I’m trying to sell my house, but not having much luck. My sister is moving back to Northumberland and suggested that she rent it from me, however someone mentioned that you aren’t allowed to rent your property to a member of your family.

Is this ok to do? There is nothing in the agreement that mentions it or the purchase contract we signed – only details state about paying back discount should we sell the property within five years which we aren’t going to do.
When buying the property we asked the solicitor at the time of our future intentions to rent it out and they advised us that we only needed to provide the council with references of any possible future tennant – is this definitely correct?
Thank you in advance.

My lodger left without notice 6 months ago after saying he would pay the 3months back rent. Now after a total of 10 months I want to use the room and was going to return all his belongings,but I’ve now had a change of heart and think I’ll sell his gear to cover the cost of unpaid rent/storage.He’s made no contact or effort to collect his stuff having moved only moved 15 miles away.Can anyone tell me how i stand legally,no rent agreement was ever signed
Bless you Jo-Jo you are obviously a far nicer person than me,I’m driven by greed cos I want the money to go towards an air ticket that I could’ve easily afforded if he’d of kept up his half of the payments.He was a mate but we were never that close so more worried by legality than emotion

by passing them onto Private Landlords?

Many people who approach Councils for help when they become homeless are vulnerable – single mothers with children, people with health issues or money problems. They need the security of a Council or Housing Association Tenancy to make sure they do not end uip in the same position again,

However, most local Council are now using ther "private sector" (ie money-grabbing Landlords and Buy-To-Letters) to house their homelessness cases as they "do not have enough housing stock of their own". For one thing, most councils have housing stock left unoccupied which could be used

And for another thing, private tenancies are insecure. The Landlord demands a bond and rent in advance and can chuck you out whenever he likes. These vulnerable people will most likely just end up homeless again when they default on the (unaffordable) rent or the Landlord wants his house back to sell etc.

Why is this poor excuse for a Government not addressing this?
Johan and the Saint,

OK – story – my partner and I have worked and paid taxes all our lives but when I became ill with a pregnancy related illness and had to stop work, we fell behind with the mortgage and were threatened with repossession (our insurance didn’t cover us as my illness was pregnancy related) .

We were not "failing in our duty to help ourselves", we’d been helping ourselves for years, we just needed a hand through the hard time we were going through, and we’ve paid enough tax over the years to be able to ask for it!

Did they help? Did they BOLLOX!!

Luckily my mother in law gave us the money to clear our arrears because otherwise my baby’s first home would have been a grotty homeless shelter, and we are hardworking TAXPAYERS!!!

Some background stuff;
I lived with my parents and younger brother until the age of 6. My parents divorced and I had to move into one room, with my mother & brother, in my maternal grandparents’ home. I lived there for a year before we were granted a rental property in the town near my grandparents. After about two years we were evicted as another family was willing to pay more rent, and we lived in the same room at my grandparents’ again for a few months.
We were then granted another rental property (in the middle of nowhere) where my mum remarried, and had a daughter. So now there is 5 of us. We were later evicted again when the company who owned our house, went bust, and had to sell on.
Back in with the grandparents, luckily by this time, the guest room had been re-plastered and was actually inhabitable, so me and my brother were put in this room. My mother and sister were in the smaller room, my step-father lived in a flat, in a nearby town.
After another few months of this we were given a house in a village, again, in the middle of nowhere. The house had no carpet, no proper wallpaper/paint, the shower was broken, the garden was a dirt patch, and all kinds of other stuff.
Now onto my life with my father. He moved to a town in the Midlands, 80 miles away. He lived in a tiny flat alone, until he met a woman, and they started dating. After this he lived with his parents for a couple of months, before buying a house in the same town, still, 80 miles away. Me and my brother, still talked to him every night on the phone, and visited him once a week.
In 2003, two months before his 35th birthday, my dad was crushed to death in a motorcycle accident. The funeral was held shortly afterwards, and I took only 3 days off school because of it.
A year later, my mother had a fourth child, I had another brother.
Soon after that, my step-father started shouting at me for the ‘little things’ I did. And later began verbally abusing me because I didn’t do what he told me to do, for example, I’d wash dishes a different way, or say something in a manner he found inappropriate. When I was 14, he punched me. He did this about once a month, for a year and a half. He also threatened to kill me twice, pulled me by my leg down the stairs, held me against a wall by my throat while screaming in my face, and punched in a door trying to get at me. My mother guilt-tripped me into 1. Not calling the police/childline and 2. Not leaving the house sooner.
When I was 15, I discovered I was gay. My step-dad found out from reading my emails, and told my mother. They both gave me silent treatment for at least a month.
A year later, a good friend asked me out (we’re still together now), and after explaining this whole story to his mother, she said I could move in with them (his father had also passed away, the year before mine) until University started, in the next year. After two months of living there, she started to passive aggressively abuse me. She would make comments about my behaviour, regulate how I spoke in the house, and generally treated me as a lesser being. After making arrangements with the regional youth associations, she evicted me, and I now live alone, in a house with 6 other people.
I have my own room opposite the kitchen, and next to the shower room. I was given a bed & mattress, a sink, a chest of draws, a fridge and a tiny wardrobe. I have to live off of £30 a week, which has had to pay for all of my food, my school equipment, rent, entertainment etc.
I have depression, anxiety & paranoia which culminate in me frequently thinking of killing myself, just to stop all this "pain", thinking everyone is an enemy (including my family, friends and partner) and generally feeling crap all the time.

Now, after all of this has happened, I have everyone around me tell me, "What a great position I’m in"

So I ask you, how can one be tasteful, while giving a big middle finger to anyone who thinks my life is great?

Im 29 and recently had a bad breakup a month ago after a 5 year relationship. I am now single and struggling to afford living on my own and am trying to turn my life around. The logical answer is that I move back to get back on my feet but there are other issues.

The reason I have so much debt is partly from being at home when I was younger. I was brought up by a single parent and felt the pressures when my mom wanted to achieve things. My sister (younger) and I are in a lot of debt from paying the mortgage and bills and I feel we are losing out on life.

When I left home about 2 years ago I was basically kicked out because my mom did not approve of my partner and I wouldnt break up with her. I had had enough of not having a life and was starting to resent it. The financial burden was mounting and I felt unappreciated. Relations were very strained and for a while I was cut off. I however kept trying to keepin touch and we are now civil.

After my breakup my mom offered that I come back to get back on my feet. I am uncomfortable.

My mom has moved out and gone to uni in another town. I would not have considered going home otherwise. However she comes back on weekends and is quite controlling within her household. Im worried about possible conflict. My sister is still at home and saddled with the responsibility for the bills. I spoke to her recently and she has a lot on her plate. If I move back I would be in effect be sharing with my sister and it would help her out.

Having spoken to her she doesnt seem that bothered whether I move in or not. We are not that close. There is also a potential tenant in the pipeline who might help her. I also have to consider her independance

I would also be losing my independence and am worried about expectations after being helped. I have nice furnished flat and I would need to sell everything and move back home.

Emotionally I feel like a failure, its too much at once – Losing my relationship and now my home. My self worth is really down.

I may not be ready to help and end up in a worse situation emotionally and financially. Also where I live is cheap. Really cheap. This is because the rent hasnt gone up since I have been a continuous tenant for 2 years. I know for a fact Id never find a place this cheap when I move back out. Going home would save only save me about £200/month. This is because I do not intend on freeloading. Its not a lot, but its a start.

In the long run will I have saved? What if relations at home go sour after a few months? Am I jumping into a worse situation? That is the other issue.

I need to get my life back on track. I dont know what is best. I feel a bit selfish. Do I move back home and help my family out but with the unknown stress that may or may not happen?

Or do I tough it out, be selfish and tread water indefinately?

Im too emotionally attached to my situation. I need practical advice.

Thanks in advance

My business recently closed down and I didnt go bankrupt but am left pennyless. I am being refused benefits because of £500K of property abroad that i jointly own with several relatives who refuse to sell.
I am , of course looking for work but have rent arrears of 3 months plus council tax arrears of 3 months. the bailiffs for CT our already on my back. I have a wife and 2 young kids. It would help me find work if i could at least get JSA but I lived out of the country for years and then started this business that has been a drain.

let the neighbourhood down??? Will this be the next nightmare where decent neighbourhoods will be destroyed by money making landlords???

NO OFFENCE to people renting by the way this is not the point i’m getting at…

Hi, i wanna go back to college and do something worthwhile to get me a better job. I have a well paid job at the moment but it has no prospects and is getting worse trying to get rid of staff etc. I have a mortgage though i have around 90-100k equity on it. Has anyone else made a big move like this? sell up house and pay new rent with the interest on savings from my house? mayb get a student grant? Ta

We want to buy our dreamhouse with this Real Estate Company. Next week we have the viewing trip. Like we here they rent and sell and have a good reputation in helping to advice people with their 2home purchase. It´s the first time we are going to invest in property in Turkey, so some advice please ?