Landlords discriminating against DSS tenants
Discussion
Heads up, Panorama on tonight 'The Universal Credit Crisis': (Council rent arrears)
BBC1 - 7:30pm
https://www.radiotimes.com/tv-programme/e/g8kpqj/p...
As the Government's controversial new benefits system Universal Credit is rolled out, Catrin Nye is with families surviving on food bank handouts as they struggle with their claims, and the programme follows a council as it deals with mounting rent arrears and tenants in crisis. The Government has responded to criticism of the new system by announcing an extra £1.7 billion, but is it too little too late?
BBC1 - 7:30pm
https://www.radiotimes.com/tv-programme/e/g8kpqj/p...
Hang on... due to tenants being f
kwits and spending the money on friviolus crap they cant afford, there is a £1.7 billion hole in owed money.
Yet when on the old scheme of everything is paid direct and the only complaints were its against the human rights and doesnt empower them. Well that £1.7 billion lesson that we all knew but the lefties forced on the taxpayers.
kwits and spending the money on friviolus crap they cant afford, there is a £1.7 billion hole in owed money.Yet when on the old scheme of everything is paid direct and the only complaints were its against the human rights and doesnt empower them. Well that £1.7 billion lesson that we all knew but the lefties forced on the taxpayers.
Du1point8 said:
Hang on... due to tenants being fkwits and spending the money on friviolus crap they cant afford, there is a £1.7 billion hole in owed money.
Yet when on the old scheme of everything is paid direct and the only complaints were its against the human rights and doesnt empower them. Well that £1.7 billion lesson that we all knew but the lefties forced on the taxpayers.
Indeed, about to tune in now.kwits and spending the money on friviolus crap they cant afford, there is a £1.7 billion hole in owed money.Yet when on the old scheme of everything is paid direct and the only complaints were its against the human rights and doesnt empower them. Well that £1.7 billion lesson that we all knew but the lefties forced on the taxpayers.
My first reaction was that its not surprising that they dont want DSS - but then when you watch the usual TV programmes about evictions from private lets, its probably 50/50 the amount of employed / DSS that dont pay the rent and eventually get evicted.
There is good and bad from every group or section of society - would imagine its a bit of a lottery for landlords on who they get.
An old colleague of mine whom I have on Facebook rents out a house and for the last three or four years he has had three or four different tenants - every single one of them, despite been in paid employment, trashed the place when leaving.
There is good and bad from every group or section of society - would imagine its a bit of a lottery for landlords on who they get.
An old colleague of mine whom I have on Facebook rents out a house and for the last three or four years he has had three or four different tenants - every single one of them, despite been in paid employment, trashed the place when leaving.
Chainsaw Rebuild said:
I'm about to become a landlord and I wouldn't entertain the idea of a DSS tenant. I was given the advice "only rent to professionals who have a steady job - i.e. responsible and with something to lose". Seems like good advice to me.
I’ve DSS tenants and have had no problems. The secret is checking prospective tenants DSS or otherwise very diligently.Chainsaw Rebuild said:
I'm about to become a landlord and I wouldn't entertain the idea of a DSS tenant. I was given the advice "only rent to professionals who have a steady job - i.e. responsible and with something to lose". Seems like good advice to me.
Good advice, and always best with your first property or only property to only allow the absolute best tenant that can be found. If you’re going to rent to DSS you really do need to be a landlord that understands DSS people. What has seemingly caught many landlords out is that they have kitted their properties out far too expensively and as if lending to a more affluent/educated sector.
This is probably where someone like Groak scores well. He knows and understands his market.
I get why the Govt made the change re paying tennents not LL. It does force financial prudence onto people while also pushing a lot of the risk into the private sector. But there does come a time when change is needed.
However, something that really does need to change is that we need to move back to a wage system below say £20k/year. The salary system that low income earners have been pushed into simply is wrong. There was a very good reason why such workers for hundreds of years were paid weekly and not monthly. Pay people £1000 at the start of the month and there is no chance that money will remain by the end of the month to meet all obligations and this pushes millions into stty debt and arrears. Revert to paying people weekly and billing them their rent and utilities weekly. £250 goes in on a Friday morning and instantly £225 comes out for their rent and bills and that weekend they have £25 for beer and Chinese tat.
Going back to weekly wages would help so many people who we all know will never be able to budget and always go on a payday bender.
This is probably where someone like Groak scores well. He knows and understands his market.
I get why the Govt made the change re paying tennents not LL. It does force financial prudence onto people while also pushing a lot of the risk into the private sector. But there does come a time when change is needed.
However, something that really does need to change is that we need to move back to a wage system below say £20k/year. The salary system that low income earners have been pushed into simply is wrong. There was a very good reason why such workers for hundreds of years were paid weekly and not monthly. Pay people £1000 at the start of the month and there is no chance that money will remain by the end of the month to meet all obligations and this pushes millions into s
tty debt and arrears. Revert to paying people weekly and billing them their rent and utilities weekly. £250 goes in on a Friday morning and instantly £225 comes out for their rent and bills and that weekend they have £25 for beer and Chinese tat. Going back to weekly wages would help so many people who we all know will never be able to budget and always go on a payday bender.
DonkeyApple said:
However, something that really does need to change is that we need to move back to a wage system below say £20k/year. The salary system that low income earners have been pushed into simply is wrong. There was a very good reason why such workers for hundreds of years were paid weekly and not monthly. Pay people £1000 at the start of the month and there is no chance that money will remain by the end of the month to meet all obligations and this pushes millions into stty debt and arrears. Revert to paying people weekly and billing them their rent and utilities weekly. £250 goes in on a Friday morning and instantly £225 comes out for their rent and bills and that weekend they have £25 for beer and Chinese tat.
Going back to weekly wages would help so many people who we all know will never be able to budget and always go on a payday bender.
I agree with all this.tty debt and arrears. Revert to paying people weekly and billing them their rent and utilities weekly. £250 goes in on a Friday morning and instantly £225 comes out for their rent and bills and that weekend they have £25 for beer and Chinese tat. Going back to weekly wages would help so many people who we all know will never be able to budget and always go on a payday bender.
JaredVannett said:
So you are able to vet prospective DSS tenants before agreeing rather than just saying yes and praying for decent tenants?
Basically, yes. Previous record, referees, guarantor, google, affordability. Same for any tenant DSS or otherwise. Get it right and you get good, long term tenants - win, win.DonkeyApple said:
£250 goes in on a Friday morning and instantly £225 comes out for their rent and bills and that weekend they have £25 for beer and Chinese tat.
Whilst I understand you were exaggerating for comedic effect, you have highlighted the real problem in this sentence, which is a lack of disposable income. I think that politicians on the right use this ‘unable to budget’ trope to avoid confronting the hard problem, which is that living costs are too high for those at the bottom of the income distribution. HB in its current incarnation has a lot to do with this, as it basically sets a floor on private market rental levels.
Plus on the paying to LL/tenant issue there is a consideration as to the power balance in the relationship. If paid to LL tenant has no leverage over landlord to fix things in the property or withhold rent to do it themselves (as I have in rented properties in the past).
NickCQ said:
.
Plus on the paying to LL/tenant issue there is a consideration as to the power balance in the relationship. If paid to LL tenant has no leverage over landlord to fix things in the property or withhold rent to do it themselves (as I have in rented properties in the past).
that's not true. Tenants can get the council involved to inspect and force a landlord to repair. Once a council issue a notice that prevents the landlord issuing a s21 notice for 6 months. Retaliation against eviction act.Plus on the paying to LL/tenant issue there is a consideration as to the power balance in the relationship. If paid to LL tenant has no leverage over landlord to fix things in the property or withhold rent to do it themselves (as I have in rented properties in the past).
Edited by superlightr on Saturday 17th November 10:21
superlightr said:
NickCQ said:
.
Plus on the paying to LL/tenant issue there is a consideration as to the power balance in the relationship. If paid to LL tenant has no leverage over landlord to fix things in the property or withhold rent to do it themselves (as I have in rented properties in the past).
that's not true. Tenants can get the council involved to inspect and force a landlord to repair. Once a council issue a notice that prevents the landlord issuing a s21 notice for 6 months. Retaliation against eviction act.Plus on the paying to LL/tenant issue there is a consideration as to the power balance in the relationship. If paid to LL tenant has no leverage over landlord to fix things in the property or withhold rent to do it themselves (as I have in rented properties in the past).
Edited by superlightr on Saturday 17th November 10:21
Paying to the tennent is the correct thing but doing so on a monthly basis is a major part of the issue. The whole payment and bill structure should be moved back to weekly and frankly, in this modern world there should be the desire to consider the merits of a daily system.
It does seem logical. If you want to rent at the very bottom of the market then you shouldn’t have any right to block entire groups. The poorest now get to join the ranks of the Irish, ‘blacks’ and homosexuals in landlords not being able to put up placards saying ‘no’ to all of them. Instead, the landlord must have a more specific reason such as absence of a viable track record of payment etc or increase their charges to price out such people.
I think that in general this is a bit of a non issue for landlords operating down at the base of the market and simply brings the poorest people, as a group, into line with other groups that have had this basic, minimum right for far longer.
But where it is a problem is the higher end of the market. It’s not uncommon in London for the council to rent prime quality and location apartments. There was one opposite us in Hampstead that was destroyed by a family of asylum seekers. It was unbelievable. And probably quite a lot of ‘affordable housing’ that was built into big apartment builds in London and supposed to permanently add to supply at the bottom end goes onto the private rental market and Airbnb as quickly as it can get away with and it may curb that loss of supply?
I think that in general this is a bit of a non issue for landlords operating down at the base of the market and simply brings the poorest people, as a group, into line with other groups that have had this basic, minimum right for far longer.
But where it is a problem is the higher end of the market. It’s not uncommon in London for the council to rent prime quality and location apartments. There was one opposite us in Hampstead that was destroyed by a family of asylum seekers. It was unbelievable. And probably quite a lot of ‘affordable housing’ that was built into big apartment builds in London and supposed to permanently add to supply at the bottom end goes onto the private rental market and Airbnb as quickly as it can get away with and it may curb that loss of supply?
KrazyIvan said:
LL will just use/ask employment status now and make an educated guess as to where the rent money will be coming from
Pretty much. DSS tenants aren’t a problem if you do your homework properly.indeed, during lockdown they are great. DSS pays the rent On time, no problems.Gassing Station | Finance | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff