RAS scheme in cork

kingchess

my aunt has a house let out in cork city under the ras scheme for past two years and getting 720euro for it, the contract is now up,the house is 3 bed house let to single lady with 2 kids,and last month her boyfriend was added to the lease,now-my aunt is now not in the best of health and asked me find out about ras rates etc,my aunt is very happy with the tenants and is happy to renew the ras contract with cork city council but do not know the rate she should be getting ,she does not want the hassle of letting and dealing with tenants coming and going. (her husband died last year and would have handled all this) now I know very little about letting or ras schemes so hope to get advice here,so question is-what does cork city council pay for 3bed house let to single woman with 2 kids plus partner??

foggy_lad

kingchess wrote: »

my aunt has a house let out in cork city under the ras scheme for past two years and getting 720euro for it, the contract is now up,the house is 3 bed house let to single lady with 2 kids,and last month her boyfriend was added to the lease,now-my aunt is now not in the best of health and asked me find out about ras rates etc,my aunt is very happy with the tenants and is happy to renew the ras contract with cork city council but do not know the rate she should be getting ,she does not want the hassle of letting and dealing with tenants coming and going. (her husband died last year and would have handled all this) now I know very little about letting or ras schemes so hope to get advice here,so question is-what does cork city council pay for 3bed house let to single woman with 2 kids plus partner??

The RAS rate is generally lower than the normal market rate by about 10% but this is covered by having a long term lease and payment guaranteed by the council. You can contact the council housing office and talk to the RAS administrator there who will talk you through the rates etc.

kingchess

so if the rent locally has gone up then the rate is that -10%?.does my aunt need to get an estate agent to set what the house would get on the open market and then take 10 % off that and that is what the city council will pay??

yankinlk

if you do nothing, council will pay at old rate. the negotiation of rate is between you and the ras, you need to give them a ring yourself.

but the alternative is to advertise and seek the open market rate, something you said she does not want to do. once u have that rate u can ask for an increase based on it. let us know if they get it. did u read about ras in the news today?

foggy_lad

yankinlk wrote: »

if you do nothing, council will pay at old rate. the negotiation of rate is between you and the ras, you need to give them a ring yourself.

but the alternative is to advertise and seek the open market rate, something you said she does not want to do. once u have that rate u can ask for an increase based on it. let us know if they get it. did u read about ras in the news today?

You should contact the council and agree a rate with them or just pull out of the scheme, Most will have a clause that rent rates are reviewed every two years.

Some Landlords think that the councils take over their property but that is not the case, the landlord is still responsible for all maintenance and all interaction with the tenant, the council simply facilitate the payment.

As for the news today, that is dublin where rents have gone absolutely barmy so landlords will get more from private renters. in the rest of the country it is still a good deal for landlords especially where rents are very low in more rural towns.

kingchess

I think that she could rent the house on the open market for 900,but my aunt likes the tenant who keeps the house in tip-top condition,so should I be asking the corp. for 810euro on her behalf.the house is in douglas.Imean is there a maxmium that cork city coucil will pay for 3 bed house for single woman +2 kids +partner(added to lease last month)??

murphaph

foggy_lad wrote: »

The RAS rate is generally lower than the normal market rate by about 10% but this is covered by having a long term lease and payment guaranteed by the council. You can contact the council housing office and talk to the RAS administrator there who will talk you through the rates etc.

I've a house let under RAS and I can tell you that I will be negotiating very hard at the next review. Screw that -10% sh!te. I wouldn't be letting the council dictate the negotiations in this climate.

There's a housing crisis. There's limited numbers of landlords like me who will even entertain RS or RAS so as far as I'm concerned I want full market rate for housing the family that live in my place. I don't think the local authority I rent to are in any position to bargain me down...I can just say no thanks and the contract states that a local estate agent should make a determination of the market rent and that this is what both parties agree to be bound by. The council simply don't have any alternative accommodation for my tenants. Even the government is hinting at relaxing the RS system limits.

yankinlk

I have always started my past negotiations at market rate. It all depends on whether the RAS coordinator has demand for houses in that area. If they dont, or if they want to "move a tenant on" they might play hardball. They have maximums, and im sure they have budgets too.

Unless your Aunt really needs the extra money - why not leave it alone. You could end up with no tenant if there is cheaper alternatives. Keep the lease short and review every year.

I always reward a good tenant with a better than market rate. If the RAS scheme refuses to increase, will you demand extra from the tenant anyway?

kingchess

as far as I know she only receives 720 from the cork cc,I know very little about renting or ras schemes so that is why I am trying to find out more about what the ras scheme is about,in all fairness my Aunt would be happy with the 720 as she does not need the stress with new tenants and lettings etc,but if she could get more from the city it would help her,is there a max.amount that they pay or is it all to do with whom you talk to?the contract is up now and it was a two years contract,

foggy_lad

murphaph wrote: »

I've a house let under RAS and I can tell you that I will be negotiating very hard at the next review. Screw that -10% sh!te. I wouldn't be letting the council dictate the negotiations in this climate.

There's a housing crisis. There's limited numbers of landlords like me who will even entertain RS or RAS so as far as I'm concerned I want full market rate for housing the family that live in my place. I don't think the local authority I rent to are in any position to bargain me down...I can just say no thanks and the contract states that a local estate agent should make a determination of the market rent and that this is what both parties agree to be bound by. The council simply don't have any alternative accommodation for my tenants. Even the government is hinting at relaxing the RS system limits.

If the property is in or near Dublin then you have something to bargain with but outside of Dublin and the other cities rents are very low still and councils just won't pay market rate to you when someone else accepts less.

kingchess wrote: »

as far as I know she only receives 720 from the cork cc,I know very little about renting or ras schemes so that is why I am trying to find out more about what the ras scheme is about,in all fairness my Aunt would be happy with the 720 as she does not need the stress with new tenants and lettings etc,but if she could get more from the city it would help her,is there a max.amount that they pay or is it all to do with whom you talk to?the contract is up now and it was a two years contract,

You will have to contact the RAS people in the council because nobody here has the information you are looking for. It is a negotiation as far as the rate goes and some properties will get more especially any with wheelchair access and accessible bathroom etc. You should look at Daft.ie for rents in your area for 3 bed houses and also look on the PPRTB website http://www.cso.ie/px/pxeirestat/Statire/SelectVarVal/Define.asp?maintable=RIQ02&ProductID=DB_RI&PLanguage=0

That shows the average rent to be around €847 for 3bed semi in Douglas for the last quarter of last year

murphaph

foggy_lad wrote: »

If the property is in or near Dublin then you have something to bargain with but outside of Dublin and the other cities rents are very low still and councils just won't pay market rate to you when someone else accepts less.

Yes I should have qualified my statement. The property in question is in Dublin in a high demand area. Hardly any rentals available at all and none taking RS or interested in RAS and council waiting list growing ever longer.

It's obviously different in some Midlands town with an overhang of rentals, but I would have thought Cork would have been in demand at the moment as well, though I don't know the local market there at all.

mikemac1

The RAS contract was set up for the mother and two children and now it has changed. The boyfriend was added to the lease last month.

If you put aside market conditions for a second your aunt can push for an increase in rent with the extra person in the house.

I reckon you already know this OP, just most posts here were about the state of the market

Claireboo

Anyone know what happens if you enter an agreement and are unhappy can you end the contract between the landlord and council or is there a penalty?