I am saying that it might well lead to those circumstances occurring where they wouldnt occur otherwise. I can imagine a landlord, where he has a choice, not taking on a foreign looking tenant rather than get involved with the rigmarole (ballache) of being responsible for their immigration status. As was said on the news. The government is effectively making landlords and the NHS an extension of the UKBA.
This type of check is required by all employers these days irrespective. I've been to job interviews and been requested to take my passport. No problem. As you intimate, as long as the same 'rules' apply to everyones there's no need to involve race relations. BTW, a visitor has a legal immigration status, so no problem there. As long as they could fulfil the other requirements for a tenancy. Lots of agents in my area are now demanding what they call an Affordability Certificate. Means you need to prove income and give indications of liabilites. The certificate will dictate the range of rents that can be offered to you.
On the NHS. As things stand now, there are cases where Filipinas are being refused registration at their local GP despite having a valid Spouse Visa (or at least cast in doubt). With this new requirement these problems have the potential to be more prevalent.
There is a definite move towards making private citizens police national laws and that's not welcome. With the "encouragement" that citizens report illegals working, be it anonymously or not, the requirement for employers - and now the NHS and landlords - to check an individual's entitlement is a move to a secret police state similar to that in Russia during communist times. I don't think it is right for employers, health workers or landlords to do the Borders Agency's work for them - and make them legally liable. It might be preferable for there to be a Borders Agency representative in every Police Station who can issue entitlement certificates to those who are not citizens of our country. It is an overtly racist policy being pursued by this government - I defy anyone being able to distinguish between an average Antipodean and a British national of the same skin colour based purely on appearance. Or a naturalised Chinese citizen with a recent arrival from Hong Kong, say.
From the Queens Speech. Plans to force millions of private landlords to carry out immigration checks on tenants to be watered down "Plans to force millions of private landlords to vouch safe for the immigration status of their tenants are to be watered down, with the new rules only applying to certain problem areas in the country".[/I] West London, evidently. "The change means that the numbers affected by the change will be much lower than the two million homeowners who it had been thought would be targeted." http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/pol...ion-checks-on-tenants-to-be-watered-down.html
Oh great, now all the failed asylum-seekers and overstayers have to do is find out which areas of the country landlords don't make checks and go live there! What intellectual giant thought that one up?!
When we rented for a year in 2006 we had to go through the pre financial checks which they said would cost me 200 Quid. To avoid this charge I offered to pay 6 months rent in cash. They said the check was unavoidable so I said,fine,I`ll give you cash up front for the whole year. I should have listened to her the first time...She required the 200.00 Pounds fee regardless.. Another unavoidable fee in RIP off Britain these days.
£200 seems rather a lot as I have always paid about 30 or 40 quid, both here in IOM and in Scotland. But I cannot say about England as I never rented there as I had a mortgage.
This seems to vary with the estate agent. In the case of the place that I am renting at the moment a letter from my employers, a reference from someone in the town and that was it - no fees; in the case of a place that I am going to look at this Sunday full checks on all adults at £140 per adult (this includes my 18 year old schoolboy son)
Now that is pricey!! Do you mean there is a fee for the 18 year old, or on all "adults above"18 that have also signed the tenancy agreement? Surely there is no need to declare an 18 year old student during the application process? I`m pretty sure I wouldn't at 140.00 quid a pop.! To me,its a type of scam.
I believe it is a legal requirement to include the names of all adults (18 and above) on rental contracts, therefore checks have to be made. This is similar to when selling a property: legally all persons 18 or above on the vendor's side must sign the Land Registry Transfer Deed.
As I understand it, the checks that require a fee are merely to check the tenants financial status (ability to pay for the duration of the contract). The agreement is between tenant and landlord or between tenant and spouse and landlord. A further resident, your 18 y o child would surely not be needed to be on the agreement even though numbers would need to be declared.
Scratching beneath the surface a little, the laws are different in England and Wales compared to Scotland and say, the IOM.
As luck would have it, I had a Skype conversation with my lawyer and this point came up. She told me that landlords have the right to insist that all prospective tenants of 18 years and above sign the rental agreement and be jointly responsible. It is for that reason that financial checks for all legal adults be undertaken.
What if one of them doesn't sign but decides to move in at a later date or after contract signing? That would be my tact. Sod the law.. Too bloody expensive!!
That would depend entirely on the wording of the rental agreement. If you were to rent from me, you would need to notify me and that person would have to co-sign the agreement (but I probably wouln't insist on a financial reference/check in that case). It is not a case of being awkward or bloody-minded, it is simply a form of protection against those who would abuse the law and attempt to establish squatters rights, for example.
