Looking for some advice. I have an old CCJ from a car accident in 2022 where my insurance company refused to pay the guy therefore it fell on me. However, I only came to know it fell on me recently when I was trying to rent and the CCJ came up. Letters were sent to my previous address so I never got them. The CCJ was issued and sent in April 2024, I moved out of said property in November 2023. It had nothing to do with rent. I’ve rented 3 properties since 2020 and have been a model tenant, which all my previous landlords can attest to.
The CCJ is for 5K (his car was a mercedes) so it’s not something that I can just pay overnight. I have a guarantor, I’m making 40K p/a with payslips to prove it & can pay a few months rent upfront but still really struggling to rent in Manchester because of the CCJ. There is a payment plan in place for it.
It seems despite me proving I can afford 3x the rent and there’s a payment plan in place, landlord still aren’t accepting me. Any advice?
As a landlord, here are three things about your scenario apart from actually having a CCJ that would make me question your application:
You are keeping “a few months rent” in your bank while you have outstanding debt. This implies that you’re not taking the debt seriously enough to pay it off.
You didn’t set up a postal forwarding system when you left a previous address. This implies that you aren’t careful about keeping communication open.
You have moved three times in 5 years and are now looking to move again. This would not define my “ideal tenant”.
When during the application process are you declaring that you have your CCJ? For me, it would need to be in the initial phone call I have with you. Having one wouldn’t disqualify you from renting one of my properties, but the three things I’ve listed above would probably make you less attractive than many other applicants I typically get.