UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hello

I am a new landlord and would be so so grateful of any advice anyone could help with.
We advertised our property did a viewing and the person said they wanted so they paid a deposit to secure it while we did the application form etc. The gentleman in the viewing said that he was working full time so we did not mention that we would not take anyone in receipt of housing benefit as our insurance stipulates there would be a higher premium and excess for this.
We have sent them an application form and the information returned is a bit sketchy to say the least. He asked that only his wife be on the tenancy and he named himself as the guarantor. When I questioned if he wife was working he replied yes. On the app form he has left the section incomplete regarding benefits and when I spoke with him he assured me that they were not. He has now agreed that he would go on the tenancy but it all seems a little bizzare.

He is not able to provide a current landlord as they are living with a family member.

I am I within my right to ask for a reference from his employer and that he provide bank statements to prove his income. Furthermore would my local council be able to confirm if they are in receipt of benefit or is this prohibited under the data protection act?

Should I complete a credit check.

Sorry for the lengthy message!

Thank you

Pay a company to reference him / them. It's a nominal amount and you won't be so easily hoodwinked.

Hi thanks so much for your reply. Would you suggest paying a letting agent to that or are there other companies that do that specifically?

Employer reference yes
Bank statements yes
Council is unlikely to discuss with you someone else's benefits set up (alttphough prospective tenant could provide paperwork)

If you already have the prospective tenant why would  you then employ a letting agent?
I would suggest do not.
You can get credit checks done quite simply these days...equifax, experian, noddle etc etc just google them on the internet.

His wife only on the tenancy and he as the guarantor?  You need to figure that out.
Even if he isnt named on the tenancy he will have equal rights to remain.  It seems unrealistic that a co-habiting spouse would not provide funds to his wife to pay the rent, therefore the concept of him acting as the guarantor is somewhat redundant.  Basically you will have no effective guarantor if you do this...if you are ok with that then no probs....

Quote from: Nickyg on April 18, 2016, 09:26:01 PM
Hi thanks so much for your reply. Would you suggest paying a letting agent to that or are there other companies that do that specifically?

Hmm. Normally no. You seem quite green though, no offence. I would not want you to make expensive mistakes. What have you done so far? Are you taking a deposit?

There are indeed various checks you can do.However experience has taught me that you should also trust your gut instinct.To have unusual requests,conflicting information etc.from the outset would really set alarms bells ringing.Unless you are finding it very hard to let the place (unlikely in the current market) I would reject the application.Not sure where you stand re the holding deposit,but even if you have to return all or part of it,it could prove less stressful in the longterm.Some decent people do have to bend the truth a bit to get a home of course,and can end up being good tenants. 

I'll state the obvious and say to move on and find another tenant yourself.  You can use a decent agency around to find a tenant, do the checks and pay a one-off fee (so you're not tied in)

Way too many things not adding up and considering you're new - you already suspect it's dodgy so send a nice note declining and move on

Thank you all for your help and advice it is much appreciated!

Quote from: Notgotascoobie on April 19, 2016, 12:29:00 PM
I'll state the obvious and say to move on and find another tenant yourself.  You can use a decent agency around to find a tenant, do the checks and pay a one-off fee (so you're not tied in)

Way too many things not adding up and considering you're new - you already suspect it's dodgy so send a nice note declining and move on

I agree! you can mix on finding a decent agency too double the chances on finding a good tenant  by using online estate agents sites and offline agents - good luck :-)

LandlordRepairs

Sorry to join in late, i've been watching  "can't pay we'll take it away" and in numerous cases when the bailiffs come round to collect money owed or take possession of goods they can only take from the person named on the writ so if goods belong to someone else living in the premises and they can prove this with receipts then that might be one reason why tenants might want one person named on the tenancy agreement and the other not named.  It would mean that the writ for rent could only be against the named tenant and the other person living there would be the named owner of all goods of any value.  Just a thought, no doubt someone will tell me why that's not how it will work in real life.....I'm a new landlord too.

I realise that this is probably too late to make a difference....
If it does not feel right - it probably is not right. I would move on and find a tenant where you have a good feeling. Of course credit checks are essential however they do not reveal all. Husband guarantor of wife as tenant - ouch - that is tricky.

Have to agree with Lambourn - your gut instinct is a good tool in cases like this and there's always a good tenant around the corner.

Another good tool is the referencing service from OpenRent - it's £20 and they do it all for you.

I just charged this fee to the prospective tenant and they were happy to pay it, even if they failed and didn't get a refund. £20 is a small price to pay compared to the amounts an estate agent charges in rip off fees.