Croydon Council Croylease scheme

Croydon Council Croylease scheme

9:02 AM, 2nd January 2018, About 6 years ago 16

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Hello everyone, I have a 5 bed house in Crystal Palace which I am considering letting to Croydon Council under the Croylease scheme. Basically I let it to the council on a long lease, 5+years.

They are responsible for the maintenance, insurance, finding tenants etc. I have no control over who it is let to, but the council are required to give me back the house in the condition it was let to them in. I will make sure I take lots of photos !

Does anyone have any experience of this scheme ?

I am having the lease checked out by a solicitor, but would welcome any first hand experiences of this scheme or other similar schemes.

Thanks very much.

Julia


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Comments

Ed Tuff

13:35 PM, 3rd January 2018, About 6 years ago

Croydon landlord here too!

I'd never heard of this "Croylease" scheme. Sounds too good to be true. I'd also feel guilty about the poor neighbours.

However, as mentioned by Mandy Thomson above, I've never struggled to get good tenants quickly in Croydon (touch wood).

Ed Tuff

13:51 PM, 3rd January 2018, About 6 years ago

Didn't know about any of Croydon Council's schemes actually (except of course their license): https://www.croydon.gov.uk/housing/privatehousing/housing-initiatives/schemes

Some very attractive points there; CC really must be desperate!

Jonathan Clarke

0:02 AM, 4th January 2018, About 6 years ago

Councils often have a thin veneer of professionalism. They will produce a glossy professional lease package but will then use your house to offload their most difficult disruptive and dysfunctional tenants first . I have seen quiet communities devastated by the thoughtlessness of the council with no thought given to neighbors. Parties held, police called. The council will just want to place a tick in their box and will not have your interests at heart when they select a tenant.

david porter

12:15 PM, 6th January 2018, About 6 years ago

Not all council tenants are bad.
However will this have a negative impact on the value of your and the surrounding houses?
The value of your house will vary with the preception of the status of the residents of the road. Hyacinth wanted to live next to the Vicar and the Colonel, or perhaps that was Fawlty?

Tony Luthra

20:18 PM, 6th January 2018, About 6 years ago

Croydon Council is very much against private landlords, I would highly recommend that you that you have a condition report done by a professional surveyor (RICS), believe me that you will need this report after 5 years.

Tom Doolin

14:54 PM, 9th January 2018, About 6 years ago

Julia
I'm at the other end of the scale from you. I've just completed a five year arrangement with Rossendale Council. I would heed the advice of other contributors and stay well away from such an arrangement.
I had just totally refurbished a property which was 50 miles away from where I lived so this scheme seemed very attractive. I wish I had never been enticed.
Sure, the rent was never a problem, it arrived, on time, every month.
However the quality of tenants in the final two years was abysmal. I was told that I wasn't even allowed to have keys to the property so keeping an eye on the internal condition was not an option. The Council stopped paying the rent seven moths before the contract ended, saying that the property was not fit for human habitation due to the damp. When they finally allowed me to inspect the property I was appalled by what I discovered. It was riddled with damp caused by leaky gutters and it had been empty for months with no heating. This was not a recent phenomenon and the damage had been caused by several months of neglect on the part of the Council. All the flooring had been removed to the side of the property and it was littered with the belongings of the previous occupants. The Council even had the cheek to send me a notice requiring me to dispose of the flooring or they would do it and send me the bill.
I could go on about the state of the property but I hope you get my drift.
I estimate that in its present condition the property has lost approximately 50% of its value and is going to cost several thousand pounds to put right.
I am in the middle of a legal battle with the Council but they are digging their heels in and telling me its my problem. There is still a long way to go in this saga and my legal costs are mounting.
Councils have a growing problem with the number of people who are finding themselves homeless. In my experience they will do their damndest to pass that problem on to anyone weak enough to accept it.
I've learned the hard way that no-one takes care of whats yours better than you.
Its a responsibility I will never sign away again.

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