Rent Deposit Loan Scheme

The rent deposit loan scheme is a limited fund to help residents who are homeless or threatened with homelessness to pay the deposit and/or rent in advance for private rented accommodation. The money is offered via a 0% interest loan repayable to the Council at manageable weekly or monthly amounts.

If you find a property that you would like to rent you can then apply to us for the loan. We can only help those with an Assured Shorthold Tenancy. This is the most common type of tenancy from a landlord or letting agent.

If you pay a deposit yourself then we cannot refund you. If you sign a tenancy agreement or move in before the loan is agreed, we cannot continue with your application.

Eligibility

You are eligible if you are:

• Currently, a resident if the district
• Homeless or threatened with homelessness
• Unable to pay a deposit

Once you have found a private property to rent you will need to contact us with the details of the property, including the full address and landlord agent/name and contact details.

You need to bring in the following documents before a decision can be made on eligibility:

• ID for everyone who is moving
• Bank statements for your current account/s
• Benefit award letters
• Details of the property and landlord/agent

Decision

When making our decision on your eligibility, we will consider whether:

• The house is a suitable size for your needs. We will not give a deposit for a house that is bigger than you need
• It is affordable for you. Download our Income/expenditure form below to work this out

If we decide you are eligible and the property is suitable, we will agree in writing to pay the loan and you will sign an agreement with us. Once it is all agreed we will then pay the money directly to the landlord or the letting agent.

We will discuss with you when your first loan repayment is due so you can either set up a direct debit or start making your payments as they are due. If you do not repay the loan or stop making repayments this can affect your housing application.

You must not:

• Pay any holding fees before we confirm in writing that we will pay any money (if you do then you may lose the money)
• Sign a tenancy agreement until we confirm to you that we will pay the money. If you sign an agreement before we have made a decision then we will be unable to help

If you do not keep up with payments of your loan it could affect your housing application and also the council may take legal action to reclaim the full amount of the loan.