Landlady selling estate agents being a pain

DVardysShadow

bmar71n wrote: »

you have an entitlement to quiet enjoyment, it appears your landlord is is breach of this (by allowing the estate agents to do what there doing) so if this is actually the case the tenancy agreement may be void so you may be able to leave. I imagine the landlord will get you out asap any way if shes trying to sell as will be more difficult for her with you in the property.

• A breach of the right of quiet enjoyment is not a breach of contract, unless it appears in the contract itself. It is a brach of a common law right
• A breach of a contract by one party only rarely gives the other party any rights to walk away. What the aggrieved party is entitled to is to have the breaches put right. This is done by giving the offending party notice of the breach and requiring them to remedy it within a reasonable time. Only if the breach is not remedied is there a prospect of rescinding the contract. And for a contract like a tenancy, you need to be very sure of your grounds before you do rescind.

DVardysShadow

mysillyolddad wrote: »

Thank you for taking the time to answer
So is the break clause not enforceable then ?

Because by virtue of what you say even if this letter said written notice of 2 months as per break clause ,that wouldn't end the 2 year contract and LL would have to apply to court to terminate contract

So what validity does break clause have


Im confused

Where do you get the idea that the break clause is non enforceable????

If it is in the contract, it will be enforceable [with perhaps a caveat or 2]

What people are trying to tell you is that the notice you are given sets the date after which your Landlord may take you to court to gain possession. Not an eviction date. Not a date by which you must go. Simply a date after which your Landlord may take you to court without you being able to get the action struck out because you have not had proper notice.

The contract specifies the landlords rights and your rights to give notice to quit and notice of quitting.

franklee

mysillyolddad wrote: »

So is the break clause not enforceable then ?

There's not enough information on the thread to tell. Are you happy the break clause is clear and the notice complies with it? You could type up and post the break clause and the exact wording of the section 21 around where the date possession is required is. Break clauses are often not that well written and there are often mistakes with the s21 notice date leading to the possibility that a notice is invalid.

mysillyolddad wrote: »

So what validity does break clause have

If notice is served to use the break clause it brings the fixed term to an end early. The landlord still has to seek possession in the normal ways briefly the steps are: The landlord serves a S21 notice to request possession at the earliest after the end of the fixed term, or in your case after the break. Either you leave voluntarily on the date he asks or if you stay put, he has to apply to court for a possession order. Then you either leave when that asks or again stay put in which case he has to get court bailiffs to remove you. During that time you are also free to serve your own notice if the tenancy agreement allows you to break the fixed term or if by then you are on a periodic tenancy or you can leave at the end of the fixed term without giving notice. Alternatively the landlord and you can mutually agree a leaving date, which you should get in writing including that date is when your liability to pay rent ends.

So far it seems you've had notice to exercise the break clause and a S21 (sometimes the S21 does both)?

franklee

mysillyolddad, I wonder if your confusion comes from thinking ending the fixed term ends the tenancy? When the fixed term comes to and end either naturally or by the break clause being used, if the tenant doesn't move out then a statutory periodic tenancy arises. This happens automatically.

So the letting agent's letter saying the tenancy ends with the fixed term is hogwash to put pressure on you to move on that date. I don't know if they believe it or are trying it on but is seems quite common for letting agents to be misleading.

bitsandpieces

As well as knowing your legal rights, think about what you want to get out of this - for example, do you need a good reference? Clearly, the landlord and agency will want you to give access for viewings; they'll also want you out with minimal hassle.

Can you negotiate with them - e.g. offer to leave on July or August 7th without the need for court action and allow limited access for viewings, so long as they give you a glowing reference and your deposit back in full?

franklee

bitsandpieces wrote: »

As well as knowing your legal rights, think about what you want to get out of this - for example, do you need a good reference? Clearly, the landlord and agency will want you to give access for viewings; they'll also want you out with minimal hassle.

Can you negotiate with them - e.g. offer to leave on July or August 7th without the need for court action and allow limited access for viewings, so long as they give you a glowing reference and your deposit back in full?

Surely the agent/LL should give accurate references? If a tenant has been a good tenant then they shouldn't be given a bad reference just for wanting both sides to follow the law? Besides giving a tenant in this circumstance a bad reference will hinder them leaving which works against what the LL is wanting to achieve. As for the deposit, any deductions should be reasonable based on any damage the tenant has caused allowing for fair wear and tear and avoiding betterment.

The OP shouldn't be pressured into giving notice or moving until he has found a suitable property to move to otherwise it could prove expensive if he has to move somewhere iffy and then move again. I suggest once the OP has found somewhere then he work with his current LL to agree a moving date and if it's part way through a period get agreement from the LL he can pay rent per day pro-rata for that. Of course the LL does not have to agree but then he delays getting the property back.

bitsandpieces

Absolutely they should (though they should also have ensured that the estate agents were far more respectful of their tenant and more efficient). Even assuming a truthful reference, though, I wonder how 'my tenant forced me to go to court to evict and refused access for viewings during notice period' (if that's what the OP chooses to do) would go down with prospective landlords?

Certainly the OP shouldn't be pressured into moving somewhere unsuitable - and they're completely within their rights to stay until this gets to court, or even until the bailiffs are at the door. However, coming to an agreement with the landlady might give them a better chance of a good outcome.

mysillyolddad

Hi

What i'm asking is does the wording of the letter and the attached section 21 constitute written notice ? yes or no

We are writing to inform you that your landlord requires possession of their property and we therefore are serving you with a section 21 notice accordingly.The effect of the notice is that the last day of your tenancy will be 7th July 2012

It then goes on about check out inventory etc.....

As I said by virtue of LA stating a rent due date I am assuming it is a clumsy way of them thinking they have done both in one letter

If this would stand up as giving notice then LA and LL has met condition of break clause and has actually given more than 2 months notice in writing

franklee

mysillyolddad wrote: »

Hi

What i'm asking is does the wording of the letter and the attached section 21 constitute written notice ? yes or no


As I said by virtue of LA stating a rent due date I am assuming it is a clumsy way of them thinking they have done both in one letter

If this would stand up as giving notice then LA and LL has met condition of break clause and has actually given more than 2 months notice in writing

Yes it's written notice.

Don't know if it's valid written notice as you haven't posted the break clause or details around the date in the S21.

Even if it is valid written notice it does not bring the tenancy to an end on 7th July 2012 because written notice is only the first stage of the landlord gaining possession. So "The effect of the notice is that the last day of your tenancy will be 7th July 2012" is not true unless you agree to move out then which you do not have to if you aren't ready yet.