866 gifted to her each month off the person who takes her kids for 6mths a year.

So yeah, she's not doing too badly for money. Certainly isn't looking at working to earn more, even though she's got half the year to herself and her kids are already teenagers.

No,no. The thing to do here is gift her even more. Who cares if someone else's child's uni fund is where she's getting the thousands of pounds of gifts from...

Whatever you decide, first accept that effectively you'll never be able to kick her out. As the saying goes, only two people can end a tenancy, and the landlord isn't one of them. (And that was even before the new rules!)

Where are you getting all these numbers from?

Don’t do it. Too entangled.

Made up numbers based on someone thinking they know all about UC.

Well, no one should be evicted to make room for another but i understood from the OP the TA expires shortly and the tenant is moving on?

If not, then of course the option for the ex to rent shouldn't arise.

You automatically go onto a rolling contract unless the Tennant actively decides to give notice to move out, or the landlord evicts them.

Depends on the contract...

Fixed Term is exactly that, AST only rolls on to a periodic tenancy if agreed.

But not read all the thread so perhaps the OP has clarified this?

Like i said, if it has rolled on to a PT, then of course the tenant should be allowed to stay, no one shd be evicted to make room for another tenant.

Fixed term becomes a rolling contract unless proactively a new contract is agreed, the tenant wants to leave or the eviction process is started.

He’s giving them plenty of help financially plus having them live with him 50/50 so he does more than his equal share to look after his teenage children. Their wellbeing isn’t just on him, at what point does the mum step up to do more? The children are hers as well

But thats my point, we don't know what the original tenancy was.

My understanding is a FT contract is exactly that - Fixed, its a AST that rolls over at the end of, usually, 6 months.

But i may be wrong about this.