Just to clarify, they don't want to see your bank statement, they want to see the covering sheet that verifies who you are and the address you're at. I had to provide my "bank statement" to Paypal a year or so ago and all I provided was the sheet that states my account # (they have this already) my address (they have this too) and then my banks information (sort code etc) which I don't think is private?

Your bank statement = covering sheet that proves the account is associated with you and your address, not x months of payments made and taken.

Maybe so, but since they didn't in any conceivable reading of the phrase "bank statement" make that clear, I think ffffruit's point stands.

That "none of your business" bit may or may not be true, depending on your local regulations and the loan you're applying for.

As an example, for the US, see http://www.ehow.com/facts_5155455_fha-mortgage-borrower-requ... for a situation in which the bank must see two months of bank statements from a borrower in order to be able to offer them a particular kind of loan (FHA-subsidized in this case). There are similar requirements in the US for larger loans that were imposed in the wake of the subprime stuff a few years back (e.g. at least as of a year ago mortgages at certain rates and certain mortgage amounts required a certain fraction of the purchase price in liquid assets remaining _after_ making the downpayment to qualify for the loan).

Apart from all that, your assets are insurance against you losing your job (for both you and the lender!), which is why underwriting wants to know about them. If there's no legal requirement for them to know, you don't have to give it to them, of course. And just as of course they may choose not to underwrite the loan at the particular rate you want in that situation, because they can't evaluate the risk.

I agree with what you are saying here and I believe there are similar regulations in the UK for loan applications. But remember: I am _renting_ a room in a house, not buying anything or borrowing any money. You also put down a 1 1/2 months of rent as a safety deposit.

I hate to come across as the pedant (since I agree totally with what you are saying), but to clarify a point: you were not guilty of insubordination, since you were not a subordinate of the estate agent (well unless you worked for them, in which case you would have been).

I hate to come across as even more of a pedant, but I think that that was specifically the reason he chose that word; he was using 'insubordination' as a rhetorical device to describe the way he feels about his relationship with the agent, even if it's not literally true.

<3

Exactly, thank you.