LL raising rent after 2 months - no contract

gauze

Hi, I'm coming up to 2 months renting a room by myself in a shared house in England. I share the house with 3 other people (each with their own rooms) and rent from a private LL.

I agreed a set rent and paid one month plus a months deposit. Since then, last month the LL has added on £10 for an internet charge which as internet wasnt listed in the itinerary on the advert, I agreed to pay on top of last months rent. Now the LL has called and is increasing my rent by £20 pm to cover "higher bills" (almost certainly a lie) and has said that if I can't afford to make the extra £20, he'll take it from my deposit which he "has with him still".

I'm assuming this is totally illegal and essentially threatening to steal from my deposit.

It's important to note, we agreed a 6 month initial fixed term at the first monthly rate which I'm happy to pay along with the £10 internet charge, but we didn't sign any tenancy agreements and given by what was said on the phone, my deposit hasn't been put into a deposit protection scheme.

Legally, what would be my best course of action here? I take it I'm within my rights to pay the basic rent for the duration of my fixed term (until end July 2012) but don't trust the LL to return my deposit.

My LL is very shady - using a fake name, calling from an unknown number (although I know it) and all the mail comes to this house, so I'm sure he doesn't have consent to let.

Any help here is appreciated. Thanks.

jjlandlord

Yes, the landlord cannot unilaterally increase the rent during the fixed term.
Now, you don't have any documents, so be prepared to a painful fight to get your deposit back. At least I hope that you have a receipt for the deposit, otherwise you can kiss it goodbye.

gauze wrote: »

we didn't sign any tenancy agreements and given by what was said on the phone,

...

My LL is very shady - using a fake name, calling from an unknown number (although I know it)

It's a bit like lying down on the middle of the motorway and complain about being driven over by cars, IMHO.

princeofpounds

You do have a contract. If someone offers exclusive occupation in return for rent they have an AST contract even if it is not on paper.

If a court does not have written evidence then they will look at actions in order to determine the terms of the tenancy (i.e. how much you pay for a few months is likely to be taken as the rental payment. If you received utilities as a bundle you are likely to have established a contractual right to continue receiving them).

If the deposit is not protected, you can threaten to sue the landlord for up to 3x the deposit penalty plus return of the deposit.

The landlord cannot get you out for 6 months if you do not make material breaches of the tenancy. But they will be able to get you out after then through a S21 route (only if they protect the deposit first).

The landlord is not permitted to change the terms of the tenancy for at least the first 6 months.

You should record any harrassment as evidence. You should also report any cutting off of utilities to the police as an attempt at illegal eviction (which is a criminal act with a possible jail sentence, although PC Plod often thinks it is a civil matter so you might need to be a bit assertive with them to get them to pay attention.)

Legally, what would be my best course of action here?

Personally, I think it would be to continue paying the rent you have agreed to, refusing to pay any more. Whether you press the issue of the deposit depends on if you want to protect your deposit or whether you want to avoid eviction for as long as possible (as it will be much harder if the deposit is not protected).

Gather all evidence of paying rent and deposit you can (how do you pay it? Is there a paper trail?). Keep evidence of harrassment. Keep your room secured.

jjlandlord

princeofpounds wrote: »

The landlord is not permitted to change the terms of the tenancy for at least the first 6 months.

Assuming OP can show on the balance of probabilities that he has a 6 month fixed term, for sure.
Otherwise, he would still need T's agreement except e.g. to increase rent as long as he follows the correct procedure.

princeofpounds

Assuming OP can show on the balance of probabilities that he has a 6 month fixed term, for sure.
Otherwise, he would still need T's agreement except e.g. to increase rent as long as he follows the correct procedure.

IIRC, a section 13 to raise the rent cannot raise the rent within a calendar year of the tenancy beginning, so it doesn't matter if it is a fixed tenancy or not.

Of course if the T agrees he can do it any time (therefore the rent rise the tenant accepted can remain in force)

jjlandlord

princeofpounds wrote: »

IIRC, a section 13 to raise the rent cannot raise the rent within a calendar year of the tenancy beginning, so it doesn't matter if it is a fixed tenancy or not.

Depends.
I wanted to clarify what you meant in your previous post.

princeofpounds

Depends.
I wanted to clarify what you meant in your previous post.

The landlord is not permitted to unilaterally change the terms of the tenancy particularly with respect to rental rates for at least the first 6 months.

is probably better description of what I was meaning to say.

Yorkie1

Picking up on some of the peripheral matters raised by the OP:

4 separate people in the property - should it be registered with the council as an HMO?

Council tax - who is paying, and how is it registered with the council?

Bet LL hasn't got consent to let - might be worth a look at the LR entry to see if it's mortgaged, and the LL's true name, etc

Bet LL isn't paying tax either ...

gauze

Thanks for all the replies. The LL hasn't registered the property as anything and almost certainly doesn't have consent to let.

It may seem as though I set myself up for a fall by even agreeing to this dodgy situation, but I had little choice. I had to move earlier in the year on one week's notice for a job and this was literally the only place I could afford within commuting distance on my - at the time - very low budget. I knew it was a risk but didn't expect this kinda crap until it came to returning the deposit!

Basically I'm planning on refusing to pay the inflated rent but should the LL become aggressive and try to force my hand, who should I contact first? The council? I'm 99.99% sure my deposit isn't in any form of protection scheme.

Given that the LL was prepared to dip into my deposit like that, I can safely assume I'd have more chance of seeing hen's teeth than getting it all back at the end of my term. If I have doubts about this and am initiating legal action re: no protection scheme, would it be advisable to withhold the last months rent?

I'm not relying on any references from this LL and he has way more to lose financially were he to try to chase me for it legally, which would require admission of being a LL.

Another tenant is also unhappy about this rent increase and is considering his options aswell, so we could work together if need be.

Rent is paid cash on the 1st, but I make sure to either give it to one of my housemates to hand over or do it in their presence as a witness. The LL refused to issue receipts. My room is locked but I assume the LL has a duplicate key somewhere.

gauze

Yorkie1 wrote: »

Picking up on some of the peripheral matters raised by the OP:

4 separate people in the property - should it be registered with the council as an HMO?

Council tax - who is paying, and how is it registered with the council?

Bet LL hasn't got consent to let - might be worth a look at the LR entry to see if it's mortgaged, and the LL's true name, etc

Bet LL isn't paying tax either ...

The house is mortgaged as I saw in a letter window (not opening the letter, just through the clear window) a first line about a mortgage addressed to the LL's real name. No idea on council tax, but strong suspicion that it's registered as single occupancy. Almost certain that he isn't declaring rental income aswell, as LL stressed that I couldn't claim any benefits whilst here.

Yorkie1

This gets worse - he insists on cash payment and refuses to issue a receipt?

Do you want to stay there or are you looking to move as soon as possible (ignoring for the moment that a 6-month fixed period is in force)?