The tenants I agreed to rent to have failed referencing because they are from abroad.
They are a couple moving in together, quite young, both currently living with other family so don’t have a previous landlord and they don’t have a UK credit history.
They don’t have a suitable guarantor.
However they both have confirmed good jobs at a reputable company and earn comfortably more than enough to pay the rent. One of them has been in the same position for 2 years and the other 1 year at the same company.
They seem decent, respond well to questions, reply promptly etc. I asked for 3 months bank statement from them, the lead tenant supplied them very rapidly, all looks in order.
Would you rent to them?
Obviously I could put the flat back on the market and find someone else no trouble, but the flat is currently empty after renovation works, so another 2-4 week delay while I find someone else would cost me money.
Bear in mind easy for them to toddle off back home without consequence.
The job security can count for something. Is it a permanent contract? What profession?
Savings? disposable income?
Personally I would struggle to take this risk, especially in a landlords market.
Thank you. Yes I’m a little uneasy about it but as you say, it will not be hard to find someone else, so might be better to do that for peace of mind
Hi, Bella.
We rented our budget flats mostly to tenants like this, more precisely, to Eastern and Central Europeans. Every single one of them turned out to be an excellent tenant. And they were very grateful because not every LL would take them. Some of them still keep in touch. This Christmas we even received a hamper from one Polish couple that left years ago and now have a place of their own.
Like you, we did all checks we could, and they all were to our satisfaction. Replying promptly and providing all relevant information without having to ask twice also sounds familiar. They show that they’re very motivated from the start. No arguments about providing bank statements - very transparent and realize that they have to convince the LL to take them on. I love their attitude. You don’t usually see it from locals.
Just our personal experience.
Brexit has buggered it all. We’re now renting to locals, and the experience is very different, and not in a good way. Can’t be bothered, entitled, demanding, ungrateful. I guess we should be grateful that they pay their very reasonable rent.
there is definitely some truth in those statements
Just to add I rented to a Polish couple once and they were reliable decent tenants. I still feel it’s an increased risk overall.
If they’ve been here for 2 years would they still have no credit history? Mobile phones,credit cards etc. ?
if you checked my credit rating you would not rent to me I have never used a credit card., never borrowed for a car purchase. ONLy had a mortgage on my home which never missed a beat I was told 20 years ago that I should have a card to improve my rating !! Not a chance I
.owe no one I do not even know what it is or how it works
I think it’s only locals that owes banks and all sorts,most foreigners like myself personally I hate debts,I don’t like those credit score things,I bought my car cash down after 4 months I got to the UK,I wanted to buy a new phone,they said I should buy on credit,I said NO I have my money,and I went to the shop and got myself a desired phone cash down.So if you have to judge me with credit,I wondered what will be used on me,Give people the chance to prove themselves worthy.Thanks
I rented to a couple from Hong Kong only 9 months in the country and they failed referencing. They were both doing low paid menial jobs, which is often the case when new to the UK but after meeting them they appeared to be honest hard-working people from a middle classed background back home. One was a teacher. The other thing was they were mature mid 40s. As Mark10 said, it is an increased risk but I had a gut instinct so took a chance with them. Now 6 months in and still all okay. They even pay the rent a few days before it is due.
They should not fail because they are from abroad. They should fail because they cannot provide something….What exactly is missing?
What other mitigations can you use.
You could ask for 6 months up front to make your position more secure. You can increase the number of inspections to flag an issue earlier. There are risks whichever way you rent to anyone.
You didn’t take an upfront at all? Just curious…
Quite a sweeping statement! “Most foreigners hate debt” 
If you mean a holding deposit, Yes I did as I was being inundated with requests to view. The holding deposit stops all that as the property is automatically taken off the market. It also shows that the prospective tenant is serious.
I meant an upfront rent of 6 months or so?
No I didn’t. They were a mature (mid 40s) married couple, both working with a bank account showing a healthy amount of savings. I just had a gut instinct that they were legit.
I agree completely and I would proceed with this young couple.
Anyone can up and leave and you have the deposit….
I’m a little perplexed. Do they have “right to rent”?. May this not be what they are referring to? It’s illegal to rent to anyone without right to rent. They need to prove this to referencing. Personally I would not take the chance. BTW, if your tenants don’t pass & you proceed, you can’t get landlords insurance as far as I’m aware. It’s tricky. Interesting feedback from everyone though.
The market is nuts & you have the choice to get someone who passes referencing. I would never rent to people who did not pass because of insurances etc. If you ever have to go to court, they could just do a runner & tge fact tgat you rented to them against the referencing recommendations could go against you but it wouldn’t get that far anyway because they would just disappear most likely…
It’s not a nice place out there right now for potential tenants! Just this month I rented a flat & was inundated from start of ad 12 midnight having 60 replies by early morning which proceeded to escalate so I had to request for people to stop contacting me as I had more than enough replies but even with that it continued to escalate to just under 100 & people offering me sight unseen way over asking price which of course I declined. I went with a young couple who had been outbid many times before as they had to stick to their budget. They were finding it hopeless finding a home together. It’s a terrible rat race out there. I really feel for them. But no way would I rent to anyone who did not pass references. Not that it means much if anything, but logistically, it coujd be a nightmare if there are problems
I had a similar response to a property I listed about 6 months ago. The listing went live early in the week and most of those interested wanted to view over the weekend. One couple were local and were able to view within an hour of contacting me and they took it. I agree, it’s tough out there for prospective tenants.