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Sedgeberrow, Worcestershire, United Kingdom
Breeding and Selling Quaility Huacaya & Suri Alpacas.

Sunday 24 July 2011

Sorry!! But I have got to have a rant!!

Really sorry everyone, but I have just got to get this off my chest before I explode!!

Its nothing Alpacas based, but family and the UK system!!

We are a hard working family and do everything we can to be honest and pay our own way, but they system just smashes you in the teeth.

My husband and son are both bricklayers in the building trade, as everyone knows the recession has been hard on all fronts. Two and half years ago when they had very little work coming in my son and his partner Hannah took the hard decision to move out of their home and move in with Hannah's family and rent out the house so they could keep up with the morgage payments.

Their first tenants were very good, and caused no problems, but the second one has been a nightmare, she is behind on the rent, they have caused damage to the property, had the police called there and has had no respect at all the my sons home. Needless to say this person is a single mum on benefits and not a bloody care in the world. (I have to say I dont have a problem with people on benefits as many are in need of support, but some definatly take the system for a ride!!)

Anyway, my son and partner got married in April, and had decided they wanted to move back to their own home, they gave the tenant the offical 2 month notice last November, expecting to have the house back in Feb to give them time to get the house sorted ready for them to move back after the wedding.

She was due to move out on the 15th Feb, a few days before this they contacted her to arrange a date to do the house inventory, she informs them that she wasnt moving out, she had spoke to her housing officer and was told oh dont worry you dont have to move yet and it will take the landlords at least 2/3 months to get you out, they will have to got to court to get a possesion order!! Now this is the Council telling her this, never mind my son and his wife were going to be homeless themselves. Hannah contacted the council and they told her that thier tenant had only gone to see them on the 8th Feb to say she was going to be homeless and there was nothing they could do and suggested that my son took court action!! on hearing this Hannah said but what about us we are going to homeless in April they just replied do you both work, of course they work so were told the council could not help them!! and they would have to rent privatly themselves (but they have a house why shouldnt they have it back!!)

So my son had no option but to go to court and get an eviction order costing them £150!! Unfortunaetly although they had give her 2 months notice they had set it on the incorrect date and the court would not take action!! So they had to serve her 2 months notice again for the correct dates, wait for her to not get out!! which wow and behold she didnt go, then they went back to court to get the eviction order, to which they got.

She was to move out on the 28th July 11, great my son and his now new wife were looking forward to getting their home back. But yesterday Hannah phoned the tennat to arrange the date for the inventory only to be told - you guested it!! she is not moving out, she has again been told by her housing officer she will have a least another month!!, the landlord, my son will now have to go back to the court and pay £95 to get the bailiffs to evict her!!

After getting adivice from a solicitor they have been told oh yes this is normal, and the tennat will probably move out the day before the bailiffs are due so the bailiffs wont need to go, but my son has still had to pay out £95

I am so ANGRY, my son and his partner arew honest and hard working people, paying their taxes but they are the ones who are getting penalised!! The system is so wrong and so unfair!!

And people wonder why landlords wont take on people on benefits!! I now totally understand and would now say whatever you do dont take on a tenant who is on benefits!!

I think the laws protect the tenant, which I agree they need protecting, but what about the innocent landlords where's their protections??

Rant over!!

Ginnie

7 comments:

Zanzibah Alpacas said...

Glad you got your rant over !!...Its good to let off steam sometimes.......Just typical isnt it....hope things work out soon for you and your family !.....Jayne

Judi said...

Sounds like a little "alpaca therapy" is needed...hope it all works out as it's difficult enough for young people today without things like this happening.

Rosemary said...

That was some rant!!

Hope things sort out - all seems very unfair.

Patou Alpacas said...

Sadly that is the state of this country summed up in one big rant.
The 'non-contributors' get every bit of help they demand and us working folk get shafted every time. I see it all the time in my day job, it makes me sick.

Cotswold Vale Alpacas said...

Thanks everyone, just need to get if of my chest!! I do think the system has let my son and his wife down, but there is nothing they can do but carry on using the system that has let them down. And hopefully it wont be much longer before they can get on with the married life in their own home.

Ginnie

Jenny said...

I am absolutely shocked by your story, especially as we had just accepted a DSS couple to come and view our cottage. Then we had a gut feeling to phone up and cancel them. We'll hold out for someone else. The last tenant left in February, owing rent and having completly trashed our cottage to the tune of £15,000 (fifteen).

Cotswold Vale Alpacas said...

Hi Jenny, I am sorry to hear about your last tenant, I didnt believe people could be so disrepectful to peoples property until my son has had this problem, they still dont know how much damage they will have to deal with until they eventually get her out, she doesnt even care as it is the council who have put up the deposit!! which I am sure will no way cover the costs of repairs and the outstanding rent!!.

We have also been on the other side of the fence, having rented for several years until we got the land etc. We respected the properties and even improved one of them, and were not protected by the Deposit protection Agency, and on two of the three landlords took us for a real ride with the deposits and we lost well over £1,500 and again we weren't protected by the system and lost out. I have got to say there are some horrible devious people in the world. I never understood why landlords didnt want DSS people but am fully aware and understand now.

I hope you find some nice tenants for you property very soon.

Ginnie