Should I have to pay for late notice?

mark7144

Please can someone tell me if I have a case to refuse paying for late notice of us not renewing our tenancy?

Our tenancy ends 22nd August.

Letter 1 (1 June): Told to indicate whether we wish to continue, no mention of deadline, seemed casual. As we were going to stay, we didn't feel in any rush to visit the estate agency to say we are staying for another year.

Then the problem.

Letter 2 (29 July): We are told that the landlord wants an increase in rent. We were not happy and therefore told estate agents we wanted to leave. But they said because we have a two month notice period we might have to pay for those additional months which we simply can't afford.

Surely this isn't fair given they left it so late to mention a change of rent? If they mentioned this in their first letter, we would have immediately ended our tenancy then. Also, we are being forced into a disadvantaged negotiating position as they know that we either accept the rental increase immediately or we are left with too little time to look for a new place. We don't have time to negotiate with the landlord, everyday counts now.

Also, is it not wrong the estate agent had not told us any sort of deadline for this? We only found out when we refused to pay the rental increase. We are not lawyers, they should tell us there is a deadline in the letters rather than make out there is no urgency at all, that is their job as mediators.

gauly

Legally you can leave on the final day of your contract without giving any notice at all. If you stay even one day over it becomes a periodic tenancy where you have to give one months notice and the landlord two.

mark7144

Wow, thanks, are you sure? I can't believe they would make this stuff up to try and get us to pay what would be several thousand pounds.

silvercar

To increase rent the landlord either needs to get you to sign a new fixed term contract or to serve a section 13 notice. If the latter then you have the right to refer the rent to a council officer who will decide if the increase is justifiable. If the landlord offers another fixed term contract he can give you notice to leave if you refuse to sign. From memory a section 13 requires notice of at least a rent month. A new contract doesn't require notice but if you don't sign then you are still under the existing contract (periodic if it is past the end of the fixed term) and you either leave at the end of the fixed term or give a months notice to end at the end of a rent period or the landlord gives you two months notice to end at the end of a rent period.

Yorkie1

Everything I have read on here is in accordance with Gauly's post, assuming you are coming to the end of a fixed period tenancy rather than having gone onto a rolling periodic tenancy.

You forget that they are not 'mediators' but are acting on behalf of the Landlord. They may also be completely clueless as there's no requirement for them to know anything about anything before setting up as agents.

Even if your tenancy has a notice requirement, it cannot override the law.

I don't know the specific chapter and verse to quote at them, though, but others might or you could pop over to the landlordzone forum where they have a lot of legal beagles.

Good luck in your new search.

mark7144

This is all very helpful, thank you people.

But I'm confused, am I on a fixed term or a periodic term?

Jowo_2

If you have a contract that expires on x date in the future, it is a fixed term agreement. As you've indicated this in 3 weeks time, you are within the fixed term.

If you are still living in the property past the end date of the fixed term, then it automatically becomes a periodic tenancy.

The Shelter website has the best description of the difference in ending a fixed term agreement or periodic. No notice from a tenant is required to end a fixed term agreement. Many ASTs have a clause inserted to try and force the tenant to do this but there's no requirement in law - it's a courtesy and helps the landlord know what's happening in advance of the end of the tenancy - but the clause is not legally enforceable.

mark7144

Thank you everyone for your help and for responding so fast, I feel much better now

Doozergirl

Good this place, isn't it?