Tenants have worse mental health than owners - claim

I expect someone will want Landlords to pay!

As a group, landlords should focus more on making their tenants feel more secure by offering a "No eviction policy" and welcome the abolition of section 21 along with greater improvements in Section 8 (fault evictions) grounds and procedure especially relating to anti-social behaviour.

This would, I believe, do far more to dissipate the hatred and contempt that is aimed at private landlords than anything else.

I have operated a "No eviction policy" for over 25 years and only evict for fault and it has had no detriment to my business and I have housed in that period, well over 20,000 tenants and at any one time 1000 tenants.

If anyone wants a copy of my "No Eviction Policy" I am easy to find on the web.
Jim Haliburton
The HMO Daddy

There may well be a correlation between being a tenant and poorer mental health. However as any psychologist will tell you, this does not prove cause and effect. There are many possible reasons for poor mental health, and it may be the poor mental health that causes an inability to get a job and buy a house in many cases. You could also say that being a landlord may cause stress, anxiety and depression. Surely all that can be said with any certainty is that people who struggle financially (for whatever reason) are less likely to own their own home (and therefore will be renters). Kind of obvious, but there we are. Do we then blame mortgage lenders? I'd also suggest there are many reasons why people have no savings, and it's not generally because all their money goes on essential spending.

So it's all our fault for expecting tenants to pay their rent, or the banks for expecting the monthly mortgage payment to be made, or even the supermarket for expecting payment before leaving with a basket full of shopping, these '' mental health issues'' are self inflicted, get out to work, get payed for doing so, then pay your way, dead easy, it works, always has done so, too many ''entitled'' out there that expect the free ride

25 years ago one of my colleagues said to me "You're sad you are. All you ever do is work and buy houses. You want to get a life".
We were both taxi drivers working 6 nights a week. We both had school age children and were both single parents.
She liked going to the casino, wore designer labels, drove a BMW for social use and smoked like a chimney.
I've never been to a casino, always wear jeans, drove my taxi for social use and had given up smoking 5 years before I became a taxi driver. I also had a part time day job.
Three years later she had let her ex have her Council house and her new bloke had got ill and his house was repossessed.
At which point she said to me "It's alright for you. You've got your houses".
It totally escaped her that we had done the same job, earned the same money and had the same opportunities.

Life is about choices.
How much stress and anxiety is because some people choose instant gratification instead of longer term financial security?
How much hardship is because they don't look at bank statements and are paying for multiple subscriptions and memberships they don't need? One of my ex tenants had a personality clash at work, became depressed, got sacked, got into arrears, couldn't afford food, got ill and even more depressed. He eventually asked me to go through his bank statement to see if there was anything he could do. It turned out he had subscriptions for Netflix, Spotify and Amazon Prime. Also a gym membership and an expensive mobile phone contract for a phone he had lost months earlier. I gave him a Section 21 notice (having explained it didn't necessarily mean I was going to evict him). He used it to negotiate either cancellation or suspension of all the subscriptions and memberships. Also his daily overdraft charges were cancelled for a while. He got a Discretionary Housing Payment, started buying food, his health improved, he got a new job. It was a long journey but he eventually moved on of his own accord, having fully paid all rent arrears.

It’s crazy I see so many young men dossing or asleep on the couch during the day. They have a bed to sleep in during the night and then on the couch during the day. I have to attend with various qualified professionals to comply with the various regulation to make sure everything is perfect for them.
I am talking about 30 year olds some not even from this country, it’s ridiculous don’t worry the old man will do everything for you. So it seems one third of the population is hammered into the ground while keeping the other two thirds.

I think it was wrong to exclude landlords from the property in reasonable day hours, it was the rule for many years. The landlord can now only find out by chance when he gets a complaint reason to go there, like yesterday I seen fire extinguisher & fit blanket removed they were fixed to the wall easily accessible. There is a multi coat rack on the wall but no don’t use that one hang your own over the fire door load it to the max even though there wasn’t enough gap between head of door & jamb, so it can’t work probably those silly things shouldn’t happen.

Cris, you didn’t have to evict anyone in 22 years because Section 21 was there and the Tenants knew it was there, take it away and see what happens.

Jo.I believe some are not viable only because they have an alternative, they can make a comparison and decide not to work for the difference.

Cris, exactly right its your property and when the chips are down you must be able to say no and get your property back but this is what we have that they are now removing in the form of Section 21.

Section 21 certainly is more beneficial to Tenants. It has been abused by Tenants all they need to do is play up enough on landlord to force him to go through the procedure and they’ll off to the Civic Centre to get housed waving the Court Order, indeed many Tenants filled it out themselves and get Landlord to agree, if he doesn’t agree you know what’s coming next.

Regarding mental health I don’t agree its anything in particular to do with Tenants, its the Nation as a whole far too much unnecessary pill popping going on they are breaking the NHS the main driver is no purchase necessary they are free.
Sorry I have done a few blogs in succession but I have spent most of the day crawling around on lofts timbers add extra 200mm insulation to keep them warm.

Loft insulation. You can get non fibreglass insulation.

Sad, I didn’t mind unblocking drains in the past but since Covid I try to give them a wide berth.

Gosh you are out in the sticks. I was good constructing them back in the day has to be shuttered and mass concrete for me, mainly one pour, no leaks (not rendered concrete blocks) a good size and well away private water sunken well if any but I suppose you have mains water. Probably all pre manufactured fibre glass units those days but don’t have the same capacity.
Storm water to separate soak-away,, just dig a great bit hole so fill it with stones.
I spent some time on the ground too not all in lofts.

Andrew , you might want to consider a composting toilet. And wee makes a great fertilizer! Won't let me post u rin e !

Under the new proposals going through parliament I think their mental health is about to get worse for tenants

Shelter it's called cause and affect

You are definitely right, Elizabeth. Actually, both tenants and landlords have been badly affected in terms of mental health due to the very ill-thought out "reforms"; it would have been so much less stressful for everyone if the Government had not sought to interfere in private contractual arrangements - and as you say, the situation is going to get worse.

Richmond Council & Citizens Advice complaining that a couple with 2 kids can’t find anywhere to live, they had 2 months notice but can’t any where, the landlord is selling I wonder why didn’t someone say removing S21 didn’t matter.
They have over 5200 on their waits lists but only a couple of hundred becomes available in the year mostly one bed & studios. Why don’t they do something about it instead of complaining like reinstating S.21 one of the causes of homelessness for sure or is that too simple.

Keep shelter,s staff in job through ressession.

Andrew the 4 wheel self propelled vehicles is the reason for grass in the middle. When we the horse & cart, the horse took care of the centre.