Can the estate agent do this??!!??

jamesyboyjim

Hey guys sorry for my first post being a bit of a rant, i just wanna say hi to all members and i really hope somebody can help me because im seething!

basically a little while ago me and my partner asked our estate agent about getting out early of our tenancy agreement due to having to move away from bournemouth and back home
well in the end we came to an agreement that if a new tenant could be found we were free to go,
so anyway a woman comes to view the flat decides she wants it and goes back there the next day to sort it all out, we recieve a call from the estate agent saying the womans going for it and we are free to leave, the next day or so we recieve a letter saying our tenancy ends on the 11th of may etc, its on headed paper and is signed by hand not a printed signature,

so we go forward with the new place we had found and on saturday i pay the 250 quid holding fee, but today my gf recieved a call saying acturally we cant move out because the woman has backed out, my arguement is that they shouldnt of agreed a date we could leave and certainly shouldnt of sent us a letter stating where the tenancy would end if there was a chance the lady might back out not to mention telling my girlfriend on the phone that it was ok and agreeing the dates,

the letter says we can leave when the terms in our contract are forfilled, now, those terms, at the time were forfilled and i think its the estate agents fault for processing our paperwork early i think its now their problem theres no one to move in, not ours, i really cant afford to lose this holding fee on the new place im seething! does anyone have some advise or know what we should do?

Gwhiz

I would say if you have a letter confirming the tenancy ending then you are free to go. The LA is now bricking it because they will have to tell the LL they have no tenant because they jumped the gun a little too quickly so are saying you must stay to cover their !!!!!! .. that's my guess anyway!

princeofpounds

It depends totally on the text in the letter. Basically if they accepted surrender (which was certainly what they intended to do) then you are implicitly released from your contractual obligations.

The letter however might not be worded in quite that way. It sounds like they have been a bit slippery and worded it so it is not quite so specific.

Do you have any other physical evidence or witness evidence that would back up your position? A receipt for a key (accepting keys back can be a sign of surrender)? An inventory check out? Deposit returned? Emails? Contact details for this woman?

On the small amount of detail presented so far, you are in the right, but you seem a bit thin on evidence.

jamesyboyjim

princeofpounds wrote: »

It depends totally on the text in the letter. Basically if they accepted surrender (which was certainly what they intended to do) then you are implicitly released from your contractual obligations.

The letter however might not be worded in quite that way. It sounds like they have been a bit slippery and worded it so it is not quite so specific.

Do you have any other physical evidence or witness evidence that would back up your position? A receipt for a key (accepting keys back can be a sign of surrender)? An inventory check out? Deposit returned? Emails? Contact details for this woman?

On the small amount of detail presented so far, you are in the right, but you seem a bit thin on evidence.

Dear Mr and Miss

Thank you for your letter from which we note you wish to terminate your tenancy of the above mentioned property in accordance with the terms of your tenancy agreement
The contents of this letter and the accompanying notes are very important and you should read them in order to prevent any misunderstanding at a later date. As your tenancy terminates on the 11th of may 2009 our rep will visit on this date at 4pm to inspect the property check the inventory and collect the keys.

the rest of the letter goes on to just say make sure your present etc and its clean. the accompanying notes it spoke of were just conditions we should leave the flat in. e.g cleanliness.

this is what the letter says, although other than her word on the phone this is all we have

QTPie

Check it out with the CAB or similar?

To me it sounds as though you have been released (in writing) from your agreement, BUT I am not a solicitor. I think that they are calling your bluff, but you need some sound legal knowledge to confirm that.

Good luck
QT

tbs624

The wording of that letter does not help your case. It does not clearly state that the LA/LL is releasing you from your tenancy obligations because a new T has/had been found.


Unless there is a break clause within your contract " terminating in accordance within the terms of your tenancy agreement" IMO may merely confirm that you understand that you are fully liable for the full fixed term: them accepting your notice may not in itself confirm that you are now released from those obligations. Seek clarification via the CAB or a law centre.