What can I do??

nutbrownhare15 · 29/11/2025 11:07

Talk to a mortgage advisor on whether you can get a buy to let mortgage to repair the damage. Can you get a job? Use free childcare?

Original poster

Throwaway1999 · 29/11/2025 11:09

nutbrownhare15 · 29/11/2025 11:07

Talk to a mortgage advisor on whether you can get a buy to let mortgage to repair the damage. Can you get a job? Use free childcare?

I will talk to them. The estate agents I talked to said my best bet was to market the property as-is as an investment opportunity but as I said I have had no luck.

I can't get a job as the hours I work are not compatible with *school and I wouldn't earn over the threshold to be eligible for free childcare

OP posts:

TheLurpackYears · 29/11/2025 17:47

If you aren't already a member, join the Residential Landlords Association and take their advice.
Get the flat insured going forward. If you can't get the flat shifted at auction then you are going to either borrow from family or raise a loan against the property to get it sorted.
Once it's sold you will hopefully have some equity to live off and in due course be eligible for benefits.

MickyTwig · 29/11/2025 17:47

If you wanted to sell it to release the equity, you could perhaps put it up for auction, but you'd get a lot less than market value sadly.

Janus · 29/11/2025 19:00

Why don’t you receive maintenance? My first thought is to apply for that and use that money and your hard work in school hours to put towards doing up the house? What awful tenants, I’m so sorry for the mess they’ve landed you in. I don’t suppose the deposit was much use?

CoheedandCambria · 29/11/2025 19:07

I can't get a job as the hours I work are not compatible with school and I wouldn't earn over the threshold to be eligible for free childcare*

I'm sorry but this doesn't really make sense.
You could look for any job that would be compatible with school hours.

You also say you live with family - any chance of a loan from a family member to fix some of the worse damage to the property? On the agreement you pay them back when the property is sold.

Edited

JustlittleMeandmyboys · 30/11/2025 00:25

I was in a very similar situation to you, single parent living with family with a rental property elsewhere in the country that I previously lived in. There IS a solution that seems to be little known (CAB didn't even know - they were utterly useless).

You need to put the property on the market and immediately apply for Universal Credit. Its in the rules that you can claim UC for 6 months whilst the property is on the market and this timeframe can be extended in some circumstances. My sale took 9 months and I still got UC for the extra 3 months. However, it also depends how much equity is in the property. You need to provide evidence to UC that once its sold and all debts you have etc are paid off, that you would be under the savings allowance (£16k I think). You can't deprive yourself of capital to achieve this unless its for things such as clearing your debts and sale costs.

I'll warn you though that you may have to appeal the claim decision as my claim wasn't accepted first time around because the claims handler wasn't aware of the rule. I submitted a mandatory reconsideration request and after around 2 months my claim was finally accepted and back-paid to my original application date.

Good luck!

Goldongold · 30/11/2025 00:36

Contact your council and ask about their Empty Homes scheme. There are grants for people to renovate to bring homes back into use. Some councils have a condition where you let them use it for accommodation but not all.

if you sell it you might have enough to buy into a suitable shared ownership scheme and then apply for universal credit to pay the rent portion. I’m not fond of shared ownership but might be worth a look.

it’s such a shame you have lost out on the rental as it sounds like you had a nice set up allowing you time at home with your children while they’re young. Nothing wrong with that. I was a single mum too and I’m still bitter that a married woman who does not work is a SAHM yet a single mum is called unemployed

good luck x

Theslummymummy · 30/11/2025 00:42

Sont be so dismissive, there are jobs in school hours! And you'd only have to earn !£190 per week to get the free childcare.

starrynight009 · 30/11/2025 07:44

That's a rubbish situation. How horrible of them to trash it. Sadly I hear that happening so often.

I have a school hours job. 20 hours a week spread out over 4 days. I've always worked in the charity sector and it's often very good for flexible working. I used to be a single mum with no maintenance either. Even if you can get UC, they will expect you to be job hunting once your youngest turns 3.

Agix · 30/11/2025 07:47

Price the flat cheap enough, and it will sell.

And get a job. Like everyone else who doesn't have property to rent does...

LottieMary · 30/11/2025 07:56

If you’re not working don’t you have the time while kids are at school to repair the damage?

HonoriaBulstrode · 30/11/2025 07:57

Isn't the damage covered by insurance?

Original poster

Throwaway1999 · 30/11/2025 08:04

JustlittleMeandmyboys · 30/11/2025 00:25

I was in a very similar situation to you, single parent living with family with a rental property elsewhere in the country that I previously lived in. There IS a solution that seems to be little known (CAB didn't even know - they were utterly useless).

You need to put the property on the market and immediately apply for Universal Credit. Its in the rules that you can claim UC for 6 months whilst the property is on the market and this timeframe can be extended in some circumstances. My sale took 9 months and I still got UC for the extra 3 months. However, it also depends how much equity is in the property. You need to provide evidence to UC that once its sold and all debts you have etc are paid off, that you would be under the savings allowance (£16k I think). You can't deprive yourself of capital to achieve this unless its for things such as clearing your debts and sale costs.

I'll warn you though that you may have to appeal the claim decision as my claim wasn't accepted first time around because the claims handler wasn't aware of the rule. I submitted a mandatory reconsideration request and after around 2 months my claim was finally accepted and back-paid to my original application date.

Good luck!

Oh that is amazing news thank you so much! I will look it up and see if it has a name so I can get more information. I’m so glad it worked out for you.

OP posts:

Original poster

Throwaway1999 · 30/11/2025 08:12

starrynight009 · 30/11/2025 07:44

That's a rubbish situation. How horrible of them to trash it. Sadly I hear that happening so often.

I have a school hours job. 20 hours a week spread out over 4 days. I've always worked in the charity sector and it's often very good for flexible working. I used to be a single mum with no maintenance either. Even if you can get UC, they will expect you to be job hunting once your youngest turns 3.

Thank you <3

Yes I have heard this about the charity sector but have just never gotten an interview after applying to any openings. I went through the national careers service as well and they basically just said they wouldn’t have anything available with my situation and hours.

How did you get your flexible job?

OP posts:

Original poster

Throwaway1999 · 30/11/2025 08:44

Goldongold · 30/11/2025 00:36

Contact your council and ask about their Empty Homes scheme. There are grants for people to renovate to bring homes back into use. Some councils have a condition where you let them use it for accommodation but not all.

if you sell it you might have enough to buy into a suitable shared ownership scheme and then apply for universal credit to pay the rent portion. I’m not fond of shared ownership but might be worth a look.

it’s such a shame you have lost out on the rental as it sounds like you had a nice set up allowing you time at home with your children while they’re young. Nothing wrong with that. I was a single mum too and I’m still bitter that a married woman who does not work is a SAHM yet a single mum is called unemployed

good luck x

Thank you so much I will definitely look into this scheme. Yes it was a really good way for us to support ourselves and I’ve been devastated at what has happened

A friend of mine also had this happen but the tenants were a front for a gang that gutted her flat and turned it into a drug lab. She never got any compensation for it

OP posts:

MyMiniMetro · 30/11/2025 12:52

Get a job, any job for whatever hours you can do, then take out a take a loan out against the property to get the money needed to fix it up?

Original poster

Throwaway1999 · 30/11/2025 15:15

MyMiniMetro · 30/11/2025 12:52

Get a job, any job for whatever hours you can do, then take out a take a loan out against the property to get the money needed to fix it up?

It’s easy to say take whatever job but you have to be accepted and I have only had one interview in months of applications and didn’t get accepted. I have daily alerts on my phone. In person told to apply online and then rejected. I tried doing surveys but was never paid. Minimum wage would firstly not pay over the threshold for free hours and secondly only applies for children under 4. National careers service said there is nothing they can do. By all means if this job was available I would take it.

OP posts:

Benjithedog · 30/11/2025 17:09

Throwaway1999 · 29/11/2025 10:59

Background - single mother of 3, don't receive maintenance.

We live with family and I rented out the flat I owned pre-children as our only income which generated around 19,000 a year.

But the last tenants I had did not pay rent and trashed the property and only left after a very long battle. I can't have any new tenants due to the damage.

Due to the property being an asset I am also not eligible for any financial assistance, but the lack of rental income and damages have now depleted all my savings and I won't get help until I can sell it, but I have had no buyers interested in the property due to the damage.

How can I get help until the property is sold? CAB said there is nothing they can do and we're not eligible for anything except church food banks.

You need to chase your ex for maintenance. He is the one who should be paying for maintenance for his children. Then get a job. Millions have to and you shouldn’t be any different .

Suednymph · 30/11/2025 17:31

Move into your property and do the repairs yourself while kids are in school and apply for cms.

LIZS · 30/11/2025 18:38

You are probably being overlooked by being so dogmatic about your restricted hours. On your other thread people have pointed put that cm rates are well under nmw so you would not necessary lose out and could claim additional funding. However you seem happy to ignore advice given. Sooner or layer you would be mandated to work under uc rules when your youngest hits 3/4 so you need to be prepared. Did you pay tax on your rental income as you may be able to offset some of the repair costs.

MyMiniMetro · 30/11/2025 22:11

Throwaway1999 · 30/11/2025 15:15

It’s easy to say take whatever job but you have to be accepted and I have only had one interview in months of applications and didn’t get accepted. I have daily alerts on my phone. In person told to apply online and then rejected. I tried doing surveys but was never paid. Minimum wage would firstly not pay over the threshold for free hours and secondly only applies for children under 4. National careers service said there is nothing they can do. By all means if this job was available I would take it.

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You could still look into a loan against the property if you have enough equity in it.

Fiestafiesta · 01/12/2025 07:53

If all your children are at school, and you live with family, it’s slightly outrageous that your first instinct is to ask for benefit money. You can get any job if all your children are over 4, and use afterschool clubs or similar which are cheap. You could sell the flat at auction - for less than you might want, but still I bet for a substantial amount. You could move back into it and do it up yourself as your full time job. You are not helpless, you are a grown woman with options.