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[groundhog]

Hi all,
I need your opinions.
Most of you know my long nightmare health saga.  I also have a mother who had a brain haemorrhage around the time my bowel perforated,  she is in a home as I couldn't cope.  Anyway....
She has a small house and the council are now taking it into account.  It's a low value but lovely cottage In a rural village and I was born there - I'm attached to it and as my marriage is on dodgy ground,  I sometimes can see me ending my days there.   After my Mother's Day the house has been left to my sister and I plus the grandchildren!  My mother has not made things easy for me ever. 
The point -  If we rented the property out we could cover the carehome fees ( coupled with her pensions ) there would still be a small shortfall but nothing much.  Trouble is renting property can be stressful and all I seem to hear are horror stories.  My own health problems mean I can't seem to take any stress whatsoever and not sure I would be up to being a landlord with all that entails.  The local authority,  like most ,  do a scheme whereby they house people in need - they vet the tenant,  do all the necessary paperwork, and collect the rent.  They will even pay for any required works to be carried out to bring the property upto standard although it's a nice house.  So They are in effect agents and charge 8% commission.  The man from the council ( who I know personally ) said I could hand him the keys and relax,  they would manage the whole lot.  He then said it would have to be a long term let as in 3 years and the tenants would be Syrian refugees.
I don't know what to think. 

[Annie0710]

Hi groundhog

Most estate agents now take all the pressure for you and charge a fee.  Some even guarantee you'll receive payment even if there's no tenants

I rent privately and on one we even had 6 monthly inspections

[Pennyfarthing]

I may well be in the same position soon. Mum is in a care home and I think she has almost decided she will stay.  At the moment she's funding herself as she's just over the limit. I think we will have to start thinking about selling her house. The other option is the deferred payment scheme but I need to read up on that.

Renting out your Mums house won't be that straightforward.  It will need to be brought up to a good standard if it's not already.  It will need a thorough sprucing up and it will need smoke alarms etc. I have no idea how you would go on either with Landlords insurance which would be essential. I am a landlord myself and our  insurance company insists that we provide references and background checks etc for our tenants but how would you do that with Syrian refugees? You can't because you know nothing of their backgrounds so they could be anybody.

I do six monthly checks but we are very fortunate in that the retired couple we rent it to love cleaning and housework and it is immaculate.  I do know plenty of'people who have had lots of problems with bad tenants making a mess, not paying rent etc.

Hope this gives you something to think about anyway. X

[nearly50]

The Home Office do the background checks for the local authority so that wouldn't be an issue.

[Ju Ju]

This is a difficult one.

We own a small house that we rent out, which is ironic as our daughter has to rent, but selling wouldn't solve this as we couldn't recoup enough of our investment to help her since the financial crash and it does give us an income.

We have experienced the ups and downs of being landlords. Good tenants and bad ones. For the past few years we have had the same tenants, who are lovely and we have a good relationship. But before that, well put it like this, on one occasion we didn't return their deposit! We manage the property ourselves, but use a rental agency to do all the checks for us when tenants leave. To be honest, I wouldn't want to manage it on my own, despite having such lovely tenants, but that's partly because it's not nearby.

You can use management agencies to manage it, but they charge a lot and the ones my DD has had to deal with do very little. She has to fight to get anything sorted out, including health and safety issues when they have a young child. Our tenants can ring us up and we sort things out as quickly as possible. The best way through if you decide to manage a property is to build a network of trade people to call on when necessary. I would think that might be easier for you as your Mums house is nearby. It's definitely more of a hassle managing a property from a distance.

[Pennyfarthing]

This is a difficult one.

We own a small house that we rent out, which is ironic as our daughter has to rent, but selling wouldn't solve this as we couldn't recoup enough of our investment to help her since the financial crash and it does give us an income.

We have experienced the ups and downs of being landlords. Good tenants and bad ones. For the past few years we have had the same tenants, who are lovely and we have a good relationship. But before that, well put it like this, on one occasion we didn't return their deposit! We manage the property ourselves, but use a rental agency to do all the checks for us when tenants leave. To be honest, I wouldn't want to manage it on my own, despite having such lovely tenants, but that's partly because it's not nearby.

You can use management agencies to manage it, but they charge a lot and the ones my DD has had to deal with do very little. She has to fight to get anything sorted out, including health and safety issues when they have a young child. Our tenants can ring us up and we sort things out as quickly as possible. The best way through if you decide to manage a property is to build a network of trade people to call on when necessary. I would think that might be easier for you as your Mums house is nearby. It's definitely more of a hassle managing a property from a distance.

That's very true. My son was renting a property in another part of the country and the agent was disgraceful despite being a "reputable" firm. They did no repairs and wouldn't give son and partner name and address of owner.  They kept the property immaculate and took photos of when they moved in and when they left but the agent still tried to withhold money for things like hairline cracks on really old tiles etc which they didn't damage at all.

[Pennyfarthing]

The Home Office do the background checks for the local authority so that wouldn't be an issue.

But what background checks could they do as their records would most likely be destroyed and most of them were advised to destroy their own ID and passports.  You know insurance companies will try and get out of anything.

[Ju Ju]

Yes, PF, very wise to take photos so you have evidence to back you up. There are bad landlords property management firms out there and bad tenants. But we are very fortunate. I would feel very guilty if we wanted to sell our property as it's their home and haven. They are very happy living there. We haven't put the rent up for years as the mortgage rates are so low, even though we been advised that we are undercharging. We don't want to lose such good tenants!

[CLKD]

I would NOT go with the man that you know in the Council! 

As far as I know: because my neighbour rents her property next door: a 6 month let is now the Legal shortest length of time here, it may be different in Wales.  It will NOT be for 3 years ......... any letting must be done with a proper Estate Agent who will draw up Contracts.  Which will cost your mother money as this has to come out of her expected Estate.  The ones locally charge between £150-250 per week letting fees even when the property is empty.  They go into the empty property and draw up an inventory as well as noting down the state of curtains, carpets, general cleanliness.  If necessary they will imply a company of their choice to clean right through: £400 was quoted in November ! 

It is better to let unfurnished because not many of us keep the 'fire' safety labels and you can no longer rent with un-protected furniture because of a fire hazard. 

They also make sure that the tenants leave the place more or less as found as well as making sure that rent is paid less their fee.  However: I have known Agents to take the money but wash their hands of any un-paid rent as they have their costs!

If it is thought by the Council that you are avoiding paying for care fees the property can still be 'snatched'.  Despite your link to the place I would get rid so that your Mum's is paid up front. After all, who decides how much a property is worth in order to pay fees once someone has died? You will have maintenance to do if it remains empty.  There is a risk of flood damage should the weather turn nasty. 

You can decide whether you want adults only; with children; pets??? ; pets with no children; DSS ...... you can't decide which Nationality though.

[Pennyfarthing]

I would NOT go with the man that you know in the Council! 

As far as I know: because my neighbour rents her property next door: a 6 month let is now the Legal shortest length of time here, it may be different in Wales.  It will NOT be for 3 years ......... any letting must be done with a proper Estate Agent who will draw up Contracts.  Which will cost your mother money as this has to come out of her expected Estate.  The ones locally charge between £150-250 per week letting fees even when the property is empty.  They go into the empty property and draw up an inventory as well as noting down the state of curtains, carpets, general cleanliness.  If necessary they will imply a company of their choice to clean right through: £400 was quoted in November ! 

It is better to let unfurnished because not many of us keep the 'fire' safety labels and you can no longer rent with un-protected furniture because of a fire hazard. 

They also make sure that the tenants leave the place more or less as found as well as making sure that rent is paid less their fee.  However: I have known Agents to take the money but wash their hands of any un-paid rent as they have their costs!

If it is thought by the Council that you are avoiding paying for care fees the property can still be 'snatched'.  Despite your link to the place I would get rid so that your Mum's is paid up front. After all, who decides how much a property is worth in order to pay fees once someone has died? You will have maintenance to do if it remains empty.  There is a risk of flood damage should the weather turn nasty. 

You can decide whether you want adults only; with children; pets??? ; pets with no children; DSS ...... you can't decide which Nationality though.

THen it would have to be no DSS. Sorted!

[Pennyfarthing]

Yes, PF, very wise to take photos so you have evidence to back you up. There are bad landlords property management firms out there and bad tenants. But we are very fortunate. I would feel very guilty if we wanted to sell our property as it's their home and haven. They are very happy living there. We haven't put the rent up for years as the mortgage rates are so low, even though we been advised that we are undercharging. We don't want to lose such good tenants!

Snap! Our tenants have been in over five years and we've never put their rent up.  People say we are undercharging but the place is like a palace and the rent just goes straight in the bank every month.

[CLKD]

If it's covering the Mortgage and Insurances required and they are good Tenants ....... when we had a letting agreement the owner of the property wasn't allowed to put up the rent in the whole of our tenancy, we were there 4 years ........

[bramble]

I would find out more from the council about their scheme. Two things spring to mind - insurances regarding the building and potential damage by renters, and if there is a get out quick clause (ie if you need to sell at at some point because your mum needed the money). But it does sound a bit of a go-er. You could also ask around and see if anyone knows of a good letting agent. May be worth your while to find out the pros and cons from them, costs etc just to give yourselves something to judge the council scheme by.
In no way would I advise you to let it direct yourself and become a landlord.

Bramble

[groundhog]

Thanks all,  good advice and it seems some of you have first hand experiences,  both good and bad.
It's so hard to know what to do .  I'm not in good health as you know and I cannot deal with stress at all,  so I don't think i will be becoming a landlord anytime soon,  I just cannot cope.
The council as agent sounds ok but 5 years is a heck of a commitment although he did say there are get out clauses.  But do I want Syrian refugees in my mothers house - I'm very empathetic and certainly not rasist but I live in a small village And I'm not sure how they will be accepted. You know what some people are like,  would I get the backlash as I can't seem to cope with anything these days.  Plus if my mother had to move homes or passed away then maybe we would need to sell the house.

I just wish one of my problems would resolve xx I'm not up to making decisions like this x

[walking the dog]

Mum in law fell again n house lad week but didn't bother telling anyone or seeking help. It was only when my husband went to see her he found she had gaping forehead wound. Sunday evening she rang an ambulance as she felt funny , her words, they took her to a,and e and later sent her him as low blood pressure. She then realised she had left the tap on n downstairs cloakroom and water was everywhere
She refuses to consider a nursing home or have help in as she says she's not paying!
We have no idea what to do, she's not senile just forgetful