Section 21

billjohnson1986

Hi Guys

Ill Jump right in;

My best friends are on a rolling monthly contract after thier 12 month AST and have been served a section 21.

They have missed 2 months of rent due to one of them losing thier job. One rent at Christmas and one last month. They are not in a position to pay off the money and are struggling to find somewhere else to live.

There bond will cover one months rent.

So my questions;

1> Why have they been served a section 21 instead of a section 8 ?(to reclaim the monies owed)

2> How will they rent again as they will not recieve a reference or not a good one anyway?

3> What would be thier best option/ next step



N.B they also have a child and one on the way


Thank you for reading

pmlindyloo

billjohnson1986 wrote: »

Hi Guys

Ill Jump right in;

My best friends are on a rolling monthly contract after thier 12 month AST and have been served a section 21.

They have missed 2 months of rent due to one of them losing thier job. One rent at Christmas and one last month. They are not in a position to pay off the money and are struggling to find somewhere else to live.

There bond will cover one months rent.

So my questions;

1> Why have they been served a section 21 instead of a section 8 ?(to reclaim the monies owed)

There are two types of court proceedings which are most commonly used when tenants are in arrears of rent. These are:
1. under the shorthold ground set out in s21 of the Housing Act 1988 using the accelerated possession procedure (where the order is made on the paperwork and there is no hearing)
2. under the rent arrears ground (ground 8) using the 'normal' fixed date procedure (where a court order can only be made after a court hearing which you or your agent will have to attend to give evidence)

I believe that LLs often use section 21 instead because it is a quicker process and if a section 8 is used the tenant may be given the opportunity to pay back the arrears at a set amount - some LLs are not willing to accept this. Hope someone else can confirm.

2> How will they rent again as they will not receive a reference or not a good one anyway? Difficult. but not impossible. The local council may be able to help with some advice.

3> What would be thier best option/ next step

Have they approached the LL to see if they can come to some arrangement to pay off the arrears? This can be done right up to the court hearing (if it goes that far.)

The Section 21 notice is only a notification that the LL is intending to seek possession. They do not have to move out until they get a court order against them.

As I said they can approach the council. As they have rent arrears they could be found intentionally homeless.
However, if there are children involved this may make a difference.

The council should be able to offer advice if they do not accept a homeless application.

The best option is to try and come to an agreement with the LL.

Finally, are they receiving all the benefits that they are entitled to? They can do an estimate on the benefit checker on www.turn2us.org.uk.

DizzyDasher

I believe a Section 21 is a more reliable way of getting the property back: if a landlord serves a S8 and then the tenant pays up enough to make them just short of 2 months rent due on the Court date, then the claim gets thrown out and the LL has to start again. Whereas a Section 21 (if correctly served) I believe does not require grounds - it's just notice that the Landlord wants the property back at the end of the term.

I'm afraid I dont know the answers to your other questions: I would suggest that they contact their local council housing office, Shelter (who have a help line for this kind of thing), and possibly also the CAB, and take it from there.

tbs624

billjohnson1986 wrote: »

My best friends are on a rolling monthly contract after thier 12 month AST and have been served a section 21.

Some points here:

(1) if they paid a tenancy deposit and the LL/LA has not scheme registered that deposit AND given the Ts the scheme's precsribed inofrmation then the s21 will be rendered invalid.
(2) The date on the s21 ( after which the LL can proceed to court for possession) must line up with the expiry date of a tenancy period, and there must have been a min of two full months notice. The tenancy periods run from the day after the Fixed Term ended, which may or may not be a rent due date. So, if FT ended 26th of the month, subsequent tenancy periods will be from the 27th of one month to the 26th of the following one. S21 would need to say that the LL is intending to seek repossession after the 26th.
(3) the T does not have to move out by the 26th (our example date above) - he can wait until the LL seeks and obtains a court order, plus enforcement from bailiffs if necessary . There is likely to be a cost implication for the T.

They have missed 2 months of rent due to one of them losing thier job. One rent at Christmas and one last month. They are not in a position to pay off the money and are struggling to find somewhere else to live.

Did they discuss this with the LL at any time? Ask for the chance to catch up in instalments? Far too many Ts bury their heads in the sand and the combination of late/missing rent and a lack of communication understandably creates friction.

There bond will cover one months rent.

Does the tenancy agreement state that the deposit may be used for unpaid rent? Note that if there is any justifiable deduction due for dilapidations, the LL can pursue them for whatever is not covered by the tenancy deposit.

Have they made *any* offer to pay any of what they currently owe? Some LLs will pursue Ts to the small claims court, even if they know they are on a low income/benefits and so may not be able to pay much/at all in reality . If T can't cough up on time whatever is ordered by the court then a CCJ will be recorded against the T

So my questions;

1> Why have they been served a section 21 instead of a section 8 ?(to reclaim the monies owed)

There are three poss Grounds under S8 one is mandatory (G8) and the other two (Gs 10 and 11) are discretionary ( see under Schedule 2 of the Housing Act 1988) If Ts are paying monthly then there has to be 2 months rent unpaid both at the time of service of the S8 and at the time of any subsequent court hearing. Ts can therefore defeat the S8 by paying down some/all of the rent unpaid before the court hearing.

Many LLs will serve a S21 as a stand alone or as a back up to the s8, if the end of the FT is not far off or if the T is on a stat periodic agreement, as your friends are. There is no defence to an S21 - the LL *is* entitled to his property back.

2> How will they rent again as they will not recieve a reference or not a good one anyway?

They will probably need to provide a suitable guarantor. Do they have anyone who would be willing/able to do this?

3> What would be thier best option/ next step

Contact the local Council and also check any benefit entitlement. Note that, as an earlier poster has said, losing your home becuase of running up rent arrears may mean they are viewed as making themselves "intentionally homeless". They may qualify for help with a bond guarantee for another private sector tenancy if they cannot afford a new tenancy deposit.

They may find it helpful to seek support over on the debt free wannabe board so that they can check for ways to improve their budgeting. Also have a look at the "up your income" board. Do they have anything they no longer need that they could sell to free up some cash?