daft.ie has removed "RAA" option

newbie13

Is it only me or did anyone else realize that daft.ie has removed the option for " Rent Allowance Accepted" [tick] from letting search option.

I am sure that I click on advance search and click any random county or town, can not search for renting property who accept the rent allowance...

check it out... daft.ie/lettings/

the_syco

Your right. I'd consider that a huge problem!

murphaph

Clearly done as a cover your ass exercise but will just make life more awkward for all concerned. This move won't make any landlords accept rent supplement. It'll just make it harder for tenants to find those that do.

newbie13

murphaph wrote: »

This move won't make any landlords accept rent supplement. It'll just make it harder for tenants to find those that do.

yes, that was my point to create the post..

Stenth

Ignorant foreigner question: How is rent allowance administrated? Is the government paying the landlord directly on the tenant's behalf (in which case I'd imagine that the landlord would be sure to receive rent in time) or are they giving it to the tenant (in which case, why would the landlord even know about it?) or are there other factors?

Sorry for being clueless, I'm just having a hard time understanding the problem. Or is it just "we don't want to rent to that sort of people, they will probably end up trashing the apartment"?

Gatling

Stenth wrote: »

Ignorant foreigner question: How is rent allowance administrated? Is the government paying the landlord directly on the tenant's behalf (in which case I'd imagine that the landlord would be sure to receive rent in time) or are they giving it to the tenant (in which case, why would the landlord even know about it?) or are there other factors?

Sorry for being clueless, I'm just having a hard time understanding the problem. Or is it just "we don't want to rent to that sort of people, they will probably end up trashing the apartment"?

The majority of the time its given to tenants who apply for it ,
ie, tenants then put a minimum contribution of €35 pw and then pass it on to the landlord themselfs ,but its fairly common for people on rent supplement to either forget to do it or spend the money on other things,and theres zero comeback on tenants who do this

the_syco

Stenth wrote: »

Sorry for being clueless, I'm just having a hard time understanding the problem. Or is it just "we don't want to rent to that sort of people, they will probably end up trashing the apartment"?

If the Social Welfare decide the tenant is no longer getting Rent Allowance, the landlord is often the last person to find out.

Also, every so often, the Social Welfare f**ks up, and EVERYONE ON RA doesn't get anything. And thus the landlord doesn't get paid. May not be the tenants fault, but it ain't the landlords problem.

godwin

Gatling wrote: »

The majority of the time its given to tenants who apply for it

This is due to the policy at the DSP refusing to deposit it into banks.

Eric Cartman

Every ad will just have :

*** RENT ALLOWANCE NOT ACCEPTED ***

At the top of it. So much so that ive even left landlords a little copy and paste example

Pawwed Rig

newbie13 wrote: »

Is it only me or did anyone else realize that daft.ie has removed the option for " Rent Allowance Accepted" [tick] from letting search option.

Seems like a very silly thing to do as tenants on RA will now have to e-mail every landlord asking if they will accept it.

newbie13

Stenth wrote: »

Ignorant foreigner

what is your point with this ?

Ihatecuddles

newbie13 wrote: »

what is your point with this ?

He meant he's not from Ireland and therefore wasn't familiar with RA.

newbie13

copied from personal email

"
--> The "rent allowance" filter will no longer be available when entering an ad or searching for one on our site.
This change is being made following dialogue with the Department of Social Protection, whose expressed position is that the offering of this filter perpetuates a misunderstood stereotype of rent allowance applicants and should cease immediately.
If there is anything else we can assist with please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards,

The Daft Team "

ted1

newbie13 wrote: »

copied from personal email

"
--> The "rent allowance" filter will no longer be available when entering an ad or searching for one on our site.
This change is being made following dialogue with the Department of Social Protection, whose expressed position is that the offering of this filter perpetuates a misunderstood stereotype of rent allowance applicants and should cease immediately.
If there is anything else we can assist with please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards,

The Daft Team "

Are the DSP their clients or end user?

Stenth

mauzo! wrote: »

He meant he's not from Ireland and therefore wasn't familiar with RA.

Pretty much, yes.
And I was wondering why the tenant wouldn't just forget to tell the landlord that he was on RA, but I realize now that's why the landlords wants to know where/if you work, etc.

loyatemu

Gatling wrote: »

its fairly common for people on rent supplement to either forget to do it or spend the money on other things,and theres zero comeback on tenants who do this

surely you have the same comeback as against any other tenants who don't pay their rent - you evict them.

Gatling

loyatemu wrote: »

surely you have the same comeback as against any other tenants who don't pay their rent - you evict them.

Oh yeah after your 14 days and ohh the social didnt pay this month ,never mind the 2 week holidays in the sun I just had excuse

ABajaninCork

The LL will have to complete part of the RA form as well. The questions are now very intrusive and want to know the ins and outs of a cat's arse - from the value of the property, price paid, the lot. I think that's also why so many are reluctant to accept RA, especially if they are not tax compliant.

loyatemu

Gatling wrote: »

Oh yeah after your 14 days and ohh the social didnt pay this month ,never mind the 2 week holidays in the sun I just had excuse

I'm sure private tenants use sob-stories as an excuse too.

Does being in receipt of RA give you any additional rights as a tenant?

newbie13

Stenth wrote: »

Pretty much, yes.
And I was wondering why the tenant wouldn't just forget to tell the landlord that he was on RA, but I realize now that's why the landlords wants to know where/if you work, etc.

I think the tenant needs to get Landlord`s pps number and signature for one of the document to apply for Rent supplement or allowance..
So tenant cannot hide or lie that he is not on RA.

hfallada

Landlords will be back to the days of receiving ten calls a day asking them do they take rent allowance even through rent allowance is about a third short of the rent quoted

LLs would take rent allowance if it was market rate. But LLs are not a charity. They aren't going to lower their rent for rent allowance. They have a ton of expenses to pay. I Dont understand how the government thinks introducing legalisation that makes denying someone a house because they are on rent allowance solves the problem. If rent allowance was market rent, most LLs would take rent allowance

quadrifoglio verde

loyatemu wrote: »

surely you have the same comeback as against any other tenants who don't pay their rent - you evict them.

It's fairly difficult to get evicted legally in this country.
The main reason why landlords don't like rent allowance is because it's paid in arrears.
Then you also have the stereotype that gets applied to rent allowance tenants, because if what some tenants on rent allowance do. In the same way all students get stereotyped as trouble makers who'll trash the place, even though that's only a small minority.

TheBandicoot

newbie13 wrote: »

copied from personal email

"
--> The "rent allowance" filter will no longer be available when entering an ad or searching for one on our site.
This change is being made following dialogue with the Department of Social Protection, whose expressed position is that the offering of this filter perpetuates a misunderstood stereotype of rent allowance applicants and should cease immediately.
If there is anything else we can assist with please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards,

The Daft Team "

What stereotype? Honestly I don't know what the DSP are on about.

Ray Palmer

TheBandicoot wrote: »

What stereotype? Honestly I don't know what the DSP are on about.

I agree and why Daft would listen to the DSP in the first place is beyond me. It isn't like they can enforce anything on them. All it does is make it more difficult to use the website.

I still don't get why somebody who is unemployed hasn't gone and tried to set-up a website specifically for RA tenants and LL willing to accept it.

ABajaninCork

Ray Palmer wrote: »

I agree and why Daft would listen to the DSP in the first place is beyond me. It isn't like they can enforce anything on them. All it does is make it more difficult to use the website.

I still don't get why somebody who is unemployed hasn't gone and tried to set-up a website specifically for RA tenants and LL willing to accept it.

Great idea, Ray! Are you offering?

Ray Palmer

ABajaninCork wrote: »

Great idea, Ray! Are you offering?

I am not unemployed and lack of RA doesn't effect me negatively. Given people are going on about getting the government to change why can't they do it for themselves?

The government will give you training, you can work from home and you can even get tax breaks if you have been unemployed for over a year.

riclad

Many area,s the ra limits, are below the market rate.
There,s too much unneeded info on the form,
ie prsi no of anyone who lives in the house ,etc even if they are not on welfare,
WHY should the hse know how much you paid for the house/
This thing re tax compliance is a myth.
Landlords have one bad experience with a tenant and they stop taking ra clients.
Landlords have plenty of reasons to refuse ra tenants .
SO now tenants will have to waste time emailing,
or phoning advertisers to find out if they take rent allowance.
IF i,m looking for 100 euro rent for a flat,
i cant take rent allowance as its over the ra limit.
Whether i,ll accept ra is irrevelant .
What job is there for 100,000 people to work from home.?

UNDER the ra system it can take weeks for the first payment to come thru.

Eric Cartman

hfallada wrote: »

Landlords will be back to the days of receiving ten calls a day asking them do they take rent allowance even through rent allowance is about a third short of the rent quoted

LLs would take rent allowance if it was market rate. But LLs are not a charity. They aren't going to lower their rent for rent allowance. They have a ton of expenses to pay. I Dont understand how the government thinks introducing legalisation that makes denying someone a house because they are on rent allowance solves the problem. If rent allowance was market rent, most LLs would take rent allowance

it would have to be enough above the rate to pay for insurance for everything, In my experience with landlords rent allowance is the flip of a coin, you get some people who are mostly fine (normally single mothers, your house is alright except for crayon on the walls and a little above average wear and tear) or you get complete and utter scum who disrespect everything and whove only left the 4 walls and the roof intact because they passed out from drink or heroin before they thought of destroying those. The problem is they both show up on your door being polite and looking the same way.

for the risk thats in it, I personally wouldnt bother with rent allowance tenants, if I had a good tenant who lost his/her job half way through the lease Id have no problem taking it and keeping them on , but in general people who show up to your door on RA from day 1 are just too much of a wildcard to leave with such a valuable investment.

riclad

Most of the ads i see in dublin ,are over the ra limit.
Theres no point ringing about an ad thats over the weekly limit.
This is just political correctness .
Which makes it harder for people who need ra acccomodation.

Raphael

There is a point ringing if the rent is above RA limits, you may be renting the property to share with someone who is not on RA, and planning a division of rent such that your share is under/equal to the limit.

zef

So after a meeting with he DSP Daft have agreed to take out the RA filter.I think it's more to do with hiding the true figures and statistics stacked against a RA recipient. A couple of days ago there were 10 properties accepting RA in Dublin, out of 1,630.

the_syco

zef wrote: »

A couple of days ago there were 10 properties accepting RA in Dublin, out of 1,630.

And now there is none

ted1

zef wrote: »

So after a meeting with he DSP Daft have agreed to take out the RA filter.I think it's more to do with hiding the true figures and statistics stacked against a RA recipient. A couple of days ago there were 10 properties accepting RA in Dublin, out of 1,630.

Zef in another thread you accused me of adding a single mother tax on to what I charge RA tenants. There's a reason why most ll won't deal with RA tenants

The_Conductor

newbie13 wrote: »

I think the tenant needs to get Landlord`s pps number and signature for one of the document to apply for Rent supplement or allowance..
So tenant cannot hide or lie that he is not on RA.

What happens in reality- is the tenant doesn't advise that they are on RA- they pay the deposit and 1st month's rent up front- and then confront the landlord with the documentation.,......

Also- some tenants have been known to state that the landlord is non-resident, as a manner of getting around not having their PPSN.

Once the tenant has their foot in the door- getting them out, even when their RA application is turned down and they are not paying their rent- is a nightmare. It can take well over a year to retrieve the property- and often 5 figure sums to return it to condition where it can be relet........

newbie13

I think daft.ie should bring back to RA filters for letting search..

Pocoyo

zef wrote: »

So after a meeting with he DSP Daft have agreed to take out the RA filter.I think it's more to do with hiding the true figures and statistics stacked against a RA recipient. A couple of days ago there were 10 properties accepting RA in Dublin, out of 1,630.

Quite obvious and im amazed your post didnt get a hundred thanks.

3DataModem

Well, back to work references than.

In my experience people don't respect what they haven't paid for.

Hate to tar everyone with the same brush, but my own experience is undeniable.

P_1

Very cynical stuff from the DSP and Daft I'd have to say. I get that not many properties (in Dublin anyway) are under the threshold for RA but removing a feature from the site for some strange cosmetic reason is very strange to say the least.

Gatling

P_1 wrote: »

Very cynical stuff from the DSP and Daft I'd have to say. I get that not many properties (in Dublin anyway) are under the threshold for RA but removing a feature from the site for some strange cosmetic reason is very strange to say the least.

Could be other reasons ,

Im thinking they will ramp up councils taking over rent supplement admistration and payments ,

murphaph

The_Conductor wrote: »

What happens in reality- is the tenant doesn't advise that they are on RA- they pay the deposit and 1st month's rent up front- and then confront the landlord with the documentation.,......

Also- some tenants have been known to state that the landlord is non-resident, as a manner of getting around not having their PPSN.

Once the tenant has their foot in the door- getting them out, even when their RA application is turned down and they are not paying their rent- is a nightmare. It can take well over a year to retrieve the property- and often 5 figure sums to return it to condition where it can be relet........

Even more reason for landlords to start using what little power they have and start insisting on original bank statements showing an actual income stream for the last 3 months directly before the tenancy is to begin.

murphaph

Gatling wrote: »

Could be other reasons ,

Im thinking they will ramp up councils taking over rent supplement admistration and payments ,

Won't change a thing so long as the max rates are below what a landlord can achieve on the open market (which is the case where most people want/need to live, i.e in the major cities).

The government tried to kick landlords around and this carry on was applauded by the mob. Now look what's happening.

The_Conductor

murphaph wrote: »

Even more reason for landlords to start using what little power they have and start insisting on original bank statements showing an actual income stream for the last 3 months directly before the tenancy is to begin.

Then we get accused of being Nazis- and have the 'I'll show you my finances if you show me yours' brigade wasting your time. You really can't win.

The_Conductor

Stated reason is:

This change is being made following dialogue with the Department of Social Protection, whose expressed position is that the offering of this filter perpetuates a misunderstood stereotype of rent allowance applicants and should cease immediately.

Why DAFT are allowing the DSFA to dictate this is beyond me.

drumswan

The_Conductor wrote: »

Then we get accused of being Nazis- and have the 'I'll show you my finances if you show me yours' brigade wasting your time. You really can't win.

Lots of Irish landlords are cowboys, as the posts on this forum will attest. People are not going to hand over this kind of information to some gob****e who doesnt consider himself as running a normal business.

Gatling

murphaph wrote: »

Won't change a thing so long as the max rates are below what a landlord can achieve on the open market (which is the case where most people want/need to live, i.e in the major cities).

Actually I said it a few times you will get the UK model here ,councils pay landlords directly and tenants make a contribution but when rents increase or your benefits change then the council find you a cheaper property several hundred miles away and then it will be a case take it or leave it ( if you choose the latter your on your own)

murphaph

Gatling wrote: »

Actually I said it a few times you will get the UK model here ,councils pay landlords directly and tenants make a contribution but when rents increase or your benefits change then the council find you a cheaper property several hundred miles away and then it will be a case take it or leave it ( if you choose the latter your on your own)

I think it's going that way as well. There's no real alternative. It's the same here in Berlin these days: the rents are increasing (yes, rent control exists for sitting tenants but still allows increases that are beyond inflation and well beyond the increases in the equivalent of Rent Supplement) so people who can't afford to pay their own rent and depend on other taxpayers are being forced (financially) out of the gentrifying city centre districts in Berlin to outlying areas.

There is a core question to be answered: should city centres have any social housing or RS tenants in them at all?

Ray Palmer

murphaph wrote: »

There is a core question to be answered: should city centres have any social housing or RS tenants in them at all?

It really has to be considered. The standard argument is about destroying communities. The problem is some of these communities aren't worth saving. Sean Mc Dermot street is a good example. I have seen the flats be refurbished completely at least 4 times and then destroyed.

I think at this point they should be used for private housing with the money to be used to create better integrated social housing further out.

There is a great Georgian building there being wasted because of the social problems in the area.

Pocoyo

Posts about living in the city center are irrelevant,This problem is country wide people on RA cant get properties in leinster let alone dublin city,i have worked all of my adult life bar 1 year,If you move people such as i to the back arse of leitrim you will destroy the economy and have a massive problem with stagnation.

riclad

That makes no sense,
government policy is to have x per cent of social housing where there s new building ,estates being built.
And theres plenty of social housing already in the city centre.
THE new rules came in banning bedsits, rents went up,
so it makes no financial sense for landlords to take on ra tenants in many area,s.
They could bring in new tax breaks for landlords who have ra tenants in citys ,
And allow rent allowance to be paid directly to the landlord s bank account ,if the tenant wishes to do so.

THIS problem is not just confined to the city centre,
almost anywhere in dublin its hard to get a flat under the ra system.

Pocoyo

riclad wrote: »

They could bring in new tax breaks for landlords who have ra tenants in citys ,
And allow rent allowance to be paid directly to the landlord s bank account ,if the tenant wishes to do so.

My rent is directly paid to the landlord but i know tenants that chose to have the rent paid to themselves,now imo that is dodgy i dont understand why people choose to receive the cheque as they have to lodge the money them selves and worry about it being stolen or not arriving in the post.

The_Conductor

And the RA option is back again.......