Eviction advice required please

jojopo000

Hi All,
I am hoping you can advise me please.
I have been living in my rented house for over 2 years (makes no odds I know) and am a single mother of 3 children (ages 10 and 4 both boys and a 2 year old girl). I am on a rolling tenancy and have been for the last 13 months or so. My landlord has informed me that he will be evicting me in the near future.
When I moved in the house the council did a deposit guarantee so no money for the deposit ever changed hands so was no need to go into the deposit scheme as there was no money only a piece of paper saying any damage caused the council would pay and then get the money from me. No damage has ever been done and if anything I have improved the property by decorating etc.
The LL needs to sell the house as he is now renting himself and needs to get a mortgage and all his money is tied up in this property.
Having read about the internet I cannot see what route he would take for evicting us or the rough timescale.
Also I have nowhere to go with the kids so what do I do?
I cannot afford a deposit and still owe the council where they paid my rent in advance to get us into the house. So what do I do?
This is the 3rd time in almost as many years I have been in this situation but was different before as had OH with me and we just moved but eviction notices were served but unfortunatly am not able to do so this time and cannot get a guarantor for another private rental property. My son is almost 10 and has lived in 11 houses since he has been born and worry that this will unsettle more so then his brother and sister.
Any advice is greatly appreciated and need to know what will happen etc.
Many thanks

Ulfar

You need to speak to a council housing officer, they will be able to advise you on what they can do to help.

Your landlord will need to issue you with a section 21 notice and if you stay after this go to court to get a court order for eviction.

BitterAndTwisted

Anything more specific than "in the near future"? Anything in writing? He will need to serve you with a Section 21 Notice giving you formal notice to quit and he need to give you more than 2 calender month's notice ending the day before the monthly rent-payment is due.

Please don't panic but please also be aware than most local authority's housing people will do their utmost to keep you in situ because their resources to help you are extremely limited and if you choose to leave when the notice period is up you risk making yourself "voluntarily homeless" and then the rules say they cannot help you.

Get yourself down to the housing dept. and get their advice on what to do, but I suspect that they will encourage you to stay put until the landlord have succeeded in getting a possession order in court. This could be some months away if you're lucky.

jojopo000

Thanks for the reply.
Will that mean a Bailiff and turfing me and the kids out with all our stuff with nowhere to go?

BitterAndTwisted

First, the Section 21 Notice (if your landlord knows how to serve one properly and a lot of amateur ones do not but plenty of folk on here do and can advise you)

Second: Court order for possession

Third: Enforcement/Bailiffs

Your local authority might advise you to sit tight and wait for the bailiffs. This might be the only way to avoid making yourself "voluntarily homeless" so they can help you as they can't break the rules.

Edited to add: If you haven't done so until now, change the barrels on the locks of every external door of the property. They can be bought quite cheaply in any DIY store and you need to keep them somewhere safe so you can replace them when you leave. You do NOT want to give your landlord any opportunity to try and evict you illegally. Changing the locks is absolutely legal despite anything to the contrary which might be in your rental agreement

jojopo000

How long roughly does thw whole process take from start to finish?
And also I have been reading that the LL needs to have a reason to want the house back (is this correct?) but as I am not in rent arrears and is always paid on time and have been a good tenant there are no bad reasons. Can he still get us out and on what grounds as he just wants the house sold so he can get on with his life and buy a house for himself.
Sorry for all the questions and I expect that once it all starts there will be many more.
Thanks

BitterAndTwisted

It will take months. Two for the Section 21 Notice and then when you don't leave at the end of the notice period he has to apply to the court for possession. This is dependent upon how busy the courts are.

He doesn't need to have a reason to want possession when you're on a rolling contract and therefore doesn't need to give one: it's his house after all but you do have rights as well.

If he's an amateur landlord, keep your fingers crossed that he doesn't serve you with a valid Section 21. If he's a complete greenhorn he might not have ever heard of one. Yet. But he can't legally take steps to evict you without one as long as you have no rent arrears which you do not. The only worry is if he's not a professional landlord who knows and understands the law he might try something not legal, like threaten you. In your position, I'd write down everything said and done as it happens for future reference, just in case. There are laws to protect tenants from harassment.

Please keep us posted, there are experienced landlords and letting agents who post on here who I'm sure will be able to offer advice all along the way but your first port of call must be your local authority's housing department asap

jojopo000

Thanks B&T (sorry for shortening your name).
I have a good relationship with the LL and think he will be using a solicitor as he needs to ensure everything is done correctly from his point. He seems to want to make it as easy as possible from my point of view due to personal probs with me and in all honesty I just wish it was over and done with
When would I approach the council? I am on the housing list already and have a local area connection as been in the area for 3 years in total. I know the council isnt the easy option but when my eldest has been moved about as much as he has I think the kids all deserve some security at some point in their lives and a unstressed mum.
When I have the section 21? What will the council do to help and when do they get involved?
once again thanks for your help.

saver_sam

I would personally approach the council as soon as possible. Ring or go tomorrow.

I was faced with a possible repossession as my ex left me with a loan secured on the house that I could not pay and he seemed to not want to. I went to my local council/housing department before the repossession papers were sent and explained what was going on. The person I saw was glad I'd come early as I'd be on their books so to speak as too many leave it until nearly just before court action and it makes their job harder.

Anyway good luck; seeing the housing should help with the stress (it made me feel better big weight off my shoulders).

BitterAndTwisted

Go to the council as soon as you possibly can so they can start a file. They will advise you as best they can but as I said before you must follow the procedures to the very end or they will not be able to help you because they can't, they have to follow very strict procedures. So, once you've received the S21 take that to the council and they will tell you whether it's been correctly served or not. Every bit of documentation or contact from your landlord you take down there. Make a nuisance of yourself but be your normal polite self.

You don't have to justify yourself about why you deserve to be helped and why you need a home for yourself and your children, I understand and sympathise completely. Everyone deserves a secure home, especially people with darling little nippers.

Jowo_2

You will find the Shelter website an excellent source of information on the formal procedure for being evicted and they have a section on homelessness and how the council should process your application for assistance.

Councils have a statutory obligation to assist the homeless and this is defined as someone who doesn't have accommodation in the next 28 days, hence why councils often operate a 'gatekeeping' policy to winnow down who they help, often forcing those who receive notice to ignore it until the legal process has progressed more.