greedy landlord

evenstarcrafty

After having some trouble with her previous landlord not wanting to wait a few weeks for housing benefit to be sorted out, my daughter decided to look for alternative accommodation, my partners work college rents a house very cheaply £240 a month and said there was a 1 bedroom house coming up shortly.
We went to see the landlord who showed us the property, it is quite rundown and very small, you wouls only fit a 2 seater and tele in living room.He wanted £100 per week, when he knew it was housing benefit, my husband explained that the council only pay £80 to which he agreed, he said if she wanted it there was no deposit but to give him something towards first month rent, when my daughter and I went to see him he put the rent up to £85 per week, she reluctantly gave him her £150 which was a loan
A couple of days later she decided she wasnt happy to move there and so my husband rang him, he will not answer the phone or texts we have sent him. She has a reciept for the money and wants it back.There is still someone living in the house and he even asked if the present tenant could leave her things in till she decorated her new place ,even after the date my daughter was wanting the property,there was no tenancy agreement signed and we regret giving him any money, where does she stand in getting her money back, bearing in mind she has a receipt and witness that she gave him it,he is taking advantage of vulnerable people, we have threatened him with a solicitor and newspapers and are still waiting for a reply

may_fair

The LL has no entitlement to the money if no contract was entered into.

Assuming this is in England/Wales (because I don't know anything of the procedure in Scotland), then your daughter should firstly send LL a 'letter before action' (keep copy and get a free certificate of posting) demanding a refund of the money. Give a deadline to pay and say that if he does not pay by the deadline then she will bring a county court claim.

If the deadline passes without payment, she can start the claim easily via Money Claim Online - no solicitor necessary and court fees are low, and would be added to the claim. (If your daughter is a student or on benefits etc she may be able to get assistance with the court fees - ask). However, it won't hurt to borrow a book from the library to assist her through small claims procedure, and there is also information online on HM Courts website.

G_M

he said if she wanted it there was no deposit but to give him something towards first month rent,

sounds like a verbal contract. She paid rent in advance? I assume a move-in date was agreed? You say there is a receipt - what exactly does it say?

A couple of days later she decided she wasnt happy to move there

Sounds like she is backing out of a contract. So I'm not sure I agree with may_fair in this situation.

Much will depend on what was agreed, and what was written down.

evenstarcrafty

I didn't know there was such a thing as a verbal rent agreement, is it not a requirement by law, that you have to have a written contract, for it to be binding.
The only contact for this man is his mobile number, however, we do know someone who rents from him, with hindsight it was very stupid to give him any money, he was pressuring my daughter to give him something so he would keep the property for her, there was no official date for moving, it was about 2 weeks or when the previous tenant decided to move her stuff.
She is on benefit at the moment and is job hunting so didn't want something with extortionate rent as she will have to consider that when job hunting, the money was a social fund loan which she is having to pay back at £10 per week out of her £50 job seekers, so it is a big deal for her to lose it.

may_fair

evenstarcrafty wrote: »

I didn't know there was such a thing as a verbal rent agreement, is it not a requirement by law, that you have to have a written contract, for it to be binding.

No, a short term let of less than 3 years can be orally/verbally agreed.

...he was pressuring my daughter to give him something so he would keep the property for her, there was no official date for moving, it was about 2 weeks or when the previous tenant decided to move her stuff.

This sounds to me more like a holding deposit than that your daughter entered into a contract. Holding deposits are generally refundable. In addition, the fact that the LL has avoided attempts to contact him would not support his defence (I mean, in the event of a court claim, such behaviour won't impress the court and doesn't sound like the behaviour of someone who intends to let the property to your daughter).

Please could you tell us what is actually written on the receipt - does it say what the money received is for?

Ask the tenant you know who rents from this LL for his address, as you need LL's address to bring a court claim.

samroo

I actually thought. Holding deposit was non refundable but was deducted from 1st months rent on move in unless the landlord backed out of the deal. The holding deposit is a commitment from the tenant. If it can be refunded to the tenant if he / she has a change of mind there is a absolutely no point to paying such a deposit at all

evenstarcrafty

Im looking into the matter of a holding deposit and to me it looks like it is not clear about the legalities, i did find this which is interesting

The contract is entirely one-sided. The prospective landlord/agent can withdraw with no financial penalty whereas the prospective tenant cannot. Any term which allows a prospective landlord/agent to withhold money/impose financial penalties on a prospective tenant, without corresponding powers and rights for the prospective tenant is unfair within the meaning of Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations.

I have been in touch with with my daughter, she thinks all that is on the receipt is the amount and his signature, not sure of date, she will verify this when she gets home

G_M

The trouble is that landlords/agents take money upfront for several reasons and under various terms.

Admin fee to cover agents costs
Credit vetting/referencing fee
holding deposit
security deposit
rent

Some of these might be refundable, some not.
Some might constitute part of a contract, some not.

That is why it is always important when handing over money (and not just in property rental situations) to be clear what the money is for, whether it is refundable, and if so in what circumstances.

I'm afraid handing a stranger money in return for no more than a signature (and in some cases we hear of, not even that!) is asking for trouble.

may_fair

evenstarcrafty wrote: »

Im looking into the matter of a holding deposit and to me it looks like it is not clear about the legalities, i did find this which is interesting

The contract is entirely one-sided. The prospective landlord/agent can withdraw with no financial penalty whereas the prospective tenant cannot. Any term which allows a prospective landlord/agent to withhold money/impose financial penalties on a prospective tenant, without corresponding powers and rights for the prospective tenant is unfair within the meaning of Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations.

You are quite right, OP. If the 'contract' is one-sided it's unlikely to be enforceable. That's why I said that so-called holding deposits are generally refundable. From what you've told us I think your daughter has a strong case to claim for a refund in the county court.

flimsier

evenstarcrafty wrote: »

After having some trouble with her previous landlord not wanting to wait a few weeks for housing benefit to be sorted out, my daughter decided to look for alternative accommodation, my partners work college rents a house very cheaply £240 a month and said there was a 1 bedroom house coming up shortly.
We went to see the landlord who showed us the property, it is quite rundown and very small, you wouls only fit a 2 seater and tele in living room.He wanted £100 per week, when he knew it was housing benefit, my husband explained that the council only pay £80 to which he agreed, he said if she wanted it there was no deposit but to give him something towards first month rent, when my daughter and I went to see him he put the rent up to £85 per week, she reluctantly gave him her £150 which was a loan
A couple of days later she decided she wasnt happy to move there and so my husband rang him, he will not answer the phone or texts we have sent him. She has a reciept for the money and wants it back.There is still someone living in the house and he even asked if the present tenant could leave her things in till she decorated her new place ,even after the date my daughter was wanting the property,there was no tenancy agreement signed and we regret giving him any money, where does she stand in getting her money back, bearing in mind she has a receipt and witness that she gave him it,he is taking advantage of vulnerable people, we have threatened him with a solicitor and newspapers and are still waiting for a reply

I've no real advice to give that is legal (my actions probably wouldn't be) but wanted to say "Good luck".

I've thought about becoming a landlord, and I figure if I ever do it won't be hard to keep tenants because if you're reasonable, you stand out from the cowboys!!

may_fair

samroo wrote: »

I actually thought. Holding deposit was non refundable but was deducted from 1st months rent on move in unless the landlord backed out of the deal. The holding deposit is a commitment from the tenant. If it can be refunded to the tenant if he / she has a change of mind there is a absolutely no point to paying such a deposit at all

I will quote a learned gentleman on another forum, on the subject of holding deposits:

The intention here is that the tenant pays over a sum on the understanding that the property is not offered elsewhere. If it is declared to be non-refundable then there has to be an obligation on the part of the landlord. It is, I suspect, rarely set out clearly what that obligation is. If the arrangement is vague there is no contract and the deposit will be refundable. If the arrangement is not vague then what we have is effectively an option for the tenant to take the tenancy. If it is an option for the tenant to take a tenancy, then that presents difficulties for the landlord if he has not set out clearly what conditions are to be fulfilled before the option can be exercised. The drafting of options is best left to experienced conveyancers.