UK Landlord Forum / Life

I want to ask any and all of you a simple question...

My tenant is slipping into arrears due to a recent illness and her inability to work. She has started a claim for benefits etc ( which will probably invalidate my insurance and increase cost ) but I genuinely like her and she has been a pretty reasonable tenant for two years..


So, can I simply refund the deposit and ask her to pay me from that for this month, and agree with a repayment plan to reinstate a deposit over the next 12 months.. she pays £525pcm and I hold a £525 deposit, protected with DPS.


I haven't discussed this option with her due to the holidays and the fact that she is, possibly understandably, avoiding my calls and asking her friends to discuss matters with me on her behalf.. 

Please give your opinions and feel free to shoot holes in the idea, but I actually live on the rent received from this and another property and I'm feeling pretty exposed myself just now..

I would keep your powder dry and hold onto the deposit anyway.

What happens if you did what you suggested and she couldn't pay the following month.

What happens if she leaves with some non wear-and-tear damage which you need to pay for (which would normally come from a deposit).

If she does turn into a perpetual non rent payer, then surely you would be asking her to leave, the more you cover up her failings in paying rent, the harder it will be to remove her.

Quote from: bloofox on December 26, 2018, 12:11:49 PMSo, can I simply refund the deposit and ask her to pay me from that for this month, and agree with a repayment plan to reinstate a deposit over the next 12 months.. she pays £525pcm and I hold a £525 deposit, protected with DPS.

Whether this is legal, or not - it seems like a bad idea. If this is a Deposit protected with the Custodial Scheme (you say you will hold it, so maybe it's Insured) then the extra admin. of feeding it back in will be painful. If Insured, then you are effectively subbing your Tenant. To keep it clean one wonders if it's not more sensible (easy, but maybe not advised) to return the Deposit and forget the re-instatement part (it's still gonna be an extra ~£50 per month this Tenant needs to find, just as their income is dropping-off, right?). However, I think you are going above-and-beyond even by thinking along these lines.

Heck, maybe it's the time of year!

Your most Landlord type of action would be to consider letting this Tenant move on. The benefit payment will likely come through, but you know it will take some time and then you'll be operating in constant arrears, on a 4-weekly cycle rather than a monthly cycle, the rent will not be able to rise in any meaningful way over time (as the amount your Tenant receives will not either) and the Council will never be on your side when it comes time to evict. If you elect, from the outset, to let property to someone who is in receipt of benefits then that's all well-and-good... but not responding in the correct way when your Tenant finds they are in that situation could, indeed, be a bit careless. Just like your Insurance Policy states... this is what you call a material change in circumstances... correct? They want to know about it and they will probably want to alter the deal you have because of it... why? Because the computer says it's a higher risk situation. So, just as it is a higher risk situation for them, that is true for you.

You are understandably trying to behave decently,but everything about this idea sounds way too complicated and open to abuse.I have twice had tenants start out in employment,then end up on benefits.I agreed to accept housing benefit,and ended up regretting it.They changed as people for a start, and the aggravations of dealing with the payment system meant I ended up acting as a social worker instead of a landlord.I would issue 21,or as Hippogriff more elegantly puts it, "let them move on". I would already be hearing warning bells,that she is not communicating directly with you.You will not be negotiating on an adult-to-adult basis.

Quote from: bloofox on December 26, 2018, 12:11:49 PM...and the fact that she is, possibly understandably, avoiding my calls and asking her friends to discuss matters with me on her behalf.

You know, I had not focused-on on this like a laser... but, for me, this is the worst behaviour a Tenant can engage in. I've experienced it. I've tried to train a Tenant out of this behaviour, with moderate success. The reasoning or rationale really doesn't matter... whether it be fear, putting your head in the sand, or anything... it's not acceptable to avoid calls and go dark.

For me, this alone would mean get shot. It feels like the start...

 I appreciate the advice here, and I know I run the risk of regretting it, but if we don't receive a payment today as agreed then I will probably discuss this option with the tenant next week.. although I get the bit about increased payments causing further problems so I'll go with a refund and no further deposit held..  I'm aware that I'm not being businesslike and I'm probably lining myself up for a little more disappointment in people but I think it might help her to get her finances in order and give her a post Christmas breather.. if she takes the piss next month I know what to do..

I've had the dramas in the past with DSS and I sort of know what to expect, but after doing the maths on what she's already paid, after seeing the renovations she paid for out of her own pocket, and after checking my nest eggs, I reckon I can afford to run the risk for a month or so and it'll either seal or destroy our tenant/landlord relationship. 

Maybe it's a mistake, I do understand your concerns and I'll keep you posted how this tenancy progresses, or explodes...


Thanks for your advice, and any more you may have.. I don't actually know if DPS will send me the money directly or will I have to trust her with it ?.. that part is a bit of a worry..

Good luck.It sounds as if you have set some boundaries,and know when to call it a day.Can't you insist that the money is paid directly to you? Look forward to hearing how it goes,maybe my pessimism will be proved wrong!

The DPS will send all the money to you if you claim all the money on their website and the Tenant then agrees. But, usually (and of course) this would all be tied into an end of tenancy. If you are to return the whole Deposit, without any deductions, to the Tenant directly, then they'll do this as well... and that could be, indeed, a very good test of the trustability (I did not invent this word right now, it's a real word) of this particular Tenant... if it is given over to you immediately, there's demonstrable good faith... if not... whoops... and ouch!

Quote from: bloofox on December 28, 2018, 08:44:33 AMI'm aware that I'm not being businesslike and I'm probably lining myself up for a little more disappointment in people...

You are the Human side of Landlording.

We have missed it.

if the tenant is going on UC she could have asked for an advance to pay rent and pay back UC over 12 months, not you

one of my tenants was offered up £900 advance just before xmas but chose just to cover rent , I was with her at her request , she was also given a food bank voucher

I haven't gone ... I'm still in discussion with the tenant.. more soon, watch this space.. or National News if it sends me over the edge.. much appreciated input.. x

So far so good... she's no longer in arrears and has paid Februarys rent in full.. Hilariously though, I have just received a notice from the Police/Local council regarding antisocial behaviour at the premises.. It seems my tenant can now afford to party hard !

I'm not sure where I stand on this bit but will no doubt learn more in the coming days..