Rental property is being repossessed - Do I have to stay until the bitter end???

DiscoCat54

I'm currently 5 months in to a 12 month tenancy and I have received a letter stating that the LL has to attend Court on September 9th in response to the application for a possession order from his Mortgage provider.

Given that the LL has done a runner to Southern Ireland leaving over 550,000 of debt it is very unlikely that he will attend the hearing and I fully expect for the property to be repossessed. I have completed an N244 form at my own personal expense of £80 so that I can attend the hearing as neither the landlord nor the lettings agency in the UK have proved very reliable.

The Landlord does not have a BTL mortgage so my 12 month tenancy will very likely be terminated and eviction will take place.

What I'd like to understand is do I need to stay until the bitter end??? As I have 3 cats and 3 dogs it took me 5 months to find this property and if by some chance I manage to find something else soon I'd really like to take it. The advice from the letting agent is that my tenency agreement is valid until the eviction date and if I move out early, the outstanding rent will be taken from my deposit. I have appealed to the better nature of my LL and asked if i can leave after 6 months (5 days after the court hearing) but he won't play ball... I can only assume that as he's not paying his mortgage he is pocketing my rent and wants to carry on doing so until the last minute...


Any advice please???

pmlindyloo

I'm sorry I can't help with your question.

It's usually the other way round - tenant wants longer to stay!

Suggest you give Shelter a call and ask them.

Contact details here:

http://england.shelter.org.uk/about_us/contact_us

N79

Once the mortgage company gain possession then they will issue you with 2 months notice to leave. Once they have done this, I very much doubt that they will mind if you leave at any point during the notice period as it saves them from the costs of evicting you (but who knows - they may be very inflexible).

Even after this notice expires you will get at least another couple of months while they go to court to evict you. So you start looking now you should have plenty of time to find something else.

Sorry for your position.

G_M

If the LL has done a runner, who is going to chase you if you do the same before the hearing?

The bank can't as they don't (yet) own the property.

Mallotum_X

How big is the deposit, id be thinking about not paying the rent any more. Not like very much will happen if you dont pay, If you havent been there for long you can manage without references from teh letting agent.

franklee

Did you notice the sticky thread on this, last few pages most relevant. Essentially your tenancy agreement is binding for now, when it stops being binding is something you need to find out, specifically if the repossession is staved off you're likely liable for rent till the end of the fixed term. I'd be attending the hearing and asking exactly when your liability ends. The two months notice N79 mentions isn't automatic you have to apply for it. Suggest you read the guidance on the Mortgage Repossessions (Protection of Tenants etc) Act 2010 here:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/housing/mortgagerepossessionguidance

Also see:
http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/eviction/repossession_by_a_landlords_lender

It stinks but is better than the no protection you had before the new act, which is why as a tenant I'd be checking for consent to let before taking the tenancy.

PS: Worth checking to see if your tenancy agreement has a break clause that allows you to give notice.

DiscoCat54

Thank you for all of your help. My problem is that I WANT the tenancy to be brought to an end as soon as possible. I signed up for 12 months (more fool me) and found out after the 1st week that the LL and his wife were in a lot of financial trouble and that he hadn't been paying his mortgage, personal loans, credit card bills, mobile phone bills, property maintenance or school fees. I discovered that the Southern ireland address on the contract was made up and contacted the UK agency (leaders) to see if they could shine any light on the subject. They said they'd asked the LL if he had a BTL mortgage and he had told them that he had. I have endured 5 months of bailiff's visits and now that I know he is going to court I just want to leave. I have asked the agency to speak with him and see if I can leave at 6 months instead of 12 but they are unable to make any contact with him so I have to stay and keep paying until the end.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing and I appreciate that it's my own fault for signing up for a 6 month contract with no break out clause...

My deposit was £4k so I can't afford to just leave and move somewhere else without it being official as I'll need my deposit back for the next property...

rob_wiltshire

DiscoCat54 wrote: »

My deposit was £4k so I can't afford to just leave and move somewhere else without it being official as I'll need my deposit back for the next property...

That's a big deposit! Are you SURE it has been lodged in an approved scheme?

I don't wish to worry you but your landlord doesn't exactly have a track record of 'doing things by the book'...

DiscoCat54

The agency took care of the deposit on behalf of the Landlord and it has definitely been put in to one of the deposit schemes.

vyvyan_2

Was the deposit high because of your pets?

I've always had to do this even though my cats are 15 years old and sleep for 23 hours a day!

Your deposit still seems high though even with this consideration.

As someone else said, check where it is being kept/in what scheme.

Good luck but I would be actively looking NOW as 2 months is nothing when it does happpen and it's never easy (but not impossible) with the pets to consider.

rob_wiltshire

DiscoCat54 wrote: »

The agency took care of the deposit on behalf of the Landlord and it has definitely been put in to one of the deposit schemes.

I'm very pleased to hear that - I hope things work out for you.