No homes for babies!

[AnnieRadl]

Hello all,

My husband has just accepted a permanent lectureship at the University of Oxford, and we're looking to relocate to Oxford from Cambridge shortly after the birth of our first child in August.

However, so far we've been turned down by 6 letting agencies/landlords who don't want babies in the houses (citing everything from preference to fears about babies getting hurt in gardens!).

We're so surprised! We are both professionals, with great references, etc. (everything you would hope would get you a place) - we're not quite sure where to go next.

Can anyone please help us by recommending a child-friendly landlord or letting agency looking to let to a responsible family that wants to take great care of a house and make it a home for the next few years?

We're looking for 2-3 bedrooms, within 2 miles of city centre - for up to £1200 a month.

If anyone has any advice - we would greatly appreciate it!
Thanks!
Annie

Hi, have you tried the university's accommodation office? They have a list of private housing and may be able to offer you advice about family-friendly agencies etc: www.admin.ox.ac.uk/accommodation/

@LeapingLizard

We haven't tried the university accomodation office (only the college) - we didn't realise they have a list of private housing. Will do! Thanks so much!

Hey - we've tweeted this out to some of our contacts and may have some expert advice soon. Keep fingers crossed

Thanks so much! That was really thoughtful - and much appreciated!

Sorry you aren't having any luck. Landlords worry about babies for all sorts of reasons and many in Oxford are fixated on having 'professional tenants' which means two people working full time. So, what you are probably being labelled as is a one income family so at higher risk of default.

If you know that you can afford the rent on a property with your dh's income alone one thing you could do is send him on viewings on his own and then only mention a wife not a baby. Lots of tenants end up having babies in rental properties that they didn't have when they moved in because that's just how life goes! You would be no different.

Also, have you considered looking at Abingdon which is on a good regular bus route to Oxford (every 10 mins) and has more family sized properties in your price range? Landlord there aren't quite so 'Professional tenant' fixated so you're more likely to be considered acceptable tenants.

Thanks so much BlueDoor - knew you'd have some sage words!

Dear all,

I'm Annie's husband and I just wanted to thank you all for your helpful comments. I also wanted to draw your attention to another forum post that I placed on mumsnet last week which I think taps into some of the issues BlueDoorEA is making:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/2099601-Rental-discrimination?noti=1#47501514

Ultimately I think BlueDoorEA is correct, it does seem like private renters/ estate agents in the city are fixated on Professional tenants. However, the thread I just posted attempts to find out a bit more about the legality of this preference, especially when it comes to families who are pregnant or have small children.

I've done a bit of research into this over the last week and it appears that it may be unlawful (under the terms of the Equalities Act 2010) to discriminate against families because they are either pregnant or have recently given birth--as has been the case in our situation.

I am following this matter up with the various official bodies to seek further clarification. However, I just wanted to direct Oxford mums and dads to this thread to raise awareness of their rights and the responsibilities of LLs/EAs under the Equalities Act.

Further information can be found here:
www.adviceguide.org.uk/england/housing_e/housing_renting_a_home_e/renting_from_a_private_landlord.htm#h_discrimination_by_private_landlords

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-24372509

Best wishes

Dkh

I agree and although we don't discriminate in this way, other agents will tell you that landlords have the ultimate decision and they will hide behind that and much other smoke when discriminating against all sorts of people.

At the end of the day, this is more about money than anything else. This is the scenario: landlords want as much money as they can get, in the cleanest way they can get it and agents feed their madness. Two tenants each earning 20k or more is an appealing prospect in terms of security of rent payments, wear and tear is kept to a minimum as they are out all day, and they don't stay long which means agents get more fees every time they re-let the property.

We are an unusual agent and we don't think this way. We know that families stay in properties for longer and our landlords think that is a good thing. There are many advantages to having a family in and out of the house all day and it is good for communities too.

I am renting at the moment with dh and three children 7, 11 and 17. I struggled to find a landlord willing to let to us and we took the children with us when we viewed this place to show them that they were past scribbling on walls or peeing on carpets. The last person who lived in this huge 3 bed flat was a single man!

Good luck

Hi, unfortunately we had the same problem last year when we first rented in the area as a family as opposed to a couple. A really difficult issue, made worse by the fact that we could only afford a flat and not a house, only to be told that the majority of the flats we were interested in we're unsuitable, due to issues with the leasehold. In the end we persevered and we were lucky to find somewhere. If it doesn't work, you may need to up the budget or widen the search area or try uni, as others have suggested. Good luck and enjoy your time in our beautiful city!

I certainly know several families with babies and toddlers renting in Headington and cowley....not as smart as north oxford but very liveable.