Recently, a family member was bemoaning the fact that due to changes in benefits, they would no longer receive any help with their mortgage. They were able to buy their council house at well below market value, and in their own words, are sitting on more than £70k in equity. Now, I don’t begrudge them their home, however it does make my blood boil when they complain like this, constantly.

I’m in the situation of having to pay over £200 in fees to an estate agent for them to check if I’m a ‘good bet’ for a rental. Once they decide, I’ll then have to pay almost £800 for them to ‘hold’ the house. I have to pay a full month’s rent up-front, and an additional £200 for the dog (non-refundable). I’m unclear if the holders fee is returnable, though I do know I’ll have to pay a deposit equal to or more than the first month’s rent which won’t be returned until we vacate, assuming the house is in a good state. We’re talking over £1,700 before I even move in! This doesn’t include a removal firm either. My rent is far in excess of their mortgage, and this is the ‘trap’ that many are in; our rents are so high that we can’t save for a mortgage, and at my age, I wouldn’t get a mortgage anyway so have to keep paying rents that are higher than a mortgage. Honestly, I’d have been far better off simply not working once my ex and I split up, and living off the state.

Luckily (?) I have a conscience and have always paid my way, but once, just once, it would be nice if someone helped me out. A council house would have been nice, but they’re as rare as rocking horse sh*t thanks to Thatcher allowing councils to sell them off cheap, and not replace them. I know it’s not good for my Karma, however I begrudge every good thing that happens to my ex because of the state he left us in when we split up. Before I met him, I had a mortgaged home, and over £30k redundancy money. He lived with his parents. By the time we split up, we’d lost our home, and he’d spent almost all of our money; he left us homeless, and almost destitute too and financially speaking, I’ve never recovered. He never paid the correct amount of child maintenance and threatened to quit his job if I made ‘trouble’ so he wouldn’t pay anything. If I could have a do-over, I'd have left him the moment I got pregnant. People wonder why I stay single…

The reason for the above costs? My son viewed a house Wednesday, liked it, and I started proceedings Thursday to rent it. It’s quite a drawn-out process, and I won’t know for a while if we’ve secured the property but at least it’s a glimmer of hope. The house isn’t ideal; very close to a dual carriageway, front door opens onto the street which I don’t like, and on-street parking which will push up my car insurance. It’s also not available until very early June which will not make my current landlord happy. On the plus side, it looks big enough for all our furniture, is cheaper than where I am now, 3 miles from campus, and near a town centre where hopefully I can find a part time job to stretch our finances. Fingers crossed…