Currently referencing through OpenRent for 3 tenants to move into a property costing £925 a month. None of the tenants individually meet the 30 x rent income but combined they have an acceptable income to comfortably cover the rent and expenses.
Does OpenRent take into account the combined income of the tenants when passing or failing or will they simply fail all 3 because none individually meet the affordability criteria?
This is surely a fairly common situation?
Thanks
Hi Nick, if they can afford it combined, then that is fine.
Sam
Bit of old post but the content is as relevant today as it was then.
How is ‘affordability’ treated the same for 3 tenants combined (eg. each earns 10K) Vs 1 tenant (earns 30K)?
It’s fair to assume 3 people consume more food, higher transport cost, use more utilities, more general expenses on clothing, entertainment etc.
By way of an example mortgage lenders factor this in when lending eg. single applicant 3X salary vs 2.5X salary for joint applicants.
Hi Jason, good question. Different referencing companies will have different criteria. OpenRent is not a referencing company, so I can’t give you a detailed example of, e.g. our affordability rating system.
Sam
Thanks, Sam for your reply.
Potential tenants’ ability to afford the rent has always been important but now it is critical for landlords letting properties in the current climate. The extension to eviction ban, 6 month notice period, Rent guarantee insurance(RGI) getting pulled from the market. This all amounts to huge risk for OpenRent’s landlords.
So back to the original question on how OpenRent calculates ‘affordability’ or more specifically the product sold by OpenRent through its partner Rentguard? (I appreciate there’re lots of other companies but let us be specific).
Does the OpenRent’s referencing factor in the additional costs living for multiple tenants Vs a single tenant? and if not, why not?
(Perhaps, a rep from Rentguard could contribute their wisdom (?))