Landlord selling house and I'm 6 mths pregnant

BitterAndTwisted

PLEASE try and not feel stressed! Easy to say and hard to do, I know.

Do not respond to the agent's email until you have arranged for the barrels on the front and back doors to be changed. Depending on the type of lock, new barrels can be bought for about a fiver from a decent hardware shop or B&Q adn it just takes about five minutes with a screwdriver to do it. In view of the implied threat in the agent's email and as you have an absolute right to prevent unauthorised access to your home you would be completely justified in changing the barrels.

Once you h ave changed the barrels then you should WRITE (not email) to the agent and the landlord that you absolutely do not agree to anyone crossing your threahold without your prior permission and in view of their behaviour you are withdrawing that consent until further notice. Print out the email from the agent and keep it somewhere safe.

End of.

EastMidsGal

Basically the landlord wants to do viewings and he is going to do them whether I like it or not!

I have spoken to Shelter and they say it is illegal harassment and I need to speak to the Tenants Relation Officer at the council but it is proving impossible to get hold of them

Shelter told me I have to be careful in case by refusing the viewings, even on health grounds, I could be seen as making myself intentionally homeless in which case the council won't help me. But the agents have been clear from the very start they were going to serve notice anyway, just I don't have that in writing

EastMidsGal

I got a voicemail message from the agents last week, a couple of days after they served notice, saying they were going to do viewings, one on Friday, two on Saturday and one on Monday.

I emailed the agents and said this wasn't possible and I explained just how limited I am at the moment, I can't go out because I am very tired, dizzy and breathless and though I understand the LL wishes to sell the house and I appreciate how it must be hard for him if he really needs to sell, I am unfortunately not in a position to allow viewings right now as I have been advised to take things very easy and get lots of rest and viewings are not conducive to that and I need now more than ever to have the quiet enjoyment of my home but if I started to feel better and things improved then I would allow viewings as I appreciate that the LL is under pressure (The agents had said the LL was coming under pressure from his bank)

The agent wrote back and was very sympathetic and understanding. And then I get todays email. I don't think it is the agents, I think it is the LL bending their arm and applying pressure

It's a bad situation all round. I am heavily pregnant and really feeling it, constantly exhausted, pain in my bump and hips, tiredness, dizzyness, breathlessness etc. I am not up to allowing viewings, I am not even having friends over right now!

The LL needs to sell and is coming under pressure from his bank (according to the lettings agent)

The lettings agent is stuck in the middle

:-(

GDB2222

EastMidsGal wrote: »

I received an email from the lettings agent today. As the viewings were causing me such distress as I am very heavily pregnant now and very tired and not able to be active I was advised to refuse viewings until I moved out, when the landlord and his agent could do as they wished, as it was disturbing the quiet enjoyment of my home

The law can be found on the Shelter website, but I can give you a couple of legal pointers from memory.

Bear in mind that there is a difference between criminal acts and civil matters.

1) It is always a criminal act to force entry into a property where somebody is inside at the time (except for a very limited number of circumstances, eg a court-appointed bailiff with a court order). Unlocking the door when you have told them not to is therefore a criminal act, and you would call the Police, saying there is an intruder on the premises. They will usually come really fast, and you should insist that they arrest the intruders.

2) Normally, my view is that the landlord ought really to have a key to the premises - what if there's an emergency? But that should not be used to show people round.

3. You are perfectly within your rights to refuse permission for them to come into your flat for any purpose other than making repairs. I'd recommend not allowing them in to change the locks, as you know what they have in mind. In fact, if they don't have a key, it's going to be hard for them to get in.

4. I would go to the CAB and ask them to write to the Estate Agents pointing out that the email they sent constitutes harrassment, and they should leave you in peace. Personally, I doubt that it does constitute harrassment, but some sort of a letter from CAB is likely to be sufficient to put the EAs off.

tbs624

EMG -

Unfortunately, TROs tend to be overworked and it often takes a fair amount of persistence to get through

If you cannot get through to the TRO (tenancy relations officer) on the phone then try going via your local councillors(s), telling them that it is urgent. If you don't know their names/contact info go via here

If you are writing back to the LA, I would put "cc: TRO, Your Town Council" at the bottom of the letter and make sure that you do send a copy

GDB2222

EastMidsGal wrote: »

I got a voicemail message from the agents last week, a couple of days after they served notice, saying they were going to do viewings, one on Friday, two on Saturday and one on Monday.

I emailed the agents and said this wasn't possible and I explained just how limited I am at the moment, I can't go out because I am very tired, dizzy and breathless and though I understand the LL wishes to sell the house and I appreciate how it must be hard for him if he really needs to sell, I am unfortunately not in a position to allow viewings right now as I have been advised to take things very easy and get lots of rest and viewings are not conducive to that and I need now more than ever to have the quiet enjoyment of my home but if I started to feel better and things improved then I would allow viewings as I appreciate that the LL is under pressure (The agents had said the LL was coming under pressure from his bank)

The agent wrote back and was very sympathetic and understanding. And then I get todays email. I don't think it is the agents, I think it is the LL bending their arm and applying pressure

It's a bad situation all round. I am heavily pregnant and really feeling it, constantly exhausted, pain in my bump and hips, tiredness, dizzyness, breathlessness etc. I am not up to allowing viewings, I am not even having friends over right now!

The LL needs to sell and is coming under pressure from his bank (according to the lettings agent)

The lettings agent is stuck in the middle

:-(

It sounds like you need to put more pressure on the EAs from your side, as they will always take the line of least resistance. If you can't get hold of the guys at the council, a quick call to the CAB may get you a nice official looking letter.

If you can make it round to the local Police station, I'd speak to the guy on the counter. Don't accept "it's a civil matter". Harrassment is not. It's a criminal matter. I don't know whether they'll take it up, but it's worth a try.

Basically, once the EAs have been warned off, they'll back down.

EastMidsGal

Thanks GDB2222. I have spoken to Shelter and the letter is very clearly harassment according to them and what they are proposing to do is illegal.

As I said I am here all the time anyway, so even if there was an emergency I would be here to let the relevant people in. They did have a key but they lost them, so they don't have a set now.

I am not sure if they intend to follow through with their threat of changing the locks and carrying out viewings anyway or if they are just trying to intimidate me into backing down but I just feel very vulnerable right now as I am so tired and I don't have the energy to think straight or deal with them should they turn up to change the locks. I don't mean to sound like such a 'girl' but I am not my usual self, I am hormonal and my emotions are all over the place. I have a daughter already and am carrying another baby and since the father, who was the broody one with and raised the subject of having kids with me, decided that the reality of the upcoming responsibility was too much to bear, I am dealing with all of this on my own and it just feels too much :-(

EastMidsGal

I don't have time to write to a councillor or the TRO, or get the CAB to write a letter as the agents wants an answer by tomorrow afternoon

I am thinking of writing a letter saying if they do turn up to change the locks I won't hesitate to phone the police. There is a clause in the contract saying I have to allow viewings as long as they have permission. Well I am not giving permission for the reasons I spoke about before. Shelter said even with that clause the agents and the LL can't act on it without first taking me to court. The Section 21 they sent me might also not be valid as it is to end an AST but my AST is already over, Shelter told me to check it with the council.

But I don't want to go shooting my mouth off in an email to the LAs until I know where I stand with the TRO cos I don't want to make things worse for myself and risk the council classing me as intentionally homeless just in case I need their help later on, which it is looking increasingly likely I will

BitterAndTwisted

It might feel that it's too much for you to deal with but you have help and advice here, and shoulders to lean on.

Do not feel that you need to respond to the agents or the landlord right away. Once yu have your thought collected write your letter and tell them that their implied threat of gaining access without your express permission in writing constitutes harassment which is a criminal matter. Tell them that you will have no hesitation in contacting the police should they either visit the property to change the locks or attempt entry and you do not appreciate them trying to terrorise you into submission in your present condition.


Darling: PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL ANYONE! YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST WRITE A FORMAL LETTER. You may need proof of your communication with the agent and landlord later and an email will not be appropriate as you can't prove that someone has received it correctly or read it. Send two copies by first-class post from two different post offices retaining proof of postage.

BitterAndTwisted

EastMidsGal wrote: »

I don't have time to write to a councillor or the TRO, or get the CAB to write a letter as the agents wants an answer by tomorrow afternoon

Please do not feel terrorised or under pressure to respond to them in their time-scales! You are the one in control here and not them. This is all part of their strategy adn you should not let it work.


But I don't want to go shooting my mouth off in an email to the LAs until I know where I stand with the TRO cos I don't want to make things worse for myself and risk the council classing me as intentionally homeless just in case I need their help later on, which it is looking increasingly likely I will

Please be assured that not allowing access for viewings cannot under any circumstances be seen by anyone to be contributing to your potential homelessness. "Quiet enjoyment" is an absolute right.