7 ms·

Do you mind sharing more about your circumstances? I'd like to understand how someone with a high income could become homeless.

jedberg 8y ago
Screwing up in the past and having bad credit would make it nearly impossible to rent a home. You generally need good credit and deposit money. With a high income you could have the deposit but it won't fix your credit. If you have a high income at least you can get into AirBnBs or hotels, because they don't do credit checks.
- lotsofpulp 8y ago
  Many hotels (the ones I would want to stay in) require a credit card with your name on it, which is a credit check. Many accept debit cards too with your name on it, but I assume opening a bank account also involved a credit check.
  - jedberg 8y ago
    If you have a high income it's pretty easy to get a secured credit card or a debit card though.
- TylerE 8y ago
  If you truely have the income paying for several months rent up front will open doors.
jondubois 8y ago
I left Australia with the aim of relocating to Europe permanently and I traveled around Europe for a couple of months while staying at AirBnBs and working freelance for a US company (remotely); then for about 6 months I lived in Moscow (Russia) but the work started drying up (and I didn't have much savings left at that point). I was running out of money and couldn't find a job as a developer in Moscow due to language barriers (also, developers don't get paid very well over there) - I tried to apply for jobs in London from Moscow but recruiters were ignoring my resume (probably because I was in Russia and didn't have a UK phone number). So I decided to fly to London and rent various AirBnBs (changing every week or so) while desperately applying for jobs and attending interviews. Thankfully my risky strategy worked out in the end and I managed to get a decent job and found an apartment in London.
- DenisM 8y ago
  You could have just purchased a UK phone number, couldn’t you?
  - jondubois 8y ago
    This would would only have helped me to get past the initial resume screening stage; but the face-to-face interviews are more important. I had to do a lot of face-to-face interviews in order to actually get a job so doing it all remotely while pretending to be a local would probably not have worked out. I did manage to line up a few interviews the week before moving to London; I was generally up front about my situation with recruiters (except for the running out of cash part). Also, the prospect of ending up homeless in Russia without speaking the language was much more terrifying than being homeless in London; at least I would know how to beg in English lol. So I had a strong incentive to move even though I knew that my situation would become a race against time.
    - BMFX 8y ago
      I am surprised you didn't pitch it as a vacation. For example: When they ask... saying "I took a 3-month sabbatical after completing my last contract and am currently traveling extensively. I will be back in London in two weeks after I finish my vacation. However, I am very interested in the role, and would love to do as much of the interview process as possible from here". I never meet anyone from my actual company until 7 months after being hired... So I guess that just seems normal to me...
    - justinclift 8y ago
      > Also, the prospect of ending up homeless in Russia without speaking the language was much more terrifying than being homeless in London; Isn't that the kind of situation that you can turn up to the Aust consulate and say "Need ticket home!", which they'll generally make happen (for Aust citizens, in actual need).
  - YawningAngel 8y ago
    It's hard to access most services in the UK without proof of a UK address

jedberg 8y ago

Screwing up in the past and having bad credit would make it nearly impossible to rent a home. You generally need good credit and deposit money. With a high income you could have the deposit but it won't fix your credit. If you have a high income at least you can get into AirBnBs or hotels, because they don't do credit checks.

lotsofpulp 8y ago
Many hotels (the ones I would want to stay in) require a credit card with your name on it, which is a credit check. Many accept debit cards too with your name on it, but I assume opening a bank account also involved a credit check.
- jedberg 8y ago
  If you have a high income it's pretty easy to get a secured credit card or a debit card though.
TylerE 8y ago
If you truely have the income paying for several months rent up front will open doors.

jondubois 8y ago

I left Australia with the aim of relocating to Europe permanently and I traveled around Europe for a couple of months while staying at AirBnBs and working freelance for a US company (remotely); then for about 6 months I lived in Moscow (Russia) but the work started drying up (and I didn't have much savings left at that point). I was running out of money and couldn't find a job as a developer in Moscow due to language barriers (also, developers don't get paid very well over there) - I tried to apply for jobs in London from Moscow but recruiters were ignoring my resume (probably because I was in Russia and didn't have a UK phone number). So I decided to fly to London and rent various AirBnBs (changing every week or so) while desperately applying for jobs and attending interviews. Thankfully my risky strategy worked out in the end and I managed to get a decent job and found an apartment in London.

DenisM 8y ago
You could have just purchased a UK phone number, couldn’t you?
- jondubois 8y ago
  This would would only have helped me to get past the initial resume screening stage; but the face-to-face interviews are more important. I had to do a lot of face-to-face interviews in order to actually get a job so doing it all remotely while pretending to be a local would probably not have worked out. I did manage to line up a few interviews the week before moving to London; I was generally up front about my situation with recruiters (except for the running out of cash part). Also, the prospect of ending up homeless in Russia without speaking the language was much more terrifying than being homeless in London; at least I would know how to beg in English lol. So I had a strong incentive to move even though I knew that my situation would become a race against time.
  - BMFX 8y ago
    I am surprised you didn't pitch it as a vacation. For example: When they ask... saying "I took a 3-month sabbatical after completing my last contract and am currently traveling extensively. I will be back in London in two weeks after I finish my vacation. However, I am very interested in the role, and would love to do as much of the interview process as possible from here". I never meet anyone from my actual company until 7 months after being hired... So I guess that just seems normal to me...
  - justinclift 8y ago
    > Also, the prospect of ending up homeless in Russia without speaking the language was much more terrifying than being homeless in London; Isn't that the kind of situation that you can turn up to the Aust consulate and say "Need ticket home!", which they'll generally make happen (for Aust citizens, in actual need).
- YawningAngel 8y ago
  It's hard to access most services in the UK without proof of a UK address