Hi,

Me & my flat mate (aka best friend) have been taking lately about moving to the Gatwick area. Now she is a civil servant so it all tickety boom for her. So I'm worried about being registered as an escort & being judged or refused because of it.
I can't hold her back but if I encounter these problems what am I going to, I can't stay where I am it has no future, what if I get stuck here? So I was just hoping if some of you may like to share your experiences good/bad with me? I am also wondering if it all the more depends on the area in which you are trying to rent in.

Harlow x

put the lease in your friends name and have nothing to do with it. The landlord is never going to know that you live there too and when they do inspections and see your stuff there you can just say you're a friend staying there for a few weeks while you are looking for a house.
They wont care.
And if the landlord is concerned about just one person being able to cover the rent then you could act as her guarantor or get someone else to be a guarantor so that the landlord is more comfortable with it.

That's what I did when I moved with my sister and she was fine to be referenced but I didnt want anyone to know I was an escort.

xxx

Hi, sorry just adding more questions...

If I were only able to say go for a room in a shared house (just in case my mate goes without me) are they less stringent on references???

Also has anyone changed there occupation with HMRC in order to obtain a flat.

It's just because of my flat mates occupation I have to make sure that I don't accidentally do any thing to affect her.

Thanks Harlow x

i used to work for a letting agency so i know what a hassle the referencing can be.
You just have to be lucky with what landlord you get. Some are incredibly stringent and will use a referencing company to check you out. This includes phoning your employer, your previous landlord (or a character reference if you've never rented before) and checking your bank statements to make sure you have no debts etc and can afford the monthly rent. They will sometimes ask you to have a guarantor too which is usually a family member and they must be uk based.

Id say 99% of landlords will want a proper employers reference either on headed paper from the company that you work at or from a company email address ie joebloggs@barclaysbank.com

An employers reference coming from joebloggs@hotmail.com definitely wouldnt be acceptable.

Ways round it as an escort?

1. Take a 6 month lease and pay the full amount of rent and deposit up front. This way the landlord has no need to get an employers reference as you have already paid everything. They may still ask for a previous landlord/character reference though to check that you're not a complete pyscho who might trash their flat.

2. Take a lease with someone else and just put it in their name so that it has nothing to do with you. You can set up a standing order to pay your share of the rent into your friends account every month. This is what I always do when renting

3. Have a friend who works for a company make you a fake reference on some headed paper which you can give to the landlord. Be careful that they wont want to follow it up with a phone call though

4. Phone HMCR and change your occupation to therapist. You can then tell your landlord that you are  a self employed mobile aromatherapist. If you are self employed the landlord will probably want to see a statement from your accountant proving that you can afford the rent, or they might want to see 3 months worth of bank statements to prove that you have enough income coming in.

5. Get a family member or a male friend to take the lease in their name but tell the landlord it will be you living there. You can say that you are going to become a student so wont be able to afford the rent but your mum/dad/brother/boyfriend will be paying it for you.

My friend who is also an escort lives in a house share and the landlord was still strict about referencing. She just paid all the rent upfront though

Good luck xxx

Hi,

Thanks for all the advice girls, it has been a real help

I can do the refer my flat whom is a reference thing fine as I am registered at my current flat, so can get a good one from my landlord. Also my best friend said she will be happy to give me a character reference if we go are separate way. And if we don't we are thinking about only having the new flat in just her name, but I think moving on my own is best in the long term, will just go for a professional house share by giving the money up front.

Cheers girls  Harlow xx