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Original poster

What does a 62 year old man on just above minimum wage do when served with section 21 eviction notice and cannot afford anything on the current rental market?

549 replies

Mxflamingnoravera · 09/11/2023 21:31

I have a friend aged 62 who has been living in a pretty awful but liveable one bed flat for six years. He works full time in a call centre on little more than minimum wage. The flat was recently assessed by the local authority as part of a new local licensing scheme for private rental properties in our city. It needs a lot of work done on it and today he was served with a section 21 order because (he was told) the builders say it's too much work to have him stay there whilst the place is brought up to standard.

He has looked around an there is nothing under £900 a month in our city. He cannot afford this. He has no car and cycles everywhere. So he needs to live fairly close to his workplace.

He is devastated, he cannot live in a shared house at his age. He is a very private, shy man, has few friends and no family.

I'm at a loss to know how to help him. He cannot live with me, i have no space and do not want a lodger.

There is literally nothing affordable in our city. He is looking at homelessness in January. What happens to people like him?

OP posts:
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Original poster
Mxflamingnoravera · 07/12/2023 17:40

Great news. He has been offered an over 55s HA one bed flat and accepted it. Available on 21 December subject to it being deep cleaned and decorated in time. All your advice about housing and UC has been so valuable and he is so grateful and relieved. A happy ending at last. Thanks for all your advice and support.
Now to scour freecycle for the bits he needs to make it home. 😁

OP posts:
minipie · 07/12/2023 17:46

Oh that’s fantastic news. Well done!!

PS Try Olio as well as Freecycle.

exexpat · 07/12/2023 17:55

Brilliant news!

What sort of stuff does he need?

AllTangledUpInTitlesAndTiaras · 07/12/2023 17:56

Ah how fantastic! He (and you) must be so relieved.

What a great way to end the year, and it what a hopeful, settled start to 2024.

That's seriously made my day.

Flowers to you @Mxflamingnoravera for being a great friend.

Twiglets1 · 07/12/2023 18:01

Mxflamingnoravera · 07/12/2023 17:40

Great news. He has been offered an over 55s HA one bed flat and accepted it. Available on 21 December subject to it being deep cleaned and decorated in time. All your advice about housing and UC has been so valuable and he is so grateful and relieved. A happy ending at last. Thanks for all your advice and support.
Now to scour freecycle for the bits he needs to make it home. 😁

That’s amazing, thanks so much for letting us know the happy outcome.

Well done you! You helped him so much you deserve to give yourself a well earned treat 😀

Itsjustmeee · 07/12/2023 18:17

wow what an amazing Christmas present that is for him
that’s fantastic news

well done both you and him

It’s taken less than a month to get your friend a secure tenancy which in this climate for secure housing is bloody amazing

You have been an amazing friend to him and I hope he will be very happy and settled in his new home

Ilovethewild · 07/12/2023 18:40

That’s great news op, thanks for updating us with such good news.

the HA may also have access or referrals for grants, benefit support etc. they will also want to enable him to contact them if he needs to. There may be staff he can contact and who will contact him.

encourage him to engage with them,

well done 👍💐

Crikeyalmighty · 07/12/2023 18:54

Fab news- I remember in my first post saying it's a rare bonus but being over60 can. E an advantage as it gets you into the over 55 market- which whilst still being in demand are less of a bun fight than the family sized flats and homes!!

Seymour5 · 07/12/2023 19:11

Great news! Security of tenure, I really hope he’s in and settled soon. One of the few occasions when being older can work in your favour. Sharing knowledge is one of the best things about MN.

@Mxflamingnoravera you have been such a good friend, I hope you can relax a bit in 2024.

Beautiful3 · 07/12/2023 20:24

Brilliant news! Well done.

Towerofsong · 07/12/2023 20:59

I have no answers, but I just want to say this is heartbreaking... someone works all of their life and all they have to look forward to is shitty mouldy accommodation or having to live in a house share.

Awful and so bloody unfair.

I hope one of the suggestions for over 55 accommodation works out, he may need to go through some medium term pain in emergency housing but hopefully long term he will get a better place than he had before.

DianaTiana · 07/12/2023 21:26

Great news! I hope he'll be very happy in his new home. Well done OP.

VitoCorleoneOfMNMafia · 07/12/2023 23:54

Towerofsong · 07/12/2023 20:59

I have no answers, but I just want to say this is heartbreaking... someone works all of their life and all they have to look forward to is shitty mouldy accommodation or having to live in a house share.

Awful and so bloody unfair.

I hope one of the suggestions for over 55 accommodation works out, he may need to go through some medium term pain in emergency housing but hopefully long term he will get a better place than he had before.

Read the last update. OP's friend has a flat offered.

Star OP, that's wonderful. You've been a fantastic friend.

NotEvenThought · 08/12/2023 00:47

That really is good news. Well done OP and well done OPs friend.

KievLoverTwo · 08/12/2023 01:14

Mxflamingnoravera · 07/12/2023 17:40

Great news. He has been offered an over 55s HA one bed flat and accepted it. Available on 21 December subject to it being deep cleaned and decorated in time. All your advice about housing and UC has been so valuable and he is so grateful and relieved. A happy ending at last. Thanks for all your advice and support.
Now to scour freecycle for the bits he needs to make it home. 😁

This week has been has been really rubbish, but the conclusion of this thread, along it reinforcing that there are people like you in the world who care enough and fight for people who are not necessarily capable of fighting for themselves has made it at least 10 percent less rubbish.

I am sure there should be more punctuation in that. I am too tired to brain.

Excellent work, OP. For all the bun fighting that occurs on MN, it's so gratifying when someone in need gets really important advice after asking here.

lifeliketravel · 08/12/2023 01:16

YireosDodeAver · 09/11/2023 22:49

Make sure he knows not to leave. Ensure he has changed the locks so that the LL cannot carry out an illegal eviction.
A section 21 notice is not an eviction order. It is the landlord giving notice that they intend to apply to the court for an eviction order. Getting that process concluded will take years. He will not be homeless in January. If he keeps paying the rent he has the right to quiet enjoyment of his home unmolested by the landlord and he does not have to allow the landlord in or consent to building improvements. The landlord cannot throw him out. Only the baliffs can do that after a court orders it. There is an enormous backlog and the court process will take a while.

Once that court order is obtained he will be a priority for housing. There will be something appropriate available which he cannot currently access because he is currently adequately and legally housed.

For sure

YireosDodeAver · 08/12/2023 06:38

Well done @Mxflamingnoravera brilliant news and thanks for the update

Towerofsong · 08/12/2023 07:44

So pleased to read the update ☺️
Well done to OP and the power of Mumsnet!

TooOldForThisNonsense · 08/12/2023 09:25

Oh that’s amazing news. Hope he’s soon in, and happy and settled.

bunnibee · 08/12/2023 10:43

@Mxflamingnoravera you wrote earlier that the flat your friend is in now is uninhabitable and that he has a deposit, which obviously needs to come back to him.
Please make sure when he vacates that you take lots of photographs of the place, so he can argue the toss with his landlord about the return of the deposit if you think he is going to keep it. Are you certain the original deposit is in one of the government schemes? he should have a certificate for this with the original tenancy agreement. Again, lots of photo's to support any claims.

Original poster
Mxflamingnoravera · 08/12/2023 10:57

@bunnibee he's on the case with this. The agent is saying he has to give a months notice and pay for that month even if he has already vacated. He's taking pics of the damp and the mould (although he's been diligently scrubbing it all off in fear of not getting his deposit back) he will argue that it's uninhabitable so notice should not apply. The deposit is in a proper scheme.
He is very risk averse and terrified of confrontation so I've showed him how to use chat got to write letters to support his arguments- he's happily generating letters of complaint and refusal to pay now! The difference in his voice from last week to yesterday is palpable. He has has some intonation back (he's never had much! But what he had is back), he's making plans and he is counting down the days until 21st. He just hopes the cleaning and redecorating don't run over and he's left in the shithole over Christmas with everything in boxes.

OP posts:
Twiglets1 · 08/12/2023 11:04

Mxflamingnoravera · 08/12/2023 10:57

@bunnibee he's on the case with this. The agent is saying he has to give a months notice and pay for that month even if he has already vacated. He's taking pics of the damp and the mould (although he's been diligently scrubbing it all off in fear of not getting his deposit back) he will argue that it's uninhabitable so notice should not apply. The deposit is in a proper scheme.
He is very risk averse and terrified of confrontation so I've showed him how to use chat got to write letters to support his arguments- he's happily generating letters of complaint and refusal to pay now! The difference in his voice from last week to yesterday is palpable. He has has some intonation back (he's never had much! But what he had is back), he's making plans and he is counting down the days until 21st. He just hopes the cleaning and redecorating don't run over and he's left in the shithole over Christmas with everything in boxes.

Wishing him all the best.

bunnibee · 08/12/2023 12:33

Good man! - he's on the ball, @Mxflamingnoravera I hope he gets in on the 21st.

If he can stand to look at it and it's not detrimental to his health then I would tell him not to clean off the mould toooo much, for the last week or so. Show it in its true colours.

(coming from me, who's a landlord 🤐)

TwoBlueFish · 08/12/2023 18:07

What a great update, well done

JenniferBooth · 08/12/2023 21:30

Oh im so pleased he has had an offer. @Mxflamingnoravera you are a bloody good friend