With the arrival of the Coronavirus making a huge impact on everyone and affecting our economy, we have all had to make massive adjustments to our lives and our businesses. Individuals and businesses have unfortunately suffered financial loss and inconvenience.
Since Lockdown happened in March 2020 we have been in constant contact with landlords and tenants alike doing our best to reassure them that we are here to support and assist them in any way possible.
Here are a few helpful answers to some questions you may have :
This is obviously a big question. Many businesses have been affected by Covid which in turn may have affected your employment and your earnings. We hope this has not happened to you but if it has it is imperative that you inform us as soon as possible so we can inform your landlord.
There are various government support schemes available and we would suggest you take a look at all options and show us that you have done this so that we can reassure your landlord you are doing your best to meet your obligations to pay your rent. We would also urge you to contact the local council and apply for housing benefit. If you are unable to pay your rent, we will ask what you can pay and when.
Please bear in mind that if you are in a joint tenancy with others then you are all equally responsible for the rent and you should work together to continue to pay the rent.
The government have introduced several schemes to help with jobs and income.
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme is aimed at employed staff. Your employer can get 80% of your wages paid by the government until October 2020. This could help you keep your job.
If you are Self Employed there is the Self Employed Income Support Scheme where the government will take an average of your last 3 years tax returns to enable you to claim a taxable grant equivalent to 80 % of your profits.
These schemes will help most people but there will always be some that these cannot help, therefore the government has increased benefit levels to help these people.
If you have a reduced income due to Covid you will need to get help and support through these schemes or check that your employer does as you cannot assume your landlord will reduce the rent.
Normally we would say yes this could happen. But many landlords we have spoken to understand what an unprecedented situation we all are in and would prefer to work together to help everyone get through this.
The government have also advised that eviction proceedings cannot begin until 24th August 2020.
So to confirm, officially your rent is still due and needs to be paid. However we are aware of these exceptional circumstances and if you are experiencing difficulties in paying your rent it is imperative that we know as soon as possible so discussions can take place with your landlord to bridge the gap until things can get back to some kind of normality.
During the height of lockdown, we had to follow the governments advice and only complete urgent maintenance where required i.e no hot water no heating no power etc. We were unable to carry out non urgent maintenance until lockdown was eased recently. We have been liaising with our contractors and tenants to ensure contact is minimal and all our contractors have obtained PPE equipment to ensure their own safety.
If you have any repairs and maintenance that is outstanding, please do report this by our usual system Report a Repair.
Covid has not affected your rights to serve notice to end your tenancy. If you wish to discuss ending your tenancy please contact us on 01473 225268 or info@rents.co.uk
If you have any concerns about anything or have questions that we may not have covered please do not hesitate to contact us on 01473 225268 or drop us an email info@rents.co.uk