[jambutty]

Originally Posted by Aleks

Im looking at moving out from under the parents feet now as they are starting to get on abit and im not getting any younger. Id have to rent as i dont have the greatest credit history. What im after is advice from anyone who has done this in the past and anything they would do different. Help!

Buying a house today is totally different to buying one when we golden oldies were young. Then job security was almost guaranteed. Today job security is rather tenuous, unless you happen to be a civil servant.

Your best bet is to stay put and get yourself on your local authority’s social housing list or on the list of a bona fide housing association. Even if it means a one bedroom flat. The thing is once you are with a social landlord you can move to larger property when the need arises (although it may take some time) and as a tenant in social housing you have a right to buy after 5 years I think it is.

Do not rent from a private landlord. The rent is likely to be some £25 per week higher than in social housing and you will have a large bond to put down. £500 is not unusual and getting it back when you leave can be fraught with problems with some landlords.

There is also another advantage of living in social housing property. Should you ever become unemployed you will be able to claim full rent benefit and not forgetting Council Tax. If you are with a private landlord the benefit will not cover the full rent but only what the local authority would charge for that property if they were renting it to you.

The disadvantages of renting are that your rent is ‘lost’ money. However a social landlord is responsible for the upkeep of the property and you have no house insurance to fork out - just your contents. A slate comes loose and it rains into your bedroom the social landlord will effect repairs pretty quickly. If you own the property it is up to you and at your own expense. Of course you have to abide by the terms of the tenancy agreement but they are not unreasonable.

In rented property neighbour problems can be resolved by the social landlord. In private property you have to do the resolving.

One final caveat. If you do opt to use a private landlord, research him THOROUGHLY before committing yourself. Find out if he has other tenants and go and talk to them.

I know of one case where the central heating packed in during the winter and the landlord refused to repair it, claiming that it was up to the tenant, although that was not in keeping with the tenancy agreement. When the tenant started proceedings against the landlord, one night he and his henchmen removed the downstairs window, frame and all whilst the tenant slept. This landlord also kept a key to the property and was in the habit of letting himself in when there was no one at home and helped himself to personal items – CD’s, DVD’s, books etc.

There is one other point that has occurred to me. A private landlord can tell you who supplies your energy and how they do it. The chances are that it will be via a card meter, the most expensive way of buying your gas and/or electric. It is unlikely that the private landlord will allow you to use a cheaper option.