Tenants struggling to pay the rent

According to a new report, one in three tenants living in private rented accommodation is struggling to find the money to pay the rent. The figures are slightly less for those living in social housing but, nevertheless, around 29 % are still having problems making their monthly payments. Of course this is hardly surprising when you consider the cost of living these days, and no doubt even more tenants will be struggling to pay their rent as Christmas loomed.

So on a lighter note, what excuses have you been given by tenants who have failed to make their monthly rent payments? Some of the outrageous excuses I read this morning made me laugh out loud: see if any of them strike a chord with you…

 “I can’t pay my rent as my BMW is in the shop, and I cannot afford to pay for both.”

 “I had my choice of paying the rent or buying a car. I bought a car. I knew you would understand.”

 “I don’t want to pay the rent because the house is haunted.”

And on a related note, here is another amusing story I heard the other day… A local landlord was unfortunate enough to have a tenant who decided to do a moonlight flit rather than pay the three months outstanding rent he owed. But unlike the average tenant who moves out in the dead of night and leaves a huge mess behind, this guy decided to clean the house from top to bottom and had all the carpets professionally cleaned first!