Return of rent?

sockpuppetuk

edited due to not

SquatNow

It comes down to this: how good friends are you with them?

Also note, regardless of your contract with them, you should have given them 2 months notice from a rent day.

sockpuppetuk

They are not friends, just people we know quite well and were comfortable renting the house to.

poppy10_2

sockpuppetuk wrote: »

they have fitted new carpet and lino so would like that paid for otherwise they are taking it with them.

They can do that, but they would have to return and refit the original carpets.

PasturesNew

This is quite a complex one really. I'd say offer them half for their carpets and give them the deposit the day before they move out, upon inspection.

You've broken several laws here really, so you need to keep a low profile.
They've done you a favour by renting it out (low rent or not you could have had the tenants from hell)
You probably didn't adhere to m/any of the laws for landlords.
You should have had their deposit in a deposit scheme. You didn't give them legal notice to leave (your agreement is worth zilch in the eyes of the law)
Now you're back to turf them out because you just fancy it.

So, all in all, they didn't expect you to be back, so laid a nice new carpet. You didn't follow the law. They've been good and paid the rent and are moving out without any hassle (early, which in your circumstances is probably a bonus).

So I'd be there the day before they move out, with their deposit and half the cost of the carpets (well, depends how much and what carpets they had).

You've had a lucky escape on many levels.

Good luck!

sockpuppetuk

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tbs624

sockpuppetuk wrote: »

Actually they were made very aware of the circumstances when we left which was that we have a child with Downs Syndrome and if we could not get the appropriate education in Spain we could return at any time.

returning "at any time" isn't a problem - but by law a tenant has to be given two months' notice by a LL to coincide with the rent period as Squat has said. By not registering their deposit you have rendered yourself unable to serve a valid S21 notice requiring repossession, as well as leaving yourself open to court action.They could have chosen to just sit it out for a good few months.

If you didn't notify your mortgagor or take out LL insurance cover or get gas and electrical safety checks you ran huge potential risks for your tenants, and for yourself (including a criminal conviction)

As Pastures says, you're probably not really in position to quibble with your tenants.

DawnW

As a LL, under these circumstances I would just pay up and be grateful that the tenants are moving out without any hassle, and think myself lucky.

sockpuppetuk

edited due to not

littlemissmoney

sockpuppetuk wrote: »

Registering the deposit, no didn't do that but on the plus side put it into premium bonds for safe keeping and won £50;)

But that £50 won't pay the three times deposit fine you will get if your tenants decide to get funny

Edit: Off topic, how big is the deposit and how long have you had it? If you work that out your "win" probably won't look so attractive! Premium bonds really wind me up :mad:

littlemissmoney

Did you give your tenants a UK contact address? If not, that also might be a problem.

None of this obviously really matters much now, but it just means you need to treat your tenants well regarding the carpets and return of rent as they are in a stronger position than you might think.