landlord has key???

thesaint

deary65 wrote:

The landlord does not own the property he owns the rent. He has exchanged exclusive possession for a money payment. Hope you understand that.

Have you changed your mind now?

Kaminari_2

Hmmm....i see what prudryden means now about deary65....i hope he never defends himself in court.

chant1l

Actually Kaminari I think that would be highly entertaining, all 37 seconds of it.

LittleAngel84

Georgecarol wrote:

Everyone's talking about the key issue, but what about the bank details issue:eek: There is no way that he is allowed to look at the bank details of anyone else. You didn't say what disability they have, if they are developmentally handicapped, then he can take that bank info and take them for everything they've got. It's extremely important that this is the main issue today and I hope someone is there to stop him doing this. I have visions of credit card bills and ccj's dancing in my head right now and how unfortunate for people who may not intellectually be able to defend themselves.:mad: :mad:

Hi I am one of the ladies who lives in this house thanks for all your concern. We are not developmentally handicapped we are just physically disabled. I have cerebral palsy and my friend has no limbs.
We just dont want to get into a dispute with our landlord and lose our house as he has tried to kick me out before. And made me pay 3 months rent as he said I havnt paid it without giving me the chance to prove this.
So all the help we can get is much appreciated.
Thanks

LittleAngel84

Catmeister wrote:

I'm with Herb and Seven Day

The LL OWNS the property. It is his to do with as he wishes. He is merely lending it to someone to live in. Of course the tenant has rights, and of course the LL shouldn't just enter as he feels like it, but why should he not have a key?

Yes the tenant may feel uneasy that someone else has a key to their home, but the LL may also feel uneasy that someone has the ability to totally gut the house that they own. The letting process has to involve mutual trust.

In the case of OP, unless you want to cause these ladies more trouble, I would strongly recommend the softly softly approach. It sounds like they are vulnerable and do not have an involved social worker, so I'm guessing it would be massively stressful if it did go to court. Would the ladies appreciate you stirring up a hornet's nest?

On this occasion the LL has made an appointment to come and see the ladies. The fact that he wants to look at their bank documents suggests that he may well be missing a payment - why else would he demand to look if he knows it will show their regular payment to him? Have you confirmed with the bank that the cheque was paid as normal? If so, find out the date and place that it was paid. I am not saying that the LL has a right to look at their personal bank details, only that his desire to do so would add weight to his claim.

Why not take the opportunity to speak to LL about their rights to privacy? Rather than going in all guns blazing, perhaps mention that the ladies feel uncomfortable as he has come around unannounced, and you 'were under the impression' he needs to give written notice. If he tries to blag his way out of it, then is the time to let him know that you actually have all the information, and know exactly what these ladie's rights are. If you start on the attack, he may think they're more trouble than they're worth, and try and evict them. Regardless of whether he succeeds, and whether he has legal entitlement, this will cause no end of trouble and stress.

Know your rights, but know how to use them.

Hope this is helpful - I'm sure many will disagree with my advice, but it's so important to not be totally confrontational from the outset. The LL sounds like a bully, and I'm sure the ladies just want to be left alone. The way to do this is not by presenting a fight for the LL to get his teeth into, but qu ietly letting him know that his fun has ended.

l

Hi im one of the girls who lives in this house Thanks for your concern. We dont need a social worker involved as we are only physically disabled we have the same kind as mind as you.
If he is breaking the law we feel we have rights...

Georgecarol

LittleAngel84 wrote:

Hi I am one of the ladies who lives in this house thanks for all your concern. We are not developmentally handicapped we are just physically disabled. I have cerebral palsy and my friend has no limbs.
We just dont want to get into a dispute with our landlord and lose our house as he has tried to kick me out before. And made me pay 3 months rent as he said I havnt paid it without giving me the chance to prove this.
So all the help we can get is much appreciated.
Thanks

Hi, good to hear from you. My concern is that he seems to be a bully, and even though he has a right to see the proof that you have paid if the payment is not showing up on his side, he does not have the right to look at your personal papers. You have told him that you are getting the cancelled cheque and whatever other proof from the bank, that should be enough. You should tell him that as soon as you get that information, you will let him know. I don't see why they couldn't have pulled it up immediately at the bank, I have queried payments before and they've gone right in and told me who it was for, how much and when, then printed it off for me. You could give him that with your bank details and other personal info blacked out.
The barging in whenever he feels like it is an issue that's a bit more difficult if you're worried about getting kicked out. Have you thought of moving, or is your apartment disability equipped? That makes it a tad more difficult when looking for a place as disabled persons. Can your social worker not find you another place? Although I myself am not one to preach on that score as I'm having difficulties with my own house right now and can't find any other rental properties in our area/price range:o
If you could find another place, could social services not equip it, if needed, before you moved into the property. It's worth a phone call to find out about that.

beaniebaby_2

Georgecarol wrote:

Hi, good to hear from you. My concern is that he seems to be a bully, and even though he has a right to see the proof that you have paid if the payment is not showing up on his side, he does not have the right to look at your personal papers. You have told him that you are getting the cancelled cheque and whatever other proof from the bank, that should be enough. You should tell him that as soon as you get that information, you will let him know. I don't see why they couldn't have pulled it up immediately at the bank, I have queried payments before and they've gone right in and told me who it was for, how much and when, then printed it off for me. You could give him that with your bank details and other personal info blacked out.
The barging in whenever he feels like it is an issue that's a bit more difficult if you're worried about getting kicked out. Have you thought of moving, or is your apartment disability equipped? That makes it a tad more difficult when looking for a place as disabled persons. Can your social worker not find you another place? Although I myself am not one to preach on that score as I'm having difficulties with my own house right now and can't find any other rental properties in our area/price range:o
If you could find another place, could social services not equip it, if needed, before you moved into the property. It's worth a phone call to find out about that.

hiya, im the other girl that lives in the house, thanx 4 the advice. we have wanted 2 move out of here 4 about 2 years but have (like u) not found anywhere in our price range and accessible. as 2 the social worker, we dont have 1 anymore but she was no good anyway, she wouldn't have helped us she was useless :rolleyes:

Georgecarol

Hi Beaniebaby, I hear you on the search front:p I'm going to have a word with my sister tomorrow as she used to work for disability and has gone through various housing issues herself having a disabled son. She might come up with a couple of new leads to try as per the flat hunt, from her point of view anyway. She deals with different aspects of social services on a daily basis so there might be something she could contribute.
By the way, did the Landlord come over today, if so, how did it go???

Another quick question.....how come they never assigned you a new social worker. I understand that you feel that you would prefer to try and deal with things yourself, but there is certainly nothing wrong with utilising a service that has been specifically designed to help you. By no means should it make you feel any less capable, the way it's going with my house, I'm going to grab at any straw possible to get another place to live.

LittleAngel84

Georgecarol wrote:

Hi Beaniebaby, I hear you on the search front:p I'm going to have a word with my sister tomorrow as she used to work for disability and has gone through various housing issues herself having a disabled son. She might come up with a couple of new leads to try as per the flat hunt, from her point of view anyway. She deals with different aspects of social services on a daily basis so there might be something she could contribute.
By the way, did the Landlord come over today, if so, how did it go???

No luckily our landlord didnt come over as they realised that we couldnt get what they needed with two days notice.
And thanks for your help and hope your sis can be of help.

liz545

LittleAngel84 wrote:

Hi I am one of the ladies who lives in this house thanks for all your concern. We are not developmentally handicapped we are just physically disabled. I have cerebral palsy and my friend has no limbs.
We just dont want to get into a dispute with our landlord and lose our house as he has tried to kick me out before. And made me pay 3 months rent as he said I havnt paid it without giving me the chance to prove this.
So all the help we can get is much appreciated.
Thanks

Hi LittleAngel - I'm glad to hear your landlord didn't come over in the end. I think it would be a good idea for you to get one of the chain locks that goes on the inside of the door; not just because of your landlord but for your general safety. They're not expensive and they are easy to fit.

You should ask your landlord for a rent book - everyone has a right to one under law, especially if you pay by cash or cheque. Also, have a look at your bank statements or ask your carer to look at them with you, so you can show that you've paid your rent every month.

Remember that he can't just kick you out - evictions have to follow the proper procedure and they take time. Please keep trying to get through to the CAB or Shelter, or if you work maybe there is a union rep you could speak to? I know it's stressful to have a dodgy landlord - I've been there - but you *do* have rights and you shouldn't let him intimidate you! :A