Renting for first time - some questions

Lenny

Hello, myself and the gf are thinking of renting out a house. just a few things I'd like to get answered.
Are we entitled to rent allounce for the both of us, does the landlord need to be registered if we want to avail of this?(we take home just under a grand on our payslips) our friends(who are a couple - currently recieving 800 per month allounce and the dole each, don't ask me how but they moved in together with no jobs, and got all this handed to them)
places we have been looking at are all 1 year leases, is it possible to request a 3-6 months lease, as we want to test the water before we look at buying, what about content insurance on the house, do we have to get that ourselfs as I'd be moving in with some expensive stuff(I read the other topics an gather we have to pay our own contents?)
Are we allowed to drill holes in the wall to put up a tv?
IS there any other things we should be aware of.
thanks in advance

J-blk

Lenny wrote: »

is it possible to request a 3-6 months lease, as we want to test the water before we look at buying

The vast majority of places do still look for a 12 month lease but it they have been trying to rent it out for awhile, they might be open to 6 months or even 3 (less likely). 6 months of having tenants would be better than the place sitting empty for another 3 months or longer... All you have to do is ask, nothing to lose really.

Lenny wrote: »

what about content insurance on the house, do we have to get that ourselfs as I'd be moving in with some expensive stuff(I read the other topics an gather we have to pay our own contents?)

I never understand why people even ask this. Your stuff is your responsibility - so yes, you need contents insurance for your own things, if you want it. The landlord will have the structure itself and his items (appliances, furniture, etc) insured.

Lenny wrote: »

Are we allowed to drill holes in the wall to put up a tv?

Depends on your lease but in most cases, especially for heavy duty stuff like TV wall mounts, I'd guess no.

The_Conductor

Lenny wrote: »

Hello, myself and the gf are thinking of renting out a house. just a few things I'd like to get answered.
Are we entitled to rent allounce for the both of us,

Your entitlement to rent allowance depends entirely on your personal circumstances- you need to contact a community welfare officer to ascertain your potential eligibility before proceeding further at this point. They are getting a lot stricter- and also the maximum allowance levels are expected to be dropped significantly in the December budget. You have to factor this into your equations.

Lenny wrote: »

does the landlord need to be registered if we want to avail of this?

The landlord is legally obliged to register any tenancy. This has no bearing on your eligibility for rent-allowance.

Lenny wrote: »

(we take home just under a grand on our payslips) our friends(who are a couple - currently recieving 800 per month allounce and the dole each, don't ask me how but they moved in together with no jobs, and got all this handed to them)

If your friends are being accessed seperately and have subsequently moved in together, without informing the community welfare officer- and are both claiming the rent allowance, as a single person- they are committing fraud, and when they are caught- they will be forced to repay the money and may receive a conviction for fraud. Its extremely serious- don't even think of doing it. While DSFA, the Revenue Commissioners and the PRTB may not have been the best at cooperating in the past- the interagency task force are proving to be very good at chasing people. Check with your local Community Welfare Officer- and follow everything to the letter of the law.

Lenny wrote: »

places we have been looking at are all 1 year leases, is it possible to request a 3-6 months lease, as we want to test the water before we look at buying,

You can normally get a shorter lease- you normally pay more monthly- in recognition of this.

Lenny wrote: »

what about content insurance on the house, do we have to get that ourselfs as I'd be moving in with some expensive stuff(I read the other topics an gather we have to pay our own contents?)

You always insure your own things. Period. It doesn't matter where you are. Get your own contents insurance.

Lenny wrote: »

Are we allowed to drill holes in the wall to put up a tv?

Drilling holes in walls etc- is a matter between you and your landlord. It would be extremely unusual for a landlord to allow anyone drill holes in walls though- and if you did it without permission- you can be certain you'd loose your deposit.

Lenny wrote: »

IS there any other things we should be aware of.
thanks in advance

Other things?
Suitability for your own personal circumstances?
Neighbourhood?
Convenience factor for local facilities and amenities.?
Closeness to work- and availability of public transport to get there?

- you could make a long list here. In short- you are looking at the things that matter to you- I'd only be guessing- but you need to sit down and make a list of 'deal breakers'- things that you are willing or not willing to accept in a property (rental or otherwise). These will differ from person to person.

Lenny

Ok lads, thanks for the few questions answered.
regarding the rent allounce - I know that they will be tightening up alright. so is it possible for us to go see how much if any we're entitled to before we start to rent.
I didn't know that it is given on a couple basis, so my friends that are doing it are more than likely claiming it seperatly because they do get two different ammounts paid to them. I was honestly thinking it was too much they were getting(its about 750-800 they getting)
But these two have been on the dole for years and still getting it, without having worked in years.
I wanted to make sure on the contents insurance, cause I'd just be kind of afraid that a prevous occupent would have went and got a key cut or something, and came back for a visit to my gear

Xiney

If you are employed over 30 hours per week, you are not entitled to rent allowance. This applies even if only one person in a couple is employed.

Lenny

Xiney wrote: »

If you are employed over 30 hours per week, you are not entitled to rent allowance. This applies even if only one person in a couple is employed.

Well thats not what I wanted to hear. so we'd be entitled to zilch? just baffles me at times why all of my mates are better off than I am when it comes to benifits. work my ass off with 2 jobs and at the end of the month they get more in benifits than i earn

D3PO

Lenny wrote: »

to be registered if we want to avail of this?(we take home just under a grand on our payslips)

as we want to test the water before we look at buying,

Ok so its not the question you were asking but dream on if you think you can afford to buy anywhere with that kind of take home pay !!

Lenny

D3PO wrote: »

Ok so its not the question you were asking but dream on if you think you can afford to buy anywhere with that kind of take home pay !!

Well it must be possible considering people who I work with have appartments/houses on there own and barely manage. and as I said that our payslip take home. we also have about 300-350more in cash together too

The_Conductor

Lenny wrote: »

Well thats not what I wanted to hear. so we'd be entitled to zilch? just baffles me at times why all of my mates are better off than I am when it comes to benifits. work my ass off with 2 jobs and at the end of the month they get more in benifits than i earn

Lenny- the Irish benefit regime is extraordinarily generous- and when you consider the 'add-ons' that people are routinely claiming- almost scandalous in nature. It really is the case that you can be financially better off claiming benefits rather than working- on anything under the average industrial wage (there are numerous threads here on boards- and elsewhere about it).

This is changing though- primarily because we simply don't have the money any longer (but also in recognition of the fact that the average worker has had a net paycut of between 12 and 30% in the past 18 months).

Rent allowance got chopped last time round- and the Christmas double payment is gone- this time round you can be certain there will be further cuts. I fully accept what you're saying about some of your mates being better off than you- and you working- I've been in that boat. On occasion I've had to make a choice between paying my EUR100 a month for medication- or paying the mortgage- and routinely had to borrow money on one credit card to pay off another and/or ESB bills etc- and believe you me- I'm not living extravagantly by any means.

Yes- its unfair- but you have the knowledge of knowing that you're putting in a decent days work- and that you're not going to get chopped as badly when the budget comes round in December (social welfare, the HSE budget and public sector pay are being held up as the 3 areas that 5.4 billion are going to be cut from)

Xiney

Also, there is room for advancement when you're working.

You can't get a raise on the dole.

Lenny

Xiney wrote: »

Also, there is room for advancement when you're working.

You can't get a raise on the dole.

Well while I'm still Fortunate to be working, I sadly work in the motor trade so there is zilch chance of advancing forwards, already taken two pay cuts this year, nearly 100 staff let go accross the dif companys I'm down 110euro a week now and I was on an OK wage(just under adverage) so things won't be advancing where I am for a long time!

and smccarrick, I know too how painful it is to be spending €100 limit on med a month I'm always at my limit. and it does get to my that some of my friends just go to the doctor with the slightest tingle in threre throat for nothing and then get there free tabs(the reason how they're extending there dole is by claiming sick, free to go doctor. claim they're depressed to get a job an get the dole for a while

The_Conductor

The motor trade is an obvious casualty of the downturn- but its only one of many. My net pay is down 300 a month this year thus far- and I expect to get whacked again in the budget

Its especially tough for couples- who were used to dual incomes- and one is now unemployed- but their partner is still getting whacked for tax at an identical rate. Individualisation of the tax bands by McCreevy back in 2001- is something that is seriously going to have to be revisited- it was all well and good during the boom- but in a situation where its a reasonable expectation that only one partner in a family unit is working- it discriminates against families.......

S.