UK Landlord Forum / Life

So, I'm moving into a flat with a landlord that I think may be dodgy but I don't have a lot of other options.

I lived with my boyfriend last year and was planning to live with him this year but we just recently broke up and now I need somewhere else.

Everyone else found a place (and flatmates) months ago and I don't have a lot of options (plus my budget is very tight and this landlord is not requesting a deposit).

Her ad was posted exclusively on student websites with no pictures, but it seemed to be a good price and in an excellent location.

I went to see the flat and it was amazing. Huge. Beautiful.

The woman, however, seemed a bit shifty. She was from Ghana and her English wasn't excellent and she seemed slightly off but I've lived abroad extensively and a lot of cultural differences are really just Brits being overly nice/polite and taking offense that other people aren't as polite as the Brits up front.

She was happy to answer questions and gave me a lot of valuable information about the place and the area.

However, her demeanour was rather cold and she refers to herself soley as Mrs XXX, never her first name (again, could be a cultural thing but still).

I asked to see the gas certificate, and she told me she'd bring it to the next viewing, but seemed slightly surprised/irritated that I'd asked.

What also made me slightly wary was after the second viewing, she told me there was a student living downstairs and a professional upstairs (I'd asked if the contract could be extended and she cited this as an example that: yes, it could be).

But I looked at the mail as I was walking out, and one was addressed to a gentleman with the same surname as her, and the other was to an also clearly Ghanaian name - which made me think there were only other family members of hers living there.

Of course, one may be a student and one may be a professional and there is nothing to indicate that the other Ghanaian would be a family member - but the way she spoke about them, made it look as if they weren't family members.

Also, the fact that she advertises only on student websites, despite not being a particularly studenty house, makes me think she may be looking for younger/more vulnerable people.

Now, of course, all this is speculative and I absolutely fell in love with the place and the location is PERFECT, so I really don't want to lose it.

It's good value for money and big enough to get all my stuff in (all the others I've seen are tiny and more expensive/less well located for someone like myself who doesn't drive). I REALLY want the place.

However, my question is: if she does turn out to be dodgy, yes, it will be a pain and unpleasant, but how much could it really affect my happiness if only for a year? It's not like I'll have to deal with her every day and I'll make sure the contract is right obviously before I sign it.

short answer YES ' if it smells like s--t, it is s--t