Things you want to share with P&B

[tamthebam]

11 hours ago, Hedgecutter said:

Beat this for a coat of arms:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalziel?wprov=sfla1

Aye, the Lord Lyon didn't mind Billy Connolly with his willie out on a coat of arms in 16 oatcake but when it came to Airdrie, Formartine and Ayr United ..

[RH33]

9 hours ago, Mr. Alli said:

Not for much longer, thankfully. Whether being banned from advertising that fact will actually change things and people will be allowed to look and rent whilst on DSS etc remains to be seen. 

Yeah I don't think anything will change, they'll just say someone more suitable etc etc.

[GordonD]

13 hours ago, Bairnardo said:

Its where hard c***s (like me) beat up internet geeks in front of their parents, as far as I understand it.

Not sure why, it didnt seem ideal for the purpose as I crossed it.

Big team found.

[NotThePars]

11 hours ago, Mr. Alli said:

Not for much longer, thankfully. Whether being banned from advertising that fact will actually change things and people will be allowed to look and rent whilst on DSS etc remains to be seen. 

Won't they still find out when they ask for bank statements or an employer's reference? 

[Derry Alli]

1 minute ago, NotThePars said:

Won't they still find out when they ask for bank statements or an employer's reference? 

Yeah, they'll know but they're not actively allowed to write "won't consider DSS/Unemployed" so more people will have to be vetted first and foremost without prejudice - if its held against them after that there's not really much that can be done. 

[NotThePars]

1 minute ago, Mr. Alli said:

Yeah, they'll know but they're not actively allowed to write "won't consider DSS/Unemployed" so more people will have to be vetted first and foremost without prejudice - if its held against them after that there's not really much that can be done. 

Well if anything it'll encourage letting agents and landlords to get more creative with turning down benefit claimants then

[Derry Alli]

13 minutes ago, NotThePars said:

Well if anything it'll encourage letting agents and landlords to get more creative with turning down benefit claimants then

Can't disagree with that. I'd hope that by meeting the people first or having to pay (do they?) to check people finances etc, they'll give people a chance rather than just seeing "universal credit" and fucking them off. 

[Aufc]

Not for much longer, thankfully. Whether being banned from advertising that fact will actually change things and people will be allowed to look and rent whilst on DSS etc remains to be seen. 

For someone being on DSS, does that not mean their rent is paid for them?

[Derry Alli]

6 minutes ago, Aufc said:

For someone being on DSS, does that not mean their rent is paid for them?

 

I *think* UC get theirs paid up to a certain amount. Its more to do with the stigma of benefits = scum. 

Edited April 29, 2021 by Mr. Alli

[Jacksgranda]

13 minutes ago, Aufc said:

 

For someone being on DSS, does that not mean their rent is paid for them?

 

Depends how high the rent is, afaik. A lot of people have to top up their rent payment as UC/benefits in general only pay so much. (No idea what the figure is.)

@Day of the Lords knows all this stuff.

Edited April 29, 2021 by Jacksgranda

[NotThePars]

Coincidentally James Butler has been writing about the landlord’s paradise of London and this snippet is insane.

[Busta Nut]

On 28/04/2021 at 10:26, Pato said:

Why do so many people opt for property as an income source for retirement? When I rented I was forever hassling my landlord about broken stuff, it'd drive me nuts to be on the opposite end of that when I could have all that cash in distributing funds instead. Is it just the psychological aspect of getting money every month like when you were working, versus different schedules for dividends etc?

As far as I know it's a lot harder to make money from BTL in many circumstances now anyway, I don't really get the appeal.

I deal with a lot of folk who are constantly chasing tenants for rent or moaning about having to replace/fix broken things. 

 

They all seem like arseholes. 

[Sweet Pete]

7 minutes ago, Busta Nut said:

I deal with a lot of folk who are constantly chasing tenants for rent or moaning about having to replace/fix broken things. 

 

They all seem like arseholes. 

My primary clients are letting agents, estate agents, property managers, factors etc. We carry out repairs for loads of different ones on tenanted and void properties. Some of the things that get reported as repairs are mental. And some of the things that don't get reported are often even worse.

[Melanius Mullarkey]

2 minutes ago, Sweet Pete said:

 Some of the things that get reported as repairs are mental. And some of the things that don't get reported are often even worse.

Come on then.

[Sweet Pete]

1 minute ago, Melanius Mullarkey said:

Come on then.

Had one recently where a report was sent in that the basin in the bathroom was to be replaced as it was cracked. We turned up with the new one and found the basin had a hair in it. That's it. Some clever clogs saw it, called it a crack and the basin (which was itself relatively new) was replaced. We then had a basin to fit on another job as well...

[Sweet Pete]

Had a landlord tell us that they weren't going to replace the boiler we had condemned. Not that they weren't going to use us to replace it, which would have been fair enough, but that they weren't going to. Had an agency ask us to do a gas safety certificate on a boiler which, upon arrival, was not connected up. The tenants were living without a boiler as the one in the house wasn't plumbed in. A frequent one we get is "you need to come quick, it's a leak, emergency!" and then you get there and it's either a) condensation, b) silicone seal needed to bath or shower tray or c) water ingress from around a window frame, none of which are leaks, nor emergencies. Had one not long ago reported as a faulty boiler which turned out to be a hot water cylinder (people mixing the 2 up is a pet peeve) which the occupant simply hadn't turned on at the wall switch.

[Sweet Pete]

Mix ups due to languages often result in amusing ones. I went to one near Parkhead a couple of years ago that said on the job line the dishwasher was leaking. Got there and there was no dishwasher, but there was a crack in the kitchen sink. The lady had called it a dishwasher as it's where she washes the... well you see the point.

[Aufc]

Depends how high the rent is, afaik. A lot of people have to top up their rent payment as UC/benefits in general only pay so much. (No idea what the figure is.)
[mention=15829]Day of the Lords[/mention] knows all this stuff.

To me, people on DSS would be pretty good (assuming they are not complete arseholes which can happen with any tenants). Coukd be a relatively source of income for landlord and would just need appropriate insurance should anything happen. Its not really any dissimilar to the threat of someone losing their job and being unable to pay the rent. You should always have appropriate insurance to cover it.

Trying ti make money off the rent is almost pointless these days due to the tax benefits being removed/reduced. Surely investing in property is essentially just that. An investment that could potentially go up in value in time but should help said landlord in their retirement. If the rent covers most of the mortgage and expenses then its surely a no brainer. As mentioned, the issue is with lenders forcing these rents to be so high that it is restrictive to some people.

[Benjamin_Nevis]

1 hour ago, Aufc said:

 

For someone being on DSS, does that not mean their rent is paid for them?

 

 

1 hour ago, Jacksgranda said:

Depends how high the rent is, afaik. A lot of people have to top up their rent payment as UC/benefits in general only pay so much. (No idea what the figure is.)

@Day of the Lords knows all this stuff.

If we're talking private lets, then yeah, to an extent. 

Housing Benefit is almost non-existent these days and is only paid for Supported Accommodation. For almost all other tenancies it's going to be under Universal Credit for folk unemployed, disabled or low incomes. It's worked out using that area's Local housing Allowance and based on the number of bedrooms a tenant needs (not how many are in the property).

For example in Angus the current LHA rate for a 1 bed flat is £84 p/week (£364 per month) so the max UC will pay for a single person aged over 35 in a private let is going to be £364 per month. If they're under 35 it's the "shared room rate" of £69.04 p/week (£299 per month) - so basically any monthly rental above and beyond that is paid by the tenant, not UC.

There are situations where a Discretionary Housing Payment can top up the shortfall.  Eg previously working, rent was affordable and lost job etc. 

If anyone here's needs info on LHA the rates are here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/local-housing-allowance-rates-2020-2021/

[ICTChris]

I thought that under Universal Credit the money doesn't go directly to the landlord anymore?  There are people on here who will know a lot more than me.

I have had it directly explained to me by a landlord I know that saying 'no DSS' is just a way of warding off undesirables.  He said that if you say no-DSS then you discount most of the people who might cause problems, either with the property, neighbours or anything else.  This person did rent to people on benefits.