Friday 12-02-2021 - 15:16

We’ve created a letter template to support Manchester Met students who are currently in private accommodation, asking private landlords to consider being lenient with their student tenants.



We encourage all Manchester Met students in privately owned accommodation to download the editable document, add your own experiences and send this direct to your landlord.

 

How to use this letter template:





+ Read through the template and add/remove/amend any of the areas highlighted to make it relevant to your specific circumstances.





+ When you’ve made your changes, double check it to make sure the final draft looks like an official letter and not a template.





+ Once you’re happy with it, send it directly to your landlord.

 

We know that this is only the beginning, and more support is needed, which is why we recently launched our priority campaigns. Your officer team and staff at the Union will continue to work together with students to lobby the government to do their part and provide support for all students.

Our team of professional Advisors are available online, and you can email them to access free, confidential student support on these issues.

 

Our letter template:

 

Dear [Insert Landlord’s name],

I hope you are well.

As you are aware, many students are facing incredible hardships during their time at university, academically, mentally, and financially. I am one of those students.

I am asking you, for the reasons outlined below, to release me from my contract/waive the rent for [specified period identified here].

Insert your situation here. You should explain your personal and financial circumstances so your landlord can understand why you need this help. Examples included in this editable document.

I am aware that there is some assistance from the government in mortgage repayments that you can access here as a mortgage holiday. Please could you consider this as an option to help both yourself and me during this difficult time.

I also wanted to make you aware that there is an All Party Parliamentary Group looking at the impact of the pandemic on students in terms of their tuition fee debt and the rent that they have had to pay with a specific emphasis on compensation. Our Students’ Union has raised the issue of rent to smaller landlords who do not make sizeable profits and may be relying on the rent income as they are facing difficult times themselves. I would urge you to write to your MP to explain the difficulties your student tenants are facing and explain the difficult position you are in to balance your own needs and those of people who have found themselves with little money to pay for what has turned out to be an unnecessary expense.

I understand that you are an individual and rely on the income from my rent. I understand that any help you can give me/us will be from you personally. I can only ask you to understand that I have been a good tenant but circumstances have created a situation where I am in exceptional financial hardship and am burdened by an unnecessary expense that I can no longer afford to continue paying for. Please consider my request for flexibility on your part as a genuine need. I am grateful for any help you can provide during this pandemic and would like you to know this act of generosity would make an enormous difference to my life.

Yours hopefully,

[Insert your sign off]