No rental properties. Going to be homeless and so scared

[Cola133]

We are a family of 4 mature adults, ages 78, 68, 47 & 43. We can afford rent up to £2k pcm, but there are just no properties available. We have searched up to 40 miles within all directions from my sister's job, but the competition is so fierce and we keep losing out despite being financially stable and looking for long term! I am absolutely in despair, we are going to be homeless! Our current landlord is selling our property, I just don't know what to do. We also have a cat and I just can't give him up. I can't sleep or eat, I might as well be dead, this situation is so awful, the worse I have ever experienced in my life. I feel so unsafe. Any advice please? Thank you

Have an alert set up on rightmove when new properties are listed and have it filtered to newly listed always. Speak to agents to ask them to ring you if one is on or coming on. We had a nightmare years ago trying to rent and kept missing out but as I phoned the agent multiple times about different properties I think they felt sorry for me and rang when a credit check fell through on someone else, we had to make a decision to sign up while in the property otherwise it was going back on. There’s a couple in rightmove come up with one saying it’s been reduced and a couple added yesterday. Maybe try ringing about these if the price is reduced they obviously haven’t been able to fill it yet. Get on the agents straight away today when they open if it’s suitable (also a lack of photos which might put people off)

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/131159588#/?channel=RES_LET

@MarieG10

Exactly! We have a few properties that we rent out to long term tenants and we are excellent landlords (if I say so myself 😉). All the vitriol on here and from the government about us really gets my goat.
As you can see, there is a dire need for such services. Not everyone can/wants to buy.

The two elder members are entitled to a council property and that would mean the younger two may find it easier it to rent a property.

This is spot on. My DM has been a landlord for years, she’s never put the rent up for stable tenants etc and has had several long term leases over two properties, but she’s selling both. The fear she can’t sell when she might need to and all the new restrictions have made it impossible. I understand the basic premise behind it all, but most of the people who rent are not in a position to buy these homes when they come on the market, it will be a long time before the idea benefits the people it’s supposed to. God knows what happens to them in the meantime.

OP this is an unusual living situation which may just put landlords off. Can you look for a 2 bed for the single people and a 1 bed for the couple?

perhaps the agent/LL think it is an unofficial HMO situation for which I think there are extra regulations.

For many small landlords there are pressing needs that make them sell. We’ve sold to give DDs deposits for their homes. We do not want the money tied up in property any longer after 20 plus years. We also don’t want tenants to stay forever and we cannot get property back due to the government saying that in the future no fault eviction will be forbidden. They think it’s the best for the tenant. But it’s tying up our money for too long snd it has other uses for our family.

Landlords with large portfolios are not the same. However many landlords are not happy!

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/129155474

This has been up a while. Nice area

I would look at Uckfield and heathfield in East Sussex. Cheaper areas to rent and lots of
Options for you.

Ps good luck, it is a slog but you willl get there!

Sadly not, all too old to get a long enough length of term and wages not high enough for the extortionate house prices now. All we could buy is a beach hut!

Thank you. Yes we have been looking all over the south east of england, from Portsmouth to Dover and up to outer London. thanks again

Please don't use nextdoor, very dodgy company.

I appreciate that you’re looking in a huge area, but there is no substitute for eyeballing some of the letting agents and keeping in weekly contact with them.

Could you maybe split the areas up, and each take a few towns or a city?

I think Rightmove is a waste of time, as most rentals go before they’re advertised online. The agents have their lists of potential applicants.

Please post again in legal matters. If you have been served a s21 you can apply to your local authority as at risk to f homelessness and they have a legal duty to help you come up with a plan to prevent homelessness. Initially the advice will be to do what you are doing - look on Rightmove. But they can also help you apply for accommodation in the social rented sector if you are eligible. They may contact your landlord re the s21 though if they are selling that's probably unpreventable. And in many areas due to the shortage of private rented accommodation authorities maintain lists of landlords, and act as guarantors. Do this as a back up plan even while you are still applying for properties privately. You will not be homeless - as others have said there's a massive shortage of supply and your household is atypical which makes you marginally less attractive tenants but there is help out there.

Are you not in a position to buy OP? It sounds like (from what you've said) that you've enough money coming in.

Oh seen you've answered, sorry.

You do need to contact you local housing options too they will open your prevention case, then relief if landlords gets a possession order. Then main duty.

Register on the housing register today.

I would suggest that you look at how you are trying to accommodate everyone. You are competing with others for 3 bed properties. They are the most sought after.

Start seeing who might have the cat on a temp basis. Realistically though you are 2 months away from section 21 expiring. Then your landlord has to go for court which will take a while. Do not leave at the end of your section 21. You will be found as intentionally homeless if you don’t stay put til warrant enacted.

I think this thread shows how the majority of people don't understand how dire the situation is. I'm in a totally different part of the UK to you but there are literally no rental properties here, those that do have literally 100's of applicants. As some have pointed out the government have made it very complex to be a landlord, and with the demand for air bnb type places this is what most 'rental' houses are. As a result we have plenty of empty houses, especially in the winter and a high homeless rate.
No advice OP, word of mouth is normally your best bet, we also went old school and put 'wanted' adverts up in local shops. It still took over 3 years,

Right as a landlady myself I suggest you target your landlord, he is going to be very keen you leave before court proceedings.
Explain your difficulties to him and suggest he write a reference letter explaining your circumstances and excellent track record as tenants so you can then visit letting agents with a copy.
If unsuccessful I would be asking who he hopes to sell with and if that agent could source you a rental/bump you up the list to secure the sole agency house sale.
I reckon you would go right to the top of the list if theres a vested interest.
Good luck.

I also have a contact for an excellent broker if you wanted to consider a mortgage.
DH is 66 and had no difficulties obtaining a mortgage last month via them.

I'm sorry you're struggling to find a rental.

perhaps some of the gobby 'landlords are evil/it's immoral to rent out property' might STFU, when they finally get it through their thick heads that people need rental properties.

the Govt have caved & are making being a private landlord almost impossible, definitely, certainly undesirable.

things like ending no fault end of tenancy are ridiculous.

I may go overseas to look after my elderly mum, my house will now sit empty because it's too risky to rent it out if I can't 'get it back' when I return. I'm not alone in this.

@Cola133 try a mortgage broker, you & your sister are not too old to get a mortgage. You could look at a shared ownership situation.

could you look at buying from your landlord?

Sympathy, the rental market is hideous and so competitive - we found there were queues of people at viewings, booked into ten minute slots. We got turned down for some 4 bed houses as we have a child(?!).

We have successfully mortgaged via a broker though. We're in 40s and 60s.

So agree re “landlords are evil” rhetoric. We have sold one rental property and left another empty while we arrange to sell it, rather than deal with being a LL in the current/future climate. The powers that be never seem to think these things through to their logical conclusion.

OP if you're not being selected due to being a family of 4 adults rather than a couple, I would just not even mention your elderly parents (presuming you can pass the affordability checks etc without them), rent it as a couple, and just move them in, and if landlord does a visit, just say they are staying temporarily.

It's a rubbish situation though and will only get worse. Society has decided that private landlord's are evil and should be punished. This is the result.

I know you've said you have tried everywhere but have you looked at Openrent OP? I get all my tenants from there.