tenants with newborns - LL has sold house before AST expires

ninky_2

just after some advice for some good friends.

they are about four months into an AST of 12 months. they also have twins who are about 2 months old. the agents have now told them the landlord has sold the house and so they have to move out. they are really upset about this as they spent time and money making the place really homely (painted it all white / put up shelves / gave it a really good clean - agreed this was not a LL's request but they were expecting to stay there for a while). they are worried about finding somewhere else affordable and also the disruption of moving as he works 7 days a week and she obviously has her hands full looking after two new babies.

as far as they know the tenancy agreement allows them to stay 6 months and then it's one month notice for either party.

do you know what their legal rights are in this situation?

N79

LL can serve notice (at least 2 months) for them to leave at the end of the fixed period of their tenancy. From your post it is not clear if this is a 6 month or a 12 month fixed period as you mention both. It would be best if your friends seek advice directly to avoid this sort of misunderstanding.

Fire_Fox

Is the property actually sold or is it under offer? Have the letting agents told them verbally they need to vacate or have they received a section 21 notice to quit? The law states a landlord must serve two months notice and a tenant only one month, exactly when that starts depends on the precise wording of the break clause in the AST. It may be the notice expires (i.e. they must vacate) at the six month point or may be the notice commences at the six month point (i.e. they must leave at the eight month point).

ninky_2

as far as i know the agents have only given them verbal notice to quit. the property has a 'sold' sign out - but i guess that doesn't mean anything. they are really nice people and not the sort to want to make a fuss. the agents have apologised and said they will look out for somewhere else on their books.

unfortunately she was so upset at the state of the place when she saw it he spent about 800 quid and took 2 weeks off work making it nice for when the babies came. he's quite handy so did a really good job. i expect that's why it's now actually sold! the agent said it had been on the market for ages before and not sold which was why they had rented it out - unfortunately they didn't know this when they moved in or might have been a bit suspicious.

by the sounds of things they could stay another four months (six months and then 2 months notice).

N79

ninky wrote: »

by the sounds of things they could stay another four months (six months and then 2 months notice).

You misunderstand - the notice period can run during the fixed period. If fixed period is 6 months then notice served before the start of rental period 5 will expire at the end of the fixed period (end of rental period 6).

BitterAndTwisted

It sounds like the tenants may have signed a 12 month AST with a break-clause at six months.

Ninky, your friends do not have to do anything until and unless they receive a Section 21 notice. Please ask your friends to ensure that this Section 21 was not issued at the beginning of the tenancy.

Was there an inventory at the beginning of the tenancy when they moved in? There might be an angle here about how much money these poor innocents have spent getting the place ship-shape. I'm going to have a little think about this........

ETA: Did your friends pay a deposit and have they had formal notification of where that deposit is lodged? How much is this deposit in relation to their monthly rent?

ninky_2

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

It sounds like the tenants may have signed a 12 month AST with a break-clause at six months.

Ninky, your friends do not have to do anything until and unless they receive a Section 21 notice. Please ask your friends to ensure that this Section 21 was not issued at the beginning of the tenancy.

Was there an inventory at the beginning of the tenancy when they moved in? There might be an angle here about how much money these poor innocents have spent getting the place ship-shape. I'm going to have a little think about this........

ETA: Did your friends pay a deposit and have they had formal notification of where that deposit is lodged? How much is this deposit in relation to their monthly rent?

i don't know but will ask. i personally feel quite agrieved that the LL is getting the benefit of all their hard work. but on the other hand the LL didn't ask them to do it so i don't suppose they can realistically ask for any money back on that account.

BitterAndTwisted

I'm feeling rather aggrieved on your friends' behalf and I don't even know them. I'm just hoping that there's an angle here to either recompense your friends for tarting up the place so now the landlord has finally got a sale or being (legally) troublesome so the landlord might be keen to see them on their way with more than a fiver in their back-pockets.

Does the property have a gas-supply at all and if there is do your friends have sight of a valid Gas Safety Certificate?

Have your friends looked up the property on the Land Registry website (cost: four quid) and checked who owns the property?

What is the address of the landlord on the AST?

G_M

How/when did the buyer see round the place?

Is it a 12 or 6 month contract?
If 12 month, does the contract have a 6 months break clause?
If yes, what are the terms of the break clause?

The tenants cannot be made to leave until the contract ends (12 or 6 months) or until the break clause period (depending on terms).

The tenants MUST receive notice in writing (S21 notice), otherwise they can stay, even after the end of the 6 / 12 month term.

The fact that the property is sold is irrelevant - the new owner becomes their new landlord and they have exactly the same rights as they had with the original owner/LL.

They cannot make claims for improvement. Indeed, if they did not get (written) permission to paint, screw bookshelves to walls etc from the LL, he could insist they re-instate to the original condition! (maybe he liked that ghastly old paintwork!)

ninky_2

there were two people who came for viewings after they had moved in and one of those has now decided to buy the property.

afaik it is a 12 month contract with a 6 month break clause. i will ask them if they have had the S21 notice and also what the terms of the break were. he said he thought it was one month notice on either side, but am i right in thinking from what is said here that legally it has to be 2 months notice from the LL?

apparently the LL is strapped for cash which is why they hadn't made any attempt to make the property nice. the bathroom was absolutely disgusting and the shower is still broken although they have cleaned and decorated it all to make it seem much nicer. i guess they got carried away with nest making to the extent they forgot to consider that they might be asked to move out earlier than expected.

english is not their first language so picking over the details of a tenancy agreement is quite hard for them.

G_M

he said he thought it was one month notice on either side, but am i right in thinking from what is said here that legally it has to be 2 months notice from the LL?

No. You are confusing two different things:
1) the right to two months notice AFTER the end of the fixed term (12 months) when the contract becomes periodic
2) the notice period DURING the fixed term to activate the (6 month) break clause. If the contract says the break clause requires one months notice, then it is one month.

there were two people who came for viewings after they had moved in and one of those has now decided to buy the property.

The tenants could have refused to let thes viewings take place if they had known. Too late now really.