Landlords know what they are getting into when they decide to let out thier property, if they didn’t they would possibly choose something else do do with it.

not all landlords go into this out of choice. in renton’s case he couldn’t sell it for what he paid for it, in my case I simply couldn’t sell it full stop.

So you take the next best option, which is to get it rented out so at least the mortgage is covered – leaving it empty & still paying mortgage is rarely an option.
besides, another advantage of having someone living in it is that it’s less likely to be broken into & have the wiring/copper piping/kitchen/bathroom stolen

Most tenants are good & conscientious (sp), but you only need one bad tenant to wreck the place, even if it’s not deliberately. I had mine let for 8 years, the first 6 years without a hitch. The last tenant I had had dogs & didn’t care where they cr@pped/p1ssed. He also got into a habit of paying late & eventually not paying at all. I don’t think he did any damage deliverately, he simply didn’t seem to care about the property.

Anyway, it’s history now. I would NOT go into buy-to-let out of choice. once bitten & all that

Oh, and another thing – renton, you will need to declare the earnings to HMRC. The interest portion of the mortgage and the insurance is deductable so you’re only due to pay tax on any profits – if there are any. You’ll have to fill in a tax return every year – takes me about 10-15 minutes online – and you’ll probably still have to do it LONG after you’ve got rid of the property if my experience is anything to go by 😉

My LL is upset cos this place is now worth less than what he bought it for (right at the very tip-top of the market just before it went over and down the other side…). He looked into selling, was told to ‘wait a bit the market is just in a temporary slump’.

Oh dear.

He’s looking at £20-30k negative equity already. Oof.

The value of your investments can go down as well as up.

Always read the small print….

My LL is upset cos this place is now worth less than what he bought it for

What, because you moved in ?

I don’t understand. A nice bloke rents out his place, is entitled to be paid and gets someone who can’t keep their side of the bargain. And you give abuse to the guy getting screwed over? Jealousy?

Bikebouy – seriously the balance of the law has shifted so far in favour of the landlord its not funny. 25 years ago tenancies were secure – you couldn’t be evicted unless you broke the agreement – now a landlord can get yo out of your home on a whim. Yo used to be able to get rents assessed as fair to prevent landlords putting them up unreasonably – now yuo cannot.

Most of Europe you still get secure tenancies and often at assessed fair rents.

bikebouy – Member
The Law is always on the tenants side

TandemJeremy – Member
Bikebouyy – the law is on the landlords side…

bikebouy – Member
The Law is on the tenants side.

TandemJeremy – Member
Bikebouy – seriously the balance of the law has shifted so far in favour of the landlord its not funny.

Place your bets gentlemen please.

+1 ads-b.
The same folk giving stick to renton would be baying for a lynching if someone “sold” them an expensive item on here and never posted it,or never had it in the first place or forgot or whatever excuse these tenants are using….
Hope you get it sorted.

Is TJ a landlord?

No meat in the debate aracer

OP, grow a pair. I’m a contractor and sometimes have to wait 90 days for my money. Live with it, it’s the way things are. Try £54k outstanding as a 1 man band with suppliers baying for your blood with their account at 120 days and sub-contractors not being able to pay their employees because you owe them £20k+. Mind you, I’m smart, so I tied the subbies into the same payment terms as me, ergo they can sod off. Not my fault they didn’t read my T&C’s when they tendered for and accepted the order. All is good now anyway, you just have to roll with it.

Anyway, who the hell pays anything on time these days when they can get away with not doing?

I haven’t really got any advice for you sorry Renton but I hope you manage to get it sorted out.
After reading some of the replies you’ve had I’d say some people on this forum really need to grow up.

After reading some of the replies you’ve had I’d say some people on this forum really need to grow up.

I think the OP’s “You couldn’t make this up” comment suggests that he needs to do some growing up.

A tenant twice late with their rent is hardly the most shocking “hard to believe” announcement I’ve ever heard.

I haven’t really got any advice for you sorry Renton but I hope you manage to get it sorted out.
After reading some of the replies you’ve had I’d say some people on this forum really need to grow up.

+1,000,000
Hope you get things sorted renton.
And to balance out the karma, I think the flamers should have their wages/dole cheque delayed for no good reason.

+1,000,000
Hope you get things sorted renton.
And to balance out the karma, I think the flamers should have their wages/dole cheque delayed for no good reason.

Does that not get you bad Karma for wishing bad karma on others?

renton – Member
Go round and get your money pretty simple
no idea why your crying here !
not allowed to do that as it would get me into a lot of trouble !!

LOL Believe me going round with a group of guys and simply asking why
they are not paying and what are the problems will sort your cash quickly.

If they complain you simply say you just wanted to know what was the reasons
for the none and late payments

They would do Two things either leave or pay up

Or call the police and have you arrested. Threatening and harassing tenants is taken pretty seriously

Or call the police and have you arrested. Threatening and harassing tenants is taken pretty seriously

It depends whether you threaten and harass them though doesn’t it? No harm in going round with a couple of mates and asking why the rent is late again.

Renton, I’d also change Agents.

Ontop of this any rent (or damages) unpaid could you pursue them in court? I’ve seen a few topics in Pistonheads Legal section and one or two Landlords pursued the tenant for damages to the property.

Post over there? Good luck. Stop the negativity guys- buying and renting out another property is a massive commitment and worry.

Thanks for all the replies.

Why should I man up as a lot of you are saying ?
I still have a mortgage to pay aswell as the rent on the house I live in now.

If they don’t pay the rent on time or even at all i have to cover it si im effectivly pating out half my take home pay each month in rent/mortgage payments whilst they get to live in the house?

I’ve not missed a rent payment on the house I’m in now. So why should they ?

@renton – been through this for mrs p’s house. When we tried to move back in the tenants refused to go, even after being served notice to quit. Allegely they’d been told that if they moved out voluntarily they’d need to re-house themselves, but if they were evicted (with kids) they’d jump to the top of the council housing list. Seems they knew the rules of the game too as they picked up on every tiny mistake the agent made in the process of getting them out – unfortunately the agent had never been through anything like it before. Took months to eventually get them out with no rental income and a lot of work needed on the place when they finally went. “The law is on the landlord’s side” – MY RSE!

I reckon, on balance, that any of us probably could make that up.

renton – Ignore the people who are giving you a hard time. It’s not your fault, is it? I’ve recently been given a hard time on this forum too for no good reason.

Unfortunately, after reading some of the more sensible comments on this thread, it appears that there isn’t very much more that you can do at this stage. Just keep an accurate record of all phone calls, letters etc. as you may well need them if things get ugly.

You could always take a leaf out of some South African gangsters’ books, and pop round there with a nasty Hyena or a Baboon on a leash… They’d soon pay up then 😉

Best of luck to you mate – I hope you get it sorted out 🙂

Torminalis you have lost me with that post ?

Well, in the title of the thread you state ‘You couldn’t make it up’.

I haven’t read all of the thread but it does sound rather like it could be very easily made up. In fact, tenants not paying up sounds unbelievably mundane and predictable. It’s not like a virgin birth or ‘owt is it?

thepurist I can imagine they said they were ultra stressed as worried about a roof over their head, landlord making threats etc – thats all you need to hear to spark a stereo-typical viewpoint.

thepurist – Member

When we tried to move back in the tenants refused to go, even after being served notice to quit……………… “The law is on the landlord’s side” – MY RSE!

Before the tories changed the rules you would not have been aloowed to evict them for that reason – the only reason (IIRC) for eviction was breach of contract – you couldn’t change your mind about renting the property and make someone homeless.

Not having security of tenure puts the law squarely on the landlords side when a tenant can be evicted for no reason at all

A tenant twice late with their rent is hardly the most shocking “hard to believe” announcement I’ve ever heard.

I can understand it. Until recently I’d been renting for seven years, and was never a day late with rent. None of my friends who rent have ever been late with their rent, even when times are really, really tight for them.

But if you are going to be late with the rent, you let the landlord know before the due date, not wait for them to find out. It’s just basic courtesy.

To everyone who’s giving the OP a hard time:

I’m going to come and live at each of your houses for three months next year. Is that ok? You seem to think that he should be obliged to provide free accommodation for people, so presumably you won’t mind extending me the same courtesy. Who wants to go first?

Honestly. It’s not just for growing hair on.

you couldn’t change your mind about renting the property and make someone homeless.

So if somebody is sent overseas to work (like MrsP) they wouldn’t be able to provide a home for someone while they were away because they wouldn’t be able to move back in to their own home when they returned. Therefore perfectly viable houses stand empty and people struggle to find accomodation – great system you’re championing their TJ. 🙄

Anyhow – renton – you have my sympathies.

Jealousy?

Of someone who can’t manage their business and then whinges about it, that’ll be right.

Still going??

Zzzzzzzzzzzzz

Whiney.. blah blah

The only thing I’m wondering is when the OP will stop airing his dirty laundry on a public forum.

Jesus H Santa Clause _ I agree with don simon.

All the emotive class war stuff aside, I think when somebody provides a service, as specified in a contract, in exchange for an amount of money, on a certain date, then yes they have the right to expect the other party to fulfil their side of it (if they have done their bit of course and look after the property)

And the right to be annoyed when said party doesn’t !

But stable doors and horses and all that. Next time get rent guarantee insurance from the agent. Mine is £10 per month and is underwritten by the agency, so motivates them to pick good tenants.

And have the rent go into a separate account, and keep a months rent in there e.g always be a month ahead of the game. You can use this for ongoing stuff that needs done too, repairs etc.

And try and look at it from their point of view, we have all rented at some point and few of us haven’t been short of money at some point.

Are you in Scotland ? I use Fineholm, they are surprisingly good.

*Checks contract for get-out clause*

class war stuff

So you risk your own home, buy a house on a second mortgage, put your savings into the venture in the hope you’ll make money and that makes you a Eton-going Tory supporter?

My Aunt has bought and sold an enormous amount of houses. I was gobsmacked to be told by her last week when I said ‘I need to get someone to do the bathroom’……why? Why can’t you do it yourself? I’ve fitted kitchens before and bathrooms with no training in houses I’ve bought. Shes 67.

**** hell. Respect.

Shes from the same background as me. Working class. Clue is in the first word ‘working’ 😀

What, because you moved in ?

😆 Brought the value of the entire estate crashing down…

Stop the negativity guys- buying and renting out another property is a massive commitment and worry.

It’s not ‘negativity’, Hora, it’s just people being honest about reality. What business is risk-free? Renting property must be one of the riskiest things most people will ever do, financially.

The OP has a couple of things in his favour though, if you want positives:

1) He is fortunate enough to be able to afford to own/have a mortgage on a property surplus to his actual needs.

2) He seems to be in a situation where he will eventually get his money (the guarantor thing).

I think too many people go into something like this think it will simply be easy money coming in on a regular basis, with minimal effort. Certainly most of the LLs I’ve had seem to think this. It’s a lot more difficult than it looks, and the learning curve is very steep, with little room for error.

Like any business venture, it requires a lot of thought and planning. And if you don’t consider the worst case scenario, and make contingency plans, well, that’s your lookout really. If any other type of business failed cos the person din’t things through enough, there woon’t be a lot of sympathy. Why? It’s business, not some idealistic lovely utopian dream.

OP; I hope you get it sorted out, but ffs get another letting agent. They sound proper rubbish. Complete waste of money.

Renton – a question or two for you. If them not paying their rent on time is putting you in such financial hardship, what happens when something like the boiler need replaced or major roof repairs need to be paid for? If the answer is I dont know then are you really in a position to be a good landlord?

He is fortunate enough to be able to afford to own/have a mortgage on a property surplus to his actual needs.

1 – But he is a victim of circumstance, not a professional landlord.

Like any business venture

2 – See 1