Lots of questions :-s

yved33

Renting from a private landlord, my husband moved out two weeks ago, so now me and our 13 year old daughter living in property. I have no income and because HB paid in arrears, i am now 6 days late with the rent :eek: although i have managed to pay about a third of it( £260) and will be paying another £300 on the 21st of this month. My landlord and managing agent are not happy, to say the least and i have a strong suspicion that the landlord will use the break clause to get us out in two months. :-l My husband is still on the tenancy and my brother is guarantor, but neither of them have any spare money.I have applied for a Discretionary housing payment and a Crisis loan, in the hope that i can catch up and pay next months rent on time ( the 9th April). We have been on the council housing list for about 3 years but are a band D so not going anywhere fast :-(
If landlord gives us notice to quit in two months, can i go to the council with said notice and possibly get re housed? Would we have to wait to be evicted before they would rehouse us ? I really don't want to go through that :eek: Also, our deposit is held in a deposit protection scheme, but if we have to be evicted or are behind with the rent, can the landlord take some or all of the deposit?? I'm trying my best to cope with it all, but tbh my head is beginning to spin !

BitterAndTwisted

yved33 wrote: »

If landlord gives us notice to quit in two months, can i go to the council with said notice and possibly get re housed?

Yes, you could provided that the landlord issues the correct documentation (Section 21 Notice) with the right dates on it. Pleae be aware that a lot of Local Authorities are forced to operate a "gatekeeping" policy because of the acute shortage of available properties. Some LAs will not accept responsibility to rehouse you until the LL has taken you to court. Some won't until the bailiffs are actually at the door. In any case, the best that could be hoped for in some areas would be a B&B.

Would we have to wait to be evicted before they would rehouse us? I really don't want to go through that :eek:
Maybe.

Also, our deposit is held in a deposit protection scheme, but if we have to be evicted or are behind with the rent, can the landlord take some or all of the deposit??

Yes, they can. You'd better cross your fingers that there's some of it left to pay for any damage or they'll be chasing your guarantor for it.

I'm trying my best to cope with it all, but tbh my head is beginning to spin !

Please don't worry about maybes. You must concentrate on the here and now. You absolutely must keep the doors of communication open between you and your landlord. Put all of your proposals about how you are addressing the payment of rent due IN WRITING to your landlord. As long as your LHA once approved will cover your rent your landlord might be happy to keep you on as a tenant. Finding a new tenant costs money and any new tenant will be an unknown quantity.

mlz1413

The agent and LL are likely to be unhappy, but you are making payments and should be able to pay in full when the HB catches up, so write to them and let them know with the dates you have given us.

Your husband may have left but will he pay the rent until you get your housing benefits sorted out?

The LL cannot evict you instantly I think you have to be 2 months in arrears before he can start legal proceedings - I'm sure someone else will clarify this.

If your LL decides to give you 2 months to end the tenancy at the 6 month point then you need to take that to the housing dept at your local council and advise them. They should be able to advise you of your rights and what action to take.

As you, your husband and your brother are legally responsible for any debts and any damage it will be upto the LL and LA to take you all to court (if it comes to that)

The deposit scheme will need contact from LL and named lead tenant, so if you are given notice you will need to ring them and advise them your side of events - you should have contact details for the scheme along with a unique reference number that will need quoting.

yved33

Thanks for that I have kept the managing agent fully informed of what i am doing to try to rectify the situation. As far as i am aware there is no damage. No, my HB is £153 short of the rent each month.

poppysarah

yved33 wrote: »

No, my HB is £153 short of the rent each month.

In that case can you find alternative accomodation and move as soon as you can (regards tenancy) - to avoid building up more arrears.

Have you actioned the child support agency yet ?
Your child's dad should be providing money for her)

http://www.csa.gov.uk/

You should get this ball rolling ASAP.

yved33

Husband is helping and he is paying me child support He has moved into a house share. I don't think i would be able to afford the fees involved with renting privately again ( deposit, credit check, agents fees etc) :eek: My mum has helped me out in the past, but is unable to this time ( God love her ) and husband approached his parents, which didn't go well :-s

BitterAndTwisted

How many bedrooms does your property have? Is there any way you could take in a lodger and it not affect your benefits?

yved33

We do have a spare room, so that is a possibility, but i strongly suspect it will adversely affect benefits. I will look into it when i know what is happening re the break clause, although i can't see the landlord going for it, (lodger situation) even the managing agent has said she is 'difficult'

Jowo_2

Your husband is jointly and severally liable to pay the rent if he is a joint tenant with you - his non-occupation is irrelevant to his obligation. It is not you that owe the arrears, it is both of you, though the landlord won't care who pays it and can chase either of you, or both of you for it, or the guarantor for it.

The Shelter website has excellent information on the process for submitting a homelessness application with the local council. A local council can deem a person to have made themselves intentionally homeless if they have been served notice because of rent arrears, if they could have paid rent but did not.

Sometimes the local council will tell the tenant to ignore the notice served by the landlord, and to remain in the property until the landlord has gained a court order for possession in the local court. This is one reason why some landlords will not let their properties to benefit claimants as they have a reputation of being harder to evict because they won't cooperate with the notice they have been given.

Many local councils operate rent deposit guarantee schemes. Check if yours does. The benefit board members may be aware whether there is a DWP loan that can pay the 1st months rent.

Many landlords or their agent serve an S21 upfront at the outset of the tenancy (if property is in England/Wales) which means that they have already served 2 months notice to the tenant and can proceed much more quickly in taking them to court for possession. Did you receive this S21 notice in the past?

Wee_Willy_Harris

yved33 wrote: »

Thanks for that I have kept the managing agent fully informed of what i am doing to try to rectify the situation. As far as i am aware there is no damage. No, my HB is £153 short of the rent each month.

Ask your HB department to apply the "13 week rule". This allows your FULL rent to be paid for 13 weeks, regardless of the amount you are entitled to. It's only 13 weeks, but it may give you enough breathing space to catch up.

yved33

Oh, apparently if i got HB before ( which i did) then i don't qualify for the 13 week rule Thanks anyway.