Shared tenancy problems - Need advice please!

Daniel_F19

I'll cut straight to the chase. I'm at university and as is customary, have rented a house with friends for this year (the university provides accomodation for the rest of the duration of my course). As a group of five friends, we found a nice five bedroom house and have been living here since mid-september.

Well... almost. See, one of my "housemates" decided he doesnt want to be at this university anymore. He was supposed to pay six months rent in advance, to alleviate the lack of a guarentor. Moving in date was very close, and no-one had heard from him. A couple days before the keys were supposed to be handed over, he called and said he couldnt pay the six months and doesnt have a guarentor either. The estate agents agreed that he could pay the first one and a half months rent (up to Nov. 1st) and they would allow us to move in, but he would not be allowed into the property until the rest of the six months advance was paid, or until he had a guarentor.

So we havent heard from him much/at all until one of us phoned him at the end of October. We requested the rent from him for November, and he said he would send it to the estate agent as a cheque. All fine and dandy so far...

Until yesterday. We recieve a letter from the estate agent, for that months rent (two of us are paying monthly with a guarentor, and this guy is supposedly doing the same without a guarentor?), saying my two housemates have paid. The I noticed the "Early Exit Fee" for the guy, £99, and also his rent hadn't been paid. My housemate phoned them up to ask about it and they said that as the tenacy is several and terminal, we are liable for his payments if he doesnt make them himself. We were aware of this at the time of signing the contract but we didnt expect this $#!+bag to bail out on us.

I think my housemate is trying to get hold of him later today. In the unfortunate instance we cannot get any money off of him, then I think at the very least its unfair we have to pay his rent, let alone his exit fee. I can only just afford my own rent, let alone an extra 25% on top.

Can anyone provide any helpful advice, legal or otherwise?

Many thanks in advance,

Dan

olly300

I don't understand why you didn't immediately try and find someone to take on his room once he said he couldn't afford the rent or wasn't coming back.

Anyway you are legally liable for his rent, so unfortunately you are all going to have to cough up until you find someone else to take his place. That's the unfortunate fact of tenancy contracts where you are jointly liable.

adg1

On a joint and several tenancy, which this is, all housemates are responsible for all other housemates rent payments.

It is unfortunate that he bailed on you, but you are now responsible for his share of the rent as per the agreement you signed. I don't understand an exit fee though, and would challenge this with your EA - I've only ever heard of a tenant swap fee to cover new TA and referencing if someone leaves (as in your case) and someone else comes along.

It is not up to the EA to reduce the rent by 20% as someone has left. The rent covers the whole house and not just his room. What would have happened if all but 1 left? would they give a discount on the rent of 80%? No. and they'd probably laugh at you to boot for asking.

You have two options:

1. Carry on as a group of four and cover the extra rent between you;

- or -

2. Advertise your vacant room all over the university and their accomodation website, facebook, bebo, whatever else it is young people use nowadays to communicate and get someone in to replace the bailer and pay the 5th share of all the bills and rent.

Hope that helps!

Daniel_F19

The reason we didnt immediately try to find a replacement was because it was only when the letter came through yesterday with the "Early Exit fee" that I realised he wasnt coming back. He told us that he would continue to pay his share of the rent, at least for a while. He has obviously failed to do so.

I wasnt expecting the estate agent/landlord to reduce the amount of rent they charge us - that would be too good to be true. What I was however expecting was some form of responsibility that meant the bailer has to pay his share. Why should I pay £99 for him to bail out on us. Ridiculous if you ask me, and I will call on monday to challenge that.

The problem with advertising the room is that we don't really want to live with a stranger. If necessary, I guess we don't have an option.

I'm thinking that he must surely have a legal obligation to pay his share. Otherwise whats to stop myself and the others also bailing out??! Seems like a case of the last one standing gets the debt I will try and contact the bailer later to see why he didnt send the cheque. I'll then request him to send me the money via bank transfer and I'll go pay it myself. Thats if he coughs up that is

DVardysShadow

Oh, gosh, you have a difficult one here. Actually, in my mind, it is quite clear, but your problem is going to be making it stick. You and your hosemates should let your guarantors know of the problem immediately.

The 'runaway' is 'Jointly and Severally liable ' [google on this] with the rest of you [I think - your use of 'several and terminal' is confusing - this term does not google]. But by releasing him with an "Early Exit", the LA appears to have waived their claim against him, while still making the claim against you. This is unacceptable because they are undermining your claims against him and prejudicing negotiations between you. It is worse the fact that the Agent has taken a fee for this. At the very least, the £99 must be set against the rent they take from the rest of you. By waiving the contract for him, I don't think they can now swing the cost onto you as easily as they could if they had not accepted the £99.

Be careful when talking to the runaway - you have grounds to be angry with him, but you may be very much helped by having a copy of whatever paperwork he has concerning the early release.

Now I am not a lawyer, you need to get this checked out. In part it is a question of tenancy law, so Shelter and CAB may have something to say, but you may also need advice on Contract law, which Shelter and CAB will be weak on. This is why I say it is going to be difficult to make this one stick - and why I think you need to let your guarantors in on what is happening here.

Another avenue is to find another tenant to fill the space. But be canny about this - don't march the prospective tenant into the agency yourselves - if you find someone, prep the ground by telling the Agent to find a new tenant and then send your prospect along asking about filling any tenancy places.

Daniel_F19

We havent paid the bailers rent yet, or his early exit fee. I see what you mean with regards to them releasing him from the contract. I also meant jointly and severally liable, not sure where the terminal comes from. I will read over the contract when I have a little time this evening and see what I can find in there.

If this is the case, then can we refuse to pay this early exit fee on the grounds that we want him to remain jointly and severally liable?

olly300

Daniel_F19 wrote: »

The problem with advertising the room is that we don't really want to live with a stranger. If necessary, I guess we don't have an option.

Some of my best mates where strangers who I ended up house sharing with.

When you interview them if you like doing certain things like going to the pub as a house then do part of the interview in the pub. If you like playing computer games then for part of the interview make them participate etc.

DVardysShadow

Daniel_F19 wrote: »

We havent paid the bailers rent yet, or his early exit fee. I see what you mean with regards to them releasing him from the contract. I also meant jointly and severally liable, not sure where the terminal comes from. I will read over the contract when I have a little time this evening and see what I can find in there.

If this is the case, then can we refuse to pay this early exit fee on the grounds that we want him to remain jointly and severally liable?

Oh, I got the wrong end of the stick on that? They are asking you for this fee? You need to find out what benefit it gives you - probably none, so you are better keeping the £99, unless it covers all liabilities accrued so far in respect of your bailer.

Daniel_F19

Yes sorry, they are asking us (in a letter addressed to all of us, including him) to pay HIS exit fee, AND his rent... what a joke! but if that removes him from beling liable for rent then theres no way we'll pay it, unless there is some advantage to doing so.

Fire_Fox

I think you have had some excellent advice, I would suggest communicating with the landlord/ letting agent in writing, by recorded delivery. Firstly they have written to you not phoned, it means you won't accidentally say the wrong thing, and you have a paper trail should you end up in the small claims court.

More than try to extract cash from your ex housemate you need to get a long term contact address - nobody (neither tenants not LA) can claim against him as 'jointly and severally liable' if you don't know where he is.

sp1987

Mitigate your losses by advertising for a new housemate wherever possible, keep records of where you have advertised.

Pay his share of the rent between you in the mean time as you are liable for it if he does not cough up.

Get his home address and if worst comes to worst serve him some nice court papers from www.moneyclaim.gov.uk for the rent during the period which you had to cover it between him leaving and you getting a new housemate in. This is why you will need to show that you have mitigated your losses by trying to fill his place asap.