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Letting agents made mistake on contract..
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You knew it was a mistake and you are attempting to benefit from someone's arror.
Yes, you can insist on maintaining rent payments at the amount stated in the contract, but as others have said:
a) you are morally in the wrong, though not legally, and
b) you will have an alienated agent who will become not just inefficient but p*ssed off with you too, and
c) you will have a LL who is receiving less rent than he anticipated, and will have to decide either to accept this or enter a protracted, stressful, and uncertain dispute with his agent
All in all not a happy state of affairs, but then it depends how long you plan to stay there, whether you care about future references, about ongoing relations while you are there, how you feel about disputes etc.
Presumably when you 1st heard about the proposed rent increase you accepted it and felt it was fair (even if you did not relish it!)?
As DVardy suggests, I would agree to amend the contract but insist the agent pay you back the fee they charged, either as a refund, or a fee to you for the replacement contract.0 -
Tiddlywinks wrote: »No, but I would be very concerned about a tenant who signed a contract knowing it have an incorrect rent figure just to prove a point and to get out of a rent increase.
I think I'd be more concerned about a letting agent who I paid to manage my property taking so little care when preparing legal documents and signing them on my behalf. It would certainly be the letting agent that I would direct my anger at.Tiddlywinks wrote: »I'd encourage you to grow up!
I can't say what I'd encourage you to do.:D0 -
Been a while since i posted on these forums, but thought i'd offer the OP a bit of support seeing as the rest of you are on your high horses.
As far as im aware, id one party makes an honest mistake in a contract, then it's possible that they may be able to void it. Having said that if it was reasonable for the person being offered the "deal" to expect that there was no mistake in the price, then it would most likely stand if challenged. Anyway, nothing's really ging to be challenged here, as the amounts are pretty low, arent they.
That aside, I would personally take full advantage of the error, providing that if it came to it, and i was unable to renew the tenancy once expired, it would be relitively easy and cheap to move to a new house. OP - I'd consider whether the potential saving of £60 per month over the tenancy would be completely offset and wiped out by the costs of moving when the LL put's his rent up by the £60, then maybe more to recoup his losses from the previous letting period....
In all, I guess like some other posters that actually address the issue suggest, you aim to reach a compromise on the rent increase and admin fee.
D0 -
I think I'd be more concerned about a letting agent who I paid to manage my property taking so little care when preparing legal documents and signing them on my behalf. It would certainly be the letting agent that I would direct my anger at.
I can't say what I'd encourage you to do.:D
You came on here asking for advice about your situation. Pretty much everyone has told you the same thing and you dont like the answer.
You'll doubtless be getting a Section 21 in the mail sooner rather than later. Writing to the landlord pointing out that you are taking financial advantage of a clerical error is not going to make him think any better of you.
At the end of the day the LL will have countersigned the agreement and assumed in good faith it was right. The LA are not going to pay anything to anyone.0 -
By all means carry on paying at the previous rent, but at the end of your tenancy, I will put money on you either being given notice to move out, or next years increase will be double to make up for not paying this year.
ps - I'm not a LL, but rented for a long time, and would only refuse to pay the rent increase if I intended to move out at the end of the contract.
I am actually planning to move out of the property in the next few months, though I appreciate that the LA could make things difficult with returning my deposit etc. But to be fair, they've always been difficult, and I'm sure I've got a name for myself with them already, as I've always been completely polite but very persistent to get things done (I've needed to be!), so I'm not sure I've got much to lose on that score.You knew it was a mistake and you are attempting to benefit from someone's arror.
Conversely, I just don't see why there shouldn't be consequences for the LA, as it was their error. They charge extortionate admin fees, £150 each when you move in, and £30 each every time you renew. How can they justify these fees and then take so little care? It just sums up their whole attitude.Been a while since i posted on these forums, but thought i'd offer the OP a bit of support seeing as the rest of you are on your high horses.
...
That aside, I would personally take full advantage of the error, providing that if it came to it, and i was unable to renew the tenancy once expired, it would be relitively easy and cheap to move to a new house. OP - I'd consider whether the potential saving of £60 per month over the tenancy would be completely offset and wiped out by the costs of moving when the LL put's his rent up by the £60, then maybe more to recoup his losses from the previous letting period....
Thanks, leachyd. I was getting a bit of a lynching! As I said above, I'm actually planning to move out in a few months so the renewal issue isn't an issue. As far as the landlord missing out, I think that's completely unfair and half of my argument is that the LAs should reimburse him. I don't see why they should get off scot-free as other people seem to suggest? They're paid to provide a service, they're crap at it, and now they've cost the LL money.In all, I guess like some other posters that actually address the issue suggest, you aim to reach a compromise on the rent increase and admin fee.As DVardy suggests, I would agree to amend the contract but insist the agent pay you back the fee they charged, either as a refund, or a fee to you for the replacement contract.
Yes, I'm beginning to think that this may be the best route to go down, though I would want to LA to take a hit for at least half of the rent increase over the term of the agreement.0 -
ruggedtoast wrote: »You came on here asking for advice about your situation. Pretty much everyone has told you the same thing and you dont like the answer.
You'll doubtless be getting a Section 21 in the mail sooner rather than later. Writing to the landlord pointing out that you are taking financial advantage of a clerical error is not going to make him think any better of you.
At the end of the day the LL will have countersigned the agreement and assumed in good faith it was right. The LA are not going to pay anything to anyone.
Our LA signed the tenancy agreement on behalf of the LL. As far as I'm aware he will never have seen it.
I appreciate people's view that my stance is morally questionable, but I'm just finding it difficult to accept that a LA who have provided me with countless headaches over the last few years, and who have pocketed almost £500 of our money in "admin fees", shouldn't incur any cost or disadvantage for this latest !!!!-up. Maybe I am on a bit of a crusade.:D0 -
DVardysShadow wrote: »
- If you did, then there is more of an obligation to cooperate in putting matters right. Personally, in the situation, I would agree to sign a new contract and charge a cancellation and renewal fee to the agent at least equal to the fee they charged. And I would not sign until I had their cheque in my hand.
I don't see an obligation. There is a signed contract. Both parties signed it. End of, it seems to me....much enquiry having been made concerning a gentleman, who had quitted a company where Johnson was, and no information being obtained; at last Johnson observed, that 'he did not care to speak ill of any man behind his back, but he believed the gentleman was an attorney'.0 -
Tiddlywinks wrote: »No, but I would be very concerned about a tenant who signed a contract knowing it have an incorrect rent figure just to prove a point and to get out of a rent increase.
The tenant's bolshy approach would lead me to decide that I would be better to end the business relationship before the tenant started to direct his nastiness my way!
I'd encourage you to grow up!
Grow up? A strange attitude. I see no reason for the T to pay to fix the LA's negligence. LA's problem....much enquiry having been made concerning a gentleman, who had quitted a company where Johnson was, and no information being obtained; at last Johnson observed, that 'he did not care to speak ill of any man behind his back, but he believed the gentleman was an attorney'.0 -
You knew it was a mistake and you are attempting to benefit from someone's arror.
Yes, you can insist on maintaining rent payments at the amount stated in the contract, but as others have said:
a) you are morally in the wrong, though not legally, and
I disagree. I think the LA is morally in the wrong, for trying to get the Ts to pay rather than them pay the LL....much enquiry having been made concerning a gentleman, who had quitted a company where Johnson was, and no information being obtained; at last Johnson observed, that 'he did not care to speak ill of any man behind his back, but he believed the gentleman was an attorney'.0 -
ruggedtoast wrote: »
At the end of the day the LL will have countersigned the agreement and assumed in good faith it was right. The LA are not going to pay anything to anyone.
More fool the LL, then. He's in business. He should be bothered to read and (if necessary) correct any errors before signing. Or blame the LA, if they signed on his behalf.
If I were the tenant, I'd tell them to lump it....much enquiry having been made concerning a gentleman, who had quitted a company where Johnson was, and no information being obtained; at last Johnson observed, that 'he did not care to speak ill of any man behind his back, but he believed the gentleman was an attorney'.0
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