Landlord trying to increase rent

LittleMissMuppet_2

I am asking this for a friend.

She has 4 children living in a 4 bedroom property. The landlord quite ok with it. Friend is now 4 months pregant with triplets. Landlord came round for a 6 monthly check and found out about the triplets. Friend was going to tell him once she was further along in pregnancy. As landlord left he said, in a friendly tone, "I'll send you a letter regarding rent increase". Friend has now received the letter which states that due to extra peoplel living in the property the rent will be increasing £10 a week per extra person so £30 a week/£120 a month once babies are born. Friend doesn't know where she stands. She cant afford the extra rent. Is landlord legally able to increase rent because of extra people even if they are babies??

PPPingu

just to be clear, is the rent paid weekly?

LittleMissMuppet_2

Yes rent is paid weekly. Friend's husband gets paid weekly from work & they asked landlord if they can pay rent weekly (they are rubbish at saving money and would have spent the rent money before it was due if it was monthly)

Rent works out the same as would if they were paying monthly, they just divided the yearly amount by 52 I think. £10 per person isnt the exact amount, there is some pence with that I think, friend didnt say exactly

dorset_nurse

It sounds like the house will be too small for them anyway. Maybe she should look for a new place before the triplets are born?

Gwhiz

LittleMissMuppet wrote: »

they are rubbish at saving money and would have spent the rent money before it was due if it was monthly

This AND 7 children! I hope they start learning money management soon

LittleMissMuppet_2

They can't afford another house. This one is big enough for them. They have 2 girls & 2 boys so only need 3 bedrooms for mum, dad and the 4 kids, and the trips will go into the 4th bedroom.

This is besides the point. I just wanted to know if landlord can legally increase the rent like this

ifonlyitwaseasier

are they on a fixed term AST? if yes then he can't,
if they have gone onto a periodic tenancy then he has to give notice of any rent increases and yes he can increase it for any reason he likes. tho increasing it cos she's having babies is rather mean and petty.

dorset_nurse

I would get them to look in their contract and see if they have signed up at a guaranteed fixed rate for a period of time. Its sounds faesable that the landlord would want to up the rent as there will be a significant growth in the family.
Lucky she told him now as it could have been a shock to get the bill right before she gives birth and can't move so quickly.

rpc

England/Wales or Scotland? There are different procedures and tenancy types in each. It also depends on whether your friend is in a fixed term (normally no increase allowed) or on a periodic tenancy.

Did they receive a letter or a formal notice? Landlords cannot normally write and say "your rent is going up", there is a proper procedure to follow (S13 notice in Eng/Wales, AT2 in Scotland). You can negociate the increase with the landlord (can't afford it, small increase vs void if they leave, etc).

Ultimately, the landlord can charge the rent he wants as long as it is reasonable and done properly. If negociation fails, the choice is between paying it and moving out.

silvercar

When was the last rent increase? I don't think the rent can be increased more than once a year unless the tenant had a 6 month AST and agreed to sign a new one.

If you google S13 notice it contains the details on what to do if you think the increase is unfair. Basically you have to compare the rent with what similar properties rent for in the area to decide if the new rent is unfair or not. If the rent is deemed fair, then your friends other option is to look for a new property. I don't know how a new landlord would view 7 children in terms of wear and tear, but it may be worth looking to see what is on offer.

marie08

Hey, am trying to post my own thread and i can't find the button,c an you tell me how to post a new topic ?

Thanks