My tenant's can't afford rent
I'm worried about the rise in living that my tenants can't pay rent
Everyone is talking about the rise in the cost of living. Your petrol is not lasting you long enough, food prices have increased and don't get
me started on electricity! You are not alone; everyone should be concerned
Will the Government put in rent holidays for tenants?
What many landlords are not talking about enough is the impact this will have on tenants. Unlike COVID, where there were rent holidays,
no such schemes are being announced by the Government. With a third of tenants living in poverty (JRF foundation) this will be a massive
blow. So let's break that down. Many people living in poverty do not have the luxury of looking ahead. They are living day to day.
No imagine what happens when their bills go up, but their salary/benefits aren't? What happens then?
Something always gives, and chances are they will get in touch with the landlord/ letting agents to discuss rental payments.
How can I help my tenants if they can't pay rent?
First of all, please do talk to your tenants. We at My Landlord Cares LTD (ethical letting agency) have these discussions as part of our intensive 6-month introduction
programme. We get to know our tenants, we understand what they are having issues with, and we link them up with local schools, community groups
and neighbours. This means they build up good relationships with us. We have discussions about affordability with them, and if we identify
issues, we are able to refer them to statutory agencies.
One of our tenants Miro, says 'Badrul from My Landlord Cares helped me to understand what will happen in terms of my bills. I never thought
it would be this bad. We spoke about ways to save electricity (I like the house warm!).'
This means we are aware of issues before they become problems, and we can work around them. We can work out a plan with landlords and everyone
is aware of what is happening.
Isn't it better to be proactive than reactive?
To find out more about how we can help, drop us a message
How do I evict tenants?
Is the section 21 eviction going?
The Renter's reform should not have come as a shock to most landlords. In the Queen's speech of 2019, it was announced
that Section 21 ( which is a no-fault eviction to me and you!) would be abolished. This is a massive blow to most landlords, who rely on
this eviction process to get their property back. This may be for many reasons, including wanting to sell property or moving in themselves.
Is Section 8 eviction going?
There is a section 8 notice, which is an eviction process for problematic tenants, but
With evictions taking an average of 52 weeks, that is a long time to reclaim your property back if you are experiencing rent arrears or
anti-social tenants.
How hard is it to evict tenants?
We should know, we evicted tenants during the COVID pandemic. These tenants were not looking after the property and were causing the property
to fall into disrepair. The courts are generally slow, but with COVID, they have almost ground to a halt! We got the notice of possession
we needed, and the tenants were soon on their merry ways. Most landlords can relate to problematic tenancies, but this experience meant
we transformed our tenant find service at My Landlord Cares LTD. We included more informal checks, such as current home drive-by's. You would be amazed at how much can be gauged from a person's front yard.
Would you like to find out more about how we can help you at My Landlord Cares LTD ethical letting agency? Then drop us a message
Changing mindset
Over the last year, I have been fortunate to undertake some amazing transformational ways of thinking with a group called @Newconstellation. Our remit was to re-imagine Sheffield. I was surrounded by some amazing people. I can proudly say that these people have become good friends. What our core values are (taken from @paulcollier)
We have come together from a range of different backgrounds
We are forward-looking
We have a common purpose
What is a common purpose?
Common purpose is when people come together to tackle issues; they leave behind titles. egos and roles at the door. They bring their true self to the table. Amazing, isn’t it? Imagine if we did more of this, how much would change
Abundance mindset
Recently I went to a property network and when it was time to do my pitch. I was honest and told people that we love to support our tenants at My Landlord Cares. That is what excites us. There were a few other letting agencies their as well and one of them stood up and said ‘we are the best letting agents out their’.
Now did this make us feel small and insignificant? Yes my confidence did take a knock. But it didn’t really bother us. This is because we operate from an abundance mind-set. There are plenty of fishes in the sea and what we do is enjoy giving good quality support.
News!
My Landlord Cares has a strong positive social ethos, and we want to provide high-quality support to our tenants. They are usually the most disadvantaged. We want to bring community development to properties. Due to this, we will be setting up as a social enterprise. This will mark us out as different from others. So excited about the future
Time management tips
Many people wonder how I can juggle so many different hats and how do I manage my time. I want to share how I do this, and I apologise that there is no magic formula. I am a natural juggler and actually thrive in working this way – which is great when I am managing my own business but not so great when I have to focus on one activity. My brain is constantly thinking ‘there is so much other things that you can do!’
The approach that works for me is having weekly task lists (I adapted this from Stephen Covey’s version – so it is effective!). I categorize things into day-to-day tasks, which require minimal mental effort, and more creative tasks. For example, creating content for social media platforms. In this way, I don’t panic when I haven’t completed my list by the end of the day; I have a week to work around.
Have you got any suggestions? And if you’re struggling, give this a go.
Your network is your networth sound familiar?
I hear this a lot, ‘your network is your net worth,’ and usually I am like blah blah blah…. (my pessimistic side is coming out!) But I have learnt over the last few months that this is so true. I always say network as just acquaintances, and I worked harder to build relationships. Relationships are different because they take time and trust. No sales pitch and hard sales, just good old human-to-human contact.
And this constancy in approach is paying off. People are referring back to our work, signposting us to others, and we are getting direct contact from landlords/ investors.
Relationships are at the core of everything we do, and only on solid foundations can we start to build walls.
TEDx talk
TEDx talk
As part of our mission we want to challenge the status quo. We want more landlords to think about their property differently. We want them to think about the impact their property is making in people’s live. This may be the tenants, their neighbours or the wider community.
This is why I will be talking at the TEDx talk at Sheffield Hallam University on February 2022. I want landlords to be part of the solution and I want people to stop vilifying us all. Let’s make this conversation mainstream and I look forward to working with many more like minded landlords.
Pushing beyond fear
As humans, we love our comfort zones. It is safe here, and who likes changes! But then it is easy to fall into a rut and blame the whole world. Isn’t it so much easier to blame everyone and their dog for all of our problems…
Acknowledging that we are our worst enemies means we can create the better world that we dream of. The one that makes us feel alive and helps us find our true purpose. That means making challenging choices like moving houses, changing jobs, etc. Ye, it is scary, it is easier to know that tomorrow will be the same as today. But how can you learn to be fulfilled if you do not push yourself? Moving beyond fear is where the true beauty lies. Whether we realize that we are stronger than we thought.
Go on, do something small that is out of your comfort zone, even if this is taking a different route home from work.
A pet is a family member for most
Now if someone told you to let go of your child, wouldn't you think that is daft and they must be bonkers? Then how is a pet any different? Unfortunately, not all pets receive the love and affection they deserve. But in these times of loneliness and isolation, we need to make things easier for people, not harder. Many pet owners are willing to pay extra cleaning fees and increased deposit amounts to bring their loved pets with them.
Would this not be better for a landlord than a tenant sneaking them in? As part of our commitment to better social value, we allow pets into our properties. For a skeptical landlord, there is software like PetScore that rates pets and will provide more peace of mind.