complicated tenant situation, please help!

getootofmyhooooose

sorry, the my mum owns the house is an error, obviously a contradiction, in all but name she owns the home basically, it an agreement within the family.

the woman is renting the whole of the house, both myself and my mum live at different residencies, she has a mortgage with someone else and i live in student halls.

Geenie

I think the OP has made some very complicated posts, when all that needed to be said was a family house is being let out to someone who hasn't paid rent for 2 months, wasn't given a contract and they now want to evict this woman.

If the correct procedures were not in place from the start, and the woman doesn't want to move it will take some time, and I would suggest contacting a solicitor so that the right paperwork is issued. That said, even an AST doesn't protect from non paying tenants, and the hassle of getting them out can take months if they want to be difficult.
No mention of a deposit.

silvercar

The fact that they have paid rent means that a tenancy exists.

Chances are that, even without any documentation, it would be accepted as an AST, if it is the main residence of the tenant.

Once 2 months rent remain unpaid ie one months rent unpaid and the next months unpaid on the day it is due, you can issue a section 8 eviction notice due to unpaid rent. If 2 months rent remains unpaid at the time of the court date, judge should evict.

Post on landlordzone.co.uk/forums for advice from legal experts. A general read would also be useful.

tbs624

getootofmyhooooose wrote: »

... she has come up with several excuses but my mum will no longer let them wash and wants her money, and if she doesnt get it is prepared to give the woman 30 days to vacate the property, i was wondering where she stood from a legal stand point as this is quite complicated...

The OP has personally made his/her question far more complicated that it needed to be by not getting his/her thoughts and facts in order before posting.

I had to read the above bit through a couple of times as I wasn't sure whether the OP's mother had knocked the water supplies off so this errant T couldn't wash (harassment, harassment) then I realised that it was the T's excuses that wouldn't "wash" with the mother !!

I am still not sure of the facts - is it:

1. Granny owns property
2. daughter of granny /OP's mother has a BTL mortage on the property
3. grandaughter/grandson/OP has or had a tenancy agreement to rent property from Granny(supposedly managed by mum) but moved out so has effectively relinquished tenancy but thinks it still exists
4. non-paying T allowed to move in with no paperwork
5. Granny, daughter & grandson or granddaughter all want to kick troublesome T out

If so, if T has sole possession of the property it would be assumed that she occupies it under an AST, paperwork or not. As Silvercar says, she can be served a S8, Ground 8 notice as soon as she owes 2 months rent but if she gets a good lawyer she will be advised to pay off some of the arrears prior to the hearing. You could also use Grounds 10 and 11 alongside but these are discretionary grounds & you would have to be able to show that the T had been advised of how often she should pay rent and what amount.

I'm wondering if things like gas safety certs, EPC, declaration to HMRC , appropriate insurance etc are all in place........

OP - get yourself some local qualified legal advice before you and your family make this a bigger disaster - it will be cheaper in the long run.

Lost_Again

There is another way to look at this.

Wait for her to leave the house then change the locks.
When she shows up tell her shes been evicted, don't let her back in the house alone.
If she starts getting angry or violent phone the local police (not 999) tell the police she was a guest in the house but is now refusing to leave that you would now like for her to get her stuff and leave.

If she cannot prove she's a tenant then the police will ask her to leave.

tbs624

Lost_Again wrote: »

There is another way to look at this.

Wait for her to leave the house then change the locks...

This suggestion gets posted up by someone in virtually every thread about non paying/otherwise troublesome tenants.

Anyone following your suggestion could quickly find themselves on a criminal charge of tenant harassment and illegal eviction. A lack of paper contract does not mean that there is no T - the OP stated that the occupant has paid some rent.