Letting agent fee - seems unfair - any advice?

franklee

CaraC81 wrote: »

They told us that we would be sent a ‘Section 21 – Notice Requiring Possession’, but not to worry, it was simply a formality. At this stage we were to call the agent and ask for the contract to be extended. This is exactly what has happened – but unexpectedly the letter confirming the tenancy renewal includes a demand for £150 of renewal fees (£75 per person) – and a statement that this is a conditional offer which is dependent on us passing further credit checks. We must pay the money by 1st of May.

princeofpounds wrote: »

You do not need a renewed tenancy to stay in the property. If the landlord is happy with it, you can go onto a statutory periodic tenancy simply by doing nothing and carrying on as normal. The only downside to this is that you do not get fixed-term security. The landlord must give you 2 months notice to leave, you must give 1 month (both to coincide with a rental period). But if you have a good relationship this is not such an issue.

Werdnal wrote: »

Where several replies (including mine) explain how an SPT - Statutory Periodic Tenancy, works. You DO NOT ever need to sign a renewal of the tenancy BUT remember this can reduce your security of tenure in the property, as without a fixed term, the LL need only give you 2 months notice of possession.

Normally I would agree with the above comments but in CaraC81's case a section 21 has already been served. Now unless we can agree it's invalid for some reason (and it may be there isn't enough information on the thread to tell) then there is no requirement for the landlord to serve another. If CaraC81 remains on a periodic tenancy the agent/landlord is free to apply to court for possession any time (that is any time after the fixed terms ends) based on the existing S21.

CaraC81 wrote: »

our S21 arrived on Saturday (24th March). Our tenancy started on Saturday the 10th of December

CaraC81 this precautionary serving of the S21, even when possession isn't as yet wanted (sometimes nicknamed Sword of Damocles) is a way of using the S21 to "bully" the tenant, in your case to make a periodic tenancy even less secure thus trying to force you into an extension so they collect their fees.

If you can get the landlord to give you written permission to stay on a periodic tenancy and that he rescinds the S21 then you will be fine. Staying on a periodic tenancy if you have a valid S21 in place means you've had your notice and do not have the right to it again.

There is an argument that offering an extension after the S21 was served voids the S21 but in your case I'm unsure what order things happened in. Was the letter offering an extension sent after the S21? Besides as this point is argued over it isn't an ideal thing to rely upon and it would be best to get the S21 rescinded in writing if you can to avoid any dispute later on. If you can't get that then you really need an argument the S21 is void or it'll stand and can be actioned months or even years hence.

Signing an extension would void the S21 but then you have the fee to pay and will likely be served a new S21 so they can pull the same trick next renewal so that is far from ideal.