Spareroom and similar websites
 

Hi Englishmaple,

I'm in my 50s and house-sharing with 2 other women who are in the same age category. One is the actual houseowner and the other has, like me, recently moved here and just needed a temporary base.

We were both contacted by the house-owner upon reading our "room wanted" advert/profile as she wanted mature housemates. Her place was never advertised in any listings.

I pay £400 for a large, double room with sole use of bathroom per month in a pleasant, modern townhouse in East Sussex.

Good luck.

Re: Spareroom and similar websites
 

Agree. We rent room/s in our house while we work overseas, so more like a house-sit which you pay for. We also return and use the house in holidays, along with the tenant/s.

We specifically look for professionals, and have a fairly wide age range, but want people who will see the house as a home rather than a houseshare.

We also charge a very competitive (ie not extortionate) rate in order to get more choice (we would rather find the most suitable person, than the one who can afford the most).

So far it has worked quite well.

Re: In need of some advice
 

I would be hesitant to leave my belongings stored in Canada. Should there be any question from the CRA as to the date you became non-resident of Canada for tax purposes, they will look at whether you have anything in storage in Canada (amongst other things). As has been suggested already, I would just give your parents' address to the moving company and then alter it when you get to the UK and have a real address. And if you don't have anywhere permanent to live by the time your goods arrive, then arrange for them to go into storage in the UK.

Good luck, and do let us know how you get on!

Re: In need of some advice
 

Good point - when I was interviewed by Pension service, I had to answer questions about my belongings and my money. I had kept the sale receipt for my car and showed that too, plus by then I had opened a UK bank account, and had a six month lease on a bedsitter. If you leave belongings behind in storage it might just look as though you are hedging your bets.

Re: In need of some advice
 

Thanks for these points. With respect to finding a house share place, I was going to post a profile on the http://www.spareroom.co.uk/ website - is this the best way to locate landlords who would be interested in mature tenants? Or are there other sites I should be posting on? Any information appreciated. I estimate that I will have at least 1500 UK pounds to live on per month (hopefully a little bit more but it's tricky to figure out at the moment as it depends on a number of factors including exchange rate, taxes etc) until I get a job. I won't be eligible for housing benefit as my savings will take me over the consideration limit. On that basis, I'm going to be looking for something which is a maximum of 400 UK pounds a month (ideally 350) and that would include all bills. I don't know how long it will take me to get work but I do have 3 degrees including a UK Masters in Librarianship and a Bachelor of Social Work as well as a UK yoga teaching diploma so I hope I can get something even if it's just retail or house cleaning or serving in a pub to tide me over until I can get a professional post - I'd like to do community work with youth or some kind of social work where I can use my people skills and where there isn't too much keyboard work but I guess where I'll end up is impossible to predict at the moment - just hope the UK unemployment situation isn't as bad as where I am at the moment (London, Ontario).

Re: In need of some advice
 

I think you should be fine on that EM. If we go back, we'd be on not a lot more with 3 kids and much higher rent etc. it'll be tight, but if we can figure it out, I'm hopeful that you can too :)

Re: In need of some advice
 

Spareroom.co.uk is the best place, but Ithink Gumtree also may have ads for rooms to rent and rooms needed.

Re: In need of some advice
 

:goodpost:

Re: In need of some advice
 

Aw thanks you guys. I've been having an attack of the jitters of late - wondering whether I should apply for work with Children's Aid Society and get a job here and stay in Canada because I've been so worried about getting by on the money - it's partly been (I think) brought up by contacting my family - my Dad is a neo-con who channels the Daily Mail and moving back has made me aware that I'm closer at hand if my family implodes over my mum's mental health issues. Altho' I care about my parents, it's always been a very difficult relationship and stressful - so being at a distance has actually buffered me from that. I plan on living in a different city from them and I'm just hoping the work thing works out and that I can find something.

Plus I tell myself that no decision is ever set in stone ... so if the move back doesn't work out, something else will come up! But I do love the UK landscape - the countryside is so beautiful and I never question why I'm on God's earth when I'm walking in it (unlike my current travels trudging through the Ontario snow!) One things for sure, I am jettisoning belongings left right and centre and I think I will be living very lightly from now on which will make future moves easier?!

Re: In need of some advice
 

Good for you in the lightening of your load. Chin up and all that good British stuff - change is scary. Keep writing your thoughts on here so we can help you deal with them. :):)

Re: In need of some advice
 

At £400 a month, you won't have a problem finding somewhere to live in most cities in the UK. Have a look on the website Rightmove. I just chose Exeter because it is a nice place, but not the cheapest. It has plenty of rental vacancies in your price range.

Re: In need of some advice
 

Thanks for the ongoing support! It's stressful - especially as I'm not sleeping much at the moment due to night sweats. I got some medication from my acupuncturist but so far it's not really changed things - I'd love a good night's sleep.

Today I donated my couch to Habitat and my furniture back to my ex - who also took a carload of stuff to Goodwill as well. So I now have my yoga mat to sit on and a more empty looking apartment! It feels like progress which is nice although I still haven't finished packing and, I'm considering ditching more stuff after getting a quote from the moving company which was a bit higher than I expected - altho' my ex, surveying my stuff, said he thought that given the amount I've got, it shouldn't cost as much as the quote I got (and I did get a quote for more stuff than I have currently packed).

So things are progressing ... I would love to move back in March if I can (rather than April) but will see how things go with paperwork over the next couple of weeks - I know it's raining a lot in the UK at the moment but I can't wait to experience a change in the weather from the white stuff we've been having!

Re: In need of some advice
 

Also Editha thanks for that link to Rightmove - next week my goal is to decide where I'm going to land in terms of places in the short term and write up a profile to attract a nice landlady!

Just curious but, have been wondering about the UK rental prices. I know they were always higher due to the housing issues but am really struck by how high they are now relative to people's salaries - just wondering whether it's the housing shortage that's jacked up the rental prices? Or are homeowners having to charge more because their mortgages are that much more? (due to high house prices?). Or is it the fact that there's a shortage of council housing as so many were sold off under Thatcher? Or a mixture of things?

I have a friend who lets rooms in his house to Asian immigrants who work as caregivers and he charges less than the market rent but enough to cover expenses as he wants to help them - his opinion was that a lot of homeowners are charging more for rent because they want to make a lot of money out of it - just curious as to whether his view (that homeowners want to make a lot of money out of rent now) is accurate?

Re: In need of some advice
 

I think it is just the law of supply and demand. In other words, people charge the most they can get.

Actually, rents in most areas in the UK are still lower than Edmonton Alberta. We are currently paying $1395 per month for a very small 2 bed bungalow, and we thought we were fortunate to get somewhere so cheap. So, if you'd followed the advice you were given and moved to Alberta, you wouldn't have been better off.

Re: In need of some advice
 

Dont move to alberta, it will finish you off:(

Sigh, been reading your threads for a few weeks, you are a very brave lady, I am confused myself at what to do, Im sick of this cold, snow, thing is hubby says he will never move back the the UK, Ive been having doubts for a couple years now, getting worse recently, Im so unhappy, looking like divorce is the only option, but after finding out how hard that is to do I am ready to crack, I have no where to go and no funds:(