Tenant continued.

[DONNAKEBABUK]

first was a Gay man, wants the house because its ideal for him. Is on incap so will get all his rent paid. I ask for a small deposit to begin with, i.e. �200 and let them pay the rest up by monthly installments because I realised it isnt easy to find just over �800 for a bond and a deposit all at once. This man was decent, in his 50's, wants his elderly Mum to come and stay with him every so often etc. I made an arrangement with him (should I let him have the house) to come up with a �200 deposit and 2 weeks rent up from until he gets his Housing Benefit sorted. He loved the house and wants to settle. He had 2 references with him which made me chuckle a little, they were BOTH typed on the same computer, same font, same style etc. I rang to check them and they were ligit (as much as they could be and these folk spoke well of him (they were BOTH pub owners). I had to laugh because The Lord loves a Trier& Ive done similar things myself in the past.

The 2nd was a disabled lady in her mid 40's, divorced after horrendous marriage, she had twin boys, and 2 dogs. Really desperate to set up home and settle. They were not very well off and she will come from the Rent Bond Scheme where the local Council will underwrite her Bond and the Council will pay me �109 a week direct for six months, starting in 8 weeks time. She was a lovely lady although I am not sure the area would suit her as I could see she had very exacting standards when it came to her boys. She was lovely and I liked her.

The third was my friend, who lives over the road and keeps an eye on the house for me, Sister. They want to pay 3 months rent in advance AND a deposit CASH. They are young (Ive had probs with young couples before) but I really like both her and her sister (but no so sure about the guy) he is a bit of a boy racer and has just come out of prison for forged �20's lol !

Advice Please. Thank you in advance and sorry if I

[cuddleMe]

hmmm tricky Donna!!

chooose me :) pick me!! i can guarantee u will get your rent,bond and pay bills!! :)

*jumps up n down, waving the hands in the air* *me, me*

[DONNAKEBABUK]

I live in Blackpool by the Sea Hun.

Where do you live.

x

[warpig3]

difficult one but in my experience, steer clear of renting to people you know, and people with dogs. This is in no way a reflection of your applicants only of recent experience of a friend of mine.

[DONNAKEBABUK]

thanks warpig - maybe the girl over the roads sister wont be an option then. I might go for the gay man, he was very smart in appearance, clean etc and kept going on about his mother coming to stay. I believe he will set up home, he is scottish and has lived in Blackers for 16 years. Gets incap benefit so rent wont be an issue.

I am not keen on these young couples coming to set up home, they fall out quickly and thats it then. A Lease really isnt worth the paper its printed on. I could make you squeal with laughter at some of the Tenats I have had. The best I had though were 4 indian young gentlemen who were over on a 1 year Visa, working 90 hours each a week at The Hilton. They washed their feet before they went through the door, kept it immaculate, were SO polite and used to ring me if I was a day late collecting the rent. They also used to get me �25 a night deals at any Hilton anywhere in the world. Those were the days my friend.

Thanks again for your advice.

Katie. x

[warpig3]

I know, its really difficult but when you get the right tenants its brilliant. Mrwarpig had a few properties and the best he had were the older DHSS tenants. No problem with rent, they were respectful, maintained the property and were basically a joy to have (maybe he was just lucky though.

He did have a young couple in one house but they had to make up the difference in the rent as DHSS wouldnt pay it all. You should have heard some of the excuses they came up with when they couldn't pay (mrwarpig is a bit of a softee at times and fell for them every time, it ended up I had to go round and 'extract' the money, not a nice situation for anyone, either us or the tenants).

As for dogs and people you know look at my 'Dog poo' post in Animals and Nature. Could be the end of a friendship.

Good luck whatever you decide but I must admit the gay man does sound ideal to me, you just got to trust your instincts and hope for the best.

[warpig3]

Here you go Katie, ignore the irrelevant info but you should get the gist.

http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Animals-and-Nat ure/Question533798.html

[daffy654]

From what you've said about the prospective tenants Katie I would be letting the house to the gay man,he sounds like he would be the most reliable. As for the references...my 18 year old daughter and her boyfriend just moved into a housing association house on the strength of 3 references all composed by me,typed on 3 different computers and signed by the people who the references were from.I just happen to know how to word a reference to make it clearer to the person reading them than the actual referees did.lol

[MiniN]

go with the gay chap. he sounds like he is in the most stable situation.

[DONNAKEBABUK]

YOU GUYS ARE SO FANTASTIC THANK YOU SO MUCH.

Yes I really like the Gay Man and I am going to see him in a minute. I have told him that I want to smooth things out over his references, bascially just to let him know that whilst I know he is a nice man and looks respectable that I trust him I would rather have the truth from about his last place of abode as opposed to him lying to me. Also to let him know that I am a businesswoman and that I dont suffer a fool gladly.

You're right about the lady with the 2 children and 2 dogs. She said that one was a Yorkshire Terrier and the other was a Staffordshire Bull Terrier for her safety. What is a Staffordshire Bull Terrier - she said it was 5ft 4" when stood on his legs with its paws in her hands ! Sorry to sound a bit thick there.

As for the friends one, I am going to make the excuse that they didnt get back to me before noon as they said they would.

WELL DONE EVERYONE, I WILL RATE YOUR ANSWERS AND ADVICES FIVE STAR AGAIN.

YOU ARE PURE DEAD BRILL.

Lots of Hugs.

katie. x

[DONNAKEBABUK]

Just to finalise matters, I went to see the Gay Man - I LAUGHED when I arrived at his flat that he told me he was living in with his nephew for the time being until he found himself a house. HIS NAME WAS ON THE DOOR !

I sat down in his pristine flat that was very very homely, clean and obviously well respected (I advise this to anyone who rents out houses - go and see with an hours notice what they are living in at present) I asked him to tell me the truth, not to bull s***t me because I dont suffer a fool gladly. He admitted that it WAS his flat and that the stairs were killing him due to his disability. I thanked him for being honest with me and shook his hand.

I am pleased (touch wood) that I seem to have found a decent Tenant.

Thanks everyone again.

Take Care.

Katie. x