Serious troubles with tenant

tbs624

clutton wrote: »

troubles with tenant.. you clearly have become an accidental landlord and have done no research as to how to get rid of tenants.

Instead of taking a variety of advice from an internet forum, and much of of it good, but you wont know which is good and whihc is bad, as a LL myself i suggest your best optioin is to join National Landlords Association (joining fee is tax deductible)@ and take advantage of their legal help line. You cannot get rid of this tenant on your own as you dont have the knowledge or the expertise. NLA will talk you through the entire process, form by form, line by line, so that you can regain your property.

If the post had stopped here, I'd agree with it.

clutton wrote: »

The first thing is to establish that she has left the property. If the council have stopped paying her - they must believe she has left. Ask the neighbours - look through the letter box - look through the windows (tenants on this forum will shout "horror" at this as an infringement of tenants rights).

It's not only tenants who would raise objections, Clutton. Note that if others disagree with you they are not "shouting"

The OP is clearly a newish LL who is out of their depth - their best recourse is to use qualified advice from a LL&T lawyer or a LL association.

F_T_Buyer

clutton wrote: »

if this were me - i would repossess the property. If she is claiming HB for another property she cannot be living in yours - and i would regard this as good grounds for believing that she had abandoned the property.

Do take a witness with you when you go in and take photos.

On a serious note, how do you know she hasn't just moved out?

If she's still there, can't you ring the council again?

IronWolf

One of my friends had a similar problem with a tenant that wouldn't pay rent, I settled it for him out of court...

dodger1

anselld wrote: »

Yes. Against the law.

To serve, send 2 copies by regular 1st class post, from 2 separate post offices, and get a certificate of posting. This will be accepted by the court provided the notice is correct.

When is the next rent due date? Unless that is in the next couple of days you would be better taking time to ensure the notice is 100% correctly drafted and use the post.

If you really must serve in person take a witness and try to obtain a receipt from the T.


PS. Don't get into any argument that could be perceived as harrassment (also illegal despite the fact they have effectively stolen your house)

Is it still against the law for the LL to take possession of the property as the tenant has informed the council that they have vacated the property.

clutton_2

""On a serious note, how do you know she hasn't just moved out?"

of course it is a risk to make an assumption that the property is abandoned .. but OP seems to have evidence that the tenant now lives elsewhere.

its all very well for the anally legal on this site to say ... "do it by the book everytime", they dont have rent arrears and mortgages to pay for 2-3-4 months while waiting for a court possession hearing.

i can't think of a single landlord i know who would not take possession back if the property had no belongings inside and there were a heap of debt collectors letters on the mat....

I have repossessed 3 properties in such scenarios, but have also gone the full legal route with 2 tenants who were especially manipulative and who i could not trust to come back claiming all-sorts.

As i said ot OP - take a lot of photographs and someone who is willing to sign a Witness statement with you - just in case.

Wings

clutton wrote: »

""On a serious note, how do you know she hasn't just moved out?"

of course it is a risk to make an assumption that the property is abandoned .. but OP seems to have evidence that the tenant now lives elsewhere.

its all very well for the anally legal on this site to say ... "do it by the book everytime", they dont have rent arrears and mortgages to pay for 2-3-4 months while waiting for a court possession hearing.

i can't think of a single landlord i know who would not take possession back if the property had no belongings inside and there were a heap of debt collectors letters on the mat....

I have repossessed 3 properties in such scenarios, but have also gone the full legal route with 2 tenants who were especially manipulative and who i could not trust to come back claiming all-sorts.

As i said ot OP - take a lot of photographs and someone who is willing to sign a Witness statement with you - just in case.

There are actions the OP can/could take to speed up repossession of the premises, but there are risks, and i have several horror stories of where such action has led to court proceedings for unlawful eviction and harassment of the tenant.