Ever asked for a reduction in rent

[croyde]

And been successful.

Lack of work and it's starting to be a struggle. I could move to somewhere cheaper.

I am a good tenant and the rents locally appear to have gone down. If I were to sign something saying that I wouldn't move for a couple of years maybe.

Just putting the question out there.

Cheers.

[alfabeat]

I rent out a few houses so speak from experience. Last year one of the tenants came to me asking for a rent reduction for a time period, as she had lost her job. I agreed to it on the basis that when she got back into work this rent would go back to the original level.

This was better for me than finding a new tenant and the costs associated with such, and she had been an excellent tenant for 3 years.

Go to your landlord with a realistic plan, rather than just ask for an outright reduction. Renting out houses is a business and is getting less and less profitable each year, so be Pro active and realistic and hopefully the landlord will be fair with you. Good luck.

[croyde]

Cheers

[Andehh]

Considering sweetening the deal for him by offering to do any needed decorating/garden work/bits & bobs round the house?

Have any skills that might be useful to him around the house?

[croyde]

It's a big business. The landord is like the local squire. He owns almost all the 'hamlet' so he has his men, who do all the work.

Much better than my last landlord. A Russian lady who took 3 months to fix my hot water and couldn't stop telling me how it was affecting her substantial profit

Shame but I think it's time to down size and move, possibly back to London to save on commuting costs and get far cheaper council tax.

[EireEng]

croyde said:

I

back to London to save on commuting costs and get far cheaper council tax.

Didn't think I'd see "London" and "Save on costs" in the same sentence

[croyde]

Haha. I know.

I could swap my little rental cottage in Surrey, the ludicrous Surrey council tax and the £5000 a year in petrol and trains for a reasonable rental flat in Wandsworth. Probably hard to believe but it's true

I will be giving up the beautiful countryside though

[Chrisgr31]

croyde said:

Haha. I know.

I could swap my little rental cottage in Surrey, the ludicrous Surrey council tax and the £5000 a year in petrol and trains for a reasonable rental flat in Wandsworth. Probably hard to believe but it's true

I will be giving up the beautiful countryside though

Your council tax in Surrey is cheap to ours in Sussex! I did a comparison last year and ours is one of the top in the country, partly due to the town council.

My experience is more commercial but we often get tenants seeking rent concessions etc and whether they are agreed depends on the client landlord and the tenant. I was talking to a childhood friend of my wife the other day who was concerned he wasn't getting enough rent for his parents old home as it was let to a friend of a friend etc.

I pointed out that he was far better off getting the rent consistently, not having to have a void during marketing periods, not having marketing costs, having a reliable tenant who treated place as there own doing minor DIY etc. So all in all even if he wasnt earning maximum rent he was probably better off in long run.

Therefore it is worth asking a landlord for rent reduction if its justified or you have a good reason.

[thebraketester]

I did about 8 years ago. We were paying 1095, and I negotiated 950PCM and paid that for the next 3/4 years until we moved out. It was probably worth about 1200PCM by the end so I was fairly happy with the deal.

[QuickQuack]

I'd also be quite willing to consider, and almost certainly agree to, a rent reduction in if my tenants came to me with that. They've been in for years and are good as gold. I'd much rather keep a good tenant on a lower rental than risk an unknown one.

[pork911]

Signing something saying you won't move for a couple of years would be useless unless an enforceable contract, even if possible you would be an absolute fool to sign it.


Anyway, just speak to your landlord. Only they know their appetite for a possible void and then a new tenant they don't know. Depending on the local market you might want to present it as a temporary reduction though.

[croyde]

Thanks for all the advice people. Cheers