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Landlord wants us to start paying him directly

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  • mozza78
    mozza78 Posts: 93 Forumite
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    sorry yes anselld the situation with Letting agents is fairly well known I think and easily handled but I don't think where a family member or friend is acting as agent on behalf of a non resident landlord it is well known that the tenants themselves have obligations. Certainly not amongst my expat crowd. Have just had a chat with a few others in same situation as me and they were also unaware and presumed this was all handled by their own individual tax return where gross figures are input, tax calculated etc.
    I cant say it affects me really either way but I find it really rather odd that the tenant should have this obligation. Its akin to asking a client to withhold the VAT when he pays his plumber.
  • anselld
    anselld Posts: 8,280 Forumite
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    edited 12 October 2016 at 7:32AM
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    mozza78 wrote: »
    sorry yes anselld the situation with Letting agents is fairly well known I think and easily handled but I don't think where a family member or friend is acting as agent on behalf of a non resident landlord it is well known that the tenants themselves have obligations. Certainly not amongst my expat crowd. Have just had a chat with a few others in same situation as me and they were also unaware and presumed this was all handled by their own individual tax return where gross figures are input, tax calculated etc.
    I cant say it affects me really either way but I find it really rather odd that the tenant should have this obligation. Its akin to asking a client to withhold the VAT when he pays his plumber.

    Actually if the family or friend "act as agent" ie collecting rent, then it is them who are responsible for withholding tax. Only where the tenant pays directly and there is no nrl1i in place should the tenant withhold tax.

    The same situation does exist in practice for paying contractors. It is called the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS).

    I agree that knowledge of the NRL is poor amongst both Landlords and Tenants, but you never know when HMRC might come checking up. Suggest some of your friends put their house in order!
  • lush_walrus
    lush_walrus Posts: 1,975 Forumite
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    Beansontoastwithcheese wrote: »
    Hello all,

    We have been privately renting a house for the last approx 7 years through a letting agency. The landlord lives abroad. The landlord has been quite good on the whole, in terms of getting repairs arranged and so on. Recently, he contacted us directly to ask if we would like to rent from him directly and cut out the letting agency. He said he would be able to reduce the rent cost, and that he would have his mail delivered to this property and we would have to forward it to him.
    The reduced rent sounds good but I don't understand why he'd want his mail directed here, and also whether it's going to be a good idea in the first place to cut out the letting agency. Any thoughts on this. please?

    Thank you.

    If the mail is being directed to you to then forward onto an address abroad my guess is it's so your landlord can prove he lives in the UK and will be linked to NHS or some benefit linked to the UK that they want access to but are not entitled to. My friends father in law tried something similar and equally fraudulent. Stay clear of it would be my advice.
  • theartfullodger
    theartfullodger Posts: 14,597 Forumite
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    Just check this really is the landlord: It could be some crook.

    How did he ask? Email? Had you met him in person way before this request for direct payment came?
  • davidmcn
    davidmcn Posts: 23,596 Forumite
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    Deleted_User wrote: »
    you could wake up one morning with bailiffs or police at your door looking for him.
    If he's already been living abroad for at least 7 years that seems pretty unlikely! But he should easily find some other mailing address, I suspect he's just wanting to use the OP as a cheap option.
  • TBagpuss
    TBagpuss Posts: 11,203 Forumite
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    As others have said, wanting to cut out the agent is not necesarily suspicious, but you do need to double check that you are in fact dealing with the landlord himself, not someone posing as him and to ensure that you are clear on the tax position and that you have a proper address for service and contact details for him.

    I personally would not be forwarding his post as a regular thing - I'd have no issue with sending on the ocassional item which slipped through but I would be suspicious.

    Years ago I had a landlord who was furious when I sent some items back to sender - I m fairly sure that he was renting the property to us without having notified his mortgage lender or HMRC.

    other than for a very short period if he has just moved, while he gets redirection and updated addresses sent up, I can't think of a valid reason for him to want this.
    All posts are my personal opinion, not formal advice Always get proper, professional advice (particularly about anything legal!)
  • Miss_Samantha
    Miss_Samantha Posts: 1,197 Forumite
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    TBagpuss wrote: »
    Years ago I had a landlord who was furious when I sent some items back to sender.

    The issue is that if you do that in breach of your tenancy agreement you are liable for any loss it causes your landlord.

    Depending on the piece of mail it can run into hundreds of Pounds.
  • Out,_Vile_Jelly
    Out,_Vile_Jelly Posts: 4,842 Forumite
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    Miss_Samantha wrote: »
    The issue is that if you do that in breach of your tenancy agreement you are liable for any loss it causes your landlord.

    Depending on the piece of mail it can run into hundreds of Pounds.

    I would love to see the outcome of that court case.
    They are an EYESORES!!!!
  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 7,175 Forumite
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    davidmcn wrote: »
    If he's already been living abroad for at least 7 years that seems pretty unlikely! But he should easily find some other mailing address, I suspect he's just wanting to use the OP as a cheap option.

    Someone who has been living abroad for 7 years shouldn't really be receiving post in the UK and as such it should be sent directly to his address abroad that he has been residing for 7 years at.

    He is obviously pulling something off to make out he is in the UK when he is not.
  • Miss_Samantha
    Miss_Samantha Posts: 1,197 Forumite
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    Out,_Vile_Jelly wrote: »
    I would love to see the outcome of that court case.

    Can't find it right now, but one of the deposit schemes had a case study in which they wrote that they had previously awarded £700 to a landlord from a tenant's deposit because the tenant failed to forward an important piece of mail in breach of his tenancy.

    I think that it is regrettable that many people think that tenants have carte blanche and that every and all tenancy terms are 'unfair' by default.
    The situation is quite the opposite: A tenancy term has to be assumed to stand unless the tenant can demonstrate that it should not.
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