Eviction – Please Help

I’ve decided to swallow my pride and open my story to the internet, and hope and pray that there are still good souls out there that can sympathise with me in my predicament. Please forgive my lengthily story but it’s important to include everything.

20 Years ago I was struck down with a serious condition called Agoraphobia which meant that I couldn’t go outside without some form of medication. This caused me to get depressed and I suffered panic attacks nearly every day. I’m still the same to this day. In 2009 I met my Wife, and I moved in with her.

She lived 110 miles away from where I used to live. Her home was rented from a Housing Association. It had a large Garden but was very overgrown and was quite untidy. Being Agoraphobic it was difficult but I managed to get out there and started to turn half of the garden into an Allotment where I could grow my own Vegetables. This kept me busy and occupied, and the happiest I’d been in a long time.

On my Birthday or Christmas I would always ask for things for the Garden. Eventually I got a Greenhouse, and a Large Shed. The transformation was Amazing, and it made me happy that it was my little place that I could go and tend to. My dogs love it because they have space to play, I eventually got some Chickens and everything was really perfect. After completing the Garden, and because I am Agoraphobic, We got Married in the Garden.

Everything was going perfect for a few years. my Wife and I weren’t happy in our relationship though, My wife was struggling to find work, and she was becoming fed up and depressed, so to try and turn our lives around, I suggested to my father that he help us buy a house that we could renovate and sell for a small profit, and the profit we could keep aside until we have enough money to buy the home we lived in.

Long story short, he reluctantly agreed and invested all his savings into the project, but the project was a loss, and my Father lost £50,000 which was half of his savings. He’s never forgiven me for this even though it wasn’t my fault.

Many years passed, but in 2014 My Wife and I split up. She moved out and I took over the tenancy of the house, I was now responsible for paying all the bills myself, and some of the rent. Long Story short, I ended up owing my Landlord Arrears in Bedroom Tax. Yesterday they issued me with a Notice of Possession Order, which is the first stage of me being evicted. In England we have a welfare system for those that really can’t work, and although I’m grateful for it, it’s very hard to manage paying bills. For example, I don’t have a TV Licence, or a TV package (Cable), I grow most of my food to cut shopping bills, but even that sometimes is not enough.

My only contact with people is via my computer or phone; I don’t get to see anyone face to face much. I feel very isolated and alone, but it’s bearable for me because I have my dogs which I look after, and I have my Garden which I like to work on. To make matters worse, because I am living here alone now, it means I have to pay my Landlord for each bedroom I don’t use. It’s the Law in the UK. The Government give you the bare minimum to live on, and out of that you have to pay for the rooms you don’t use. It’s the Governments way of dealing with house shortages. Many people have lost their homes because of this, and genuine people like me are facing the same prospect. I don’t really have any family left anymore, except my Father.

He can’t help me anymore if he wanted to. I have no savings and I have very little to live on. It kills me to think I will lose the house I now call home, and all the hard work I have done over the years. To me, living here is part of my lifestyle. I have no close friends, my Father lives 110 Miles away and I don’t get to see him. All I have is my Dogs, and my Home, without them I couldn’t imagine how my life would be, and I couldn’t imagine where I would live. If my father hadn’t invested that money a few years ago, he would have been in a position to buy a small house closer to where he lives So at least I would be able to see him regular, or he could afford to purchase this house that I have worked so hard to make my home.

That would mean I don’t have to pay my landlord any room tax or rent. My life recently has been a rollercoaster, with losing my wife, and the possibility of losing my home which would also mean giving up my animals. I was already depressed before any of this, but now I feel so helpless and desperate.

Some days I don’t want to get out of bed. When I think “Where will I be next Year”, I can’t help but think alone on the streets. I try not to think of where I am going to be as it brings me to tears.

My Humble Plea is to try and raise as much as possible, the donations will be used to secure my shortfall in my rent for 12 months, and to try and pay my father back as much as possible, in the hope he will invest in buying the house. Depending on how much is raised I could also take driving lessons and get a small car, which would at least give me the means to travel and see my Father.