1 Month Notice to Quit - what if Landlord does not accept?

Pedrolo

First post on the forums, I have been doing some searches but I could not find a definite answer, so I will ask here

I had an 6 months AST which was extended for another 6 months; the original agreement states that the Rent Due Date is on the 11th.

However, I requested to change the date on which I pay the rent to be on the 16th, to which the Landlord agreed.

The last extension ran out, and I understand I now have a "Statutory Periodic Tenancy"?

As such I decided to give Notice to quit, but I only gave it to the Landlord on the 15th (the day before I pay the rent; but is different to the Rent Due Date on the agreement).

The Landlord says I have not given the legal notice and will not accept it, stating that I would have to stay for another month.

Who is right here?

And if I am right, where could I request assistance to ensure the Landlord ends the tenancy on the date I requested?

Thanks in advance for any information.

terryw

Have a look here:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=52421475&postcount=6

Landlord is correct

Pedrolo

why is he correct though? Because I did not give the notice on the 10th of the month?

I paid up the difference for the days between the 11th and the 16th; if I leave on the 11th, then the Landlord would need to return the money I paid when we started the tenancy?

Effectively we changed the Rent Due Date, except it was not reflected on the agreement...

thanks for the link though, wasn't sure where to look

Fire_Fox

Welcome! Why ask a question and dispute the answer when it is given with a link to read? Your notice must coincide with a rent period which is not necessarily the same as the date the rent is due.

Pedrolo

I was just adding a bit more information that might be relevant and to make sure that was the reason

Because I paid up the difference when I moved in (so I paid the landlord the 5 days to cover from the 11th to the 16th), if I give the notice to leave on the 11th of the month I would lose money.

Unless the Landlord decides to pay it back to me, which does not seem logical, I was just wondering if because I paid up those 5 days, that we actually changed the Agreement and now is on the 16th, rather than on the original term.

And also; what if I'm right (not saying I am, probably not), and the landlord still refuses to accept the notice? Who should I contact for assistance? (I'm Spanish and I'm pretty clueless on how this works in UK).

Thanks again, sorry I was not trying to dispute the answer (as I said, just adding a bit of info that might be important).

Cheers!

rpc

Your last post changes things. It looks more like you changed the rental period now, rather than just the day you paid rent. If you only changed the latter then you would not have paid up the extra 5 days and your notice would be due by the 10th, regardless of the day you paid rent.

That said, it will be harder to prove when your contract has different dates.

Pedrolo

Yer that's what I was trying to explain, thanks

I think the Landlord actually acknowledges the fact that the rent period was changed (I also have the receipt he sent me for the 5 days), so this should not be much of a problem.

The problem is that he is adamant on the 2 months notice and will not listen to any reasoning (I even gave him printed copies of several official websites with the correct information). So he says I would have to leave the flat on December the 15th rather than November (not in written yet, I only spoke to him on his office when I handed the notice).

Not sure what to do But I found another place and I need to move there in a month, otherwise I will lose it.

Fire_Fox

What two months notice? Where did that come into it? Contact Shelter, maybe write down what you want to say and have all the documents in front of you - it's confusing if you keep moving the goalposts.

Pedrolo

Pedrolo wrote: »

The Landlord says I have not given the legal notice and will not accept it, stating that I would have to stay for another month..

It was on my original post, apologies for not making it clearer.

The problem is that after giving a 1 month notice, the Landlord is saying I should give 2 months notice instead.

I believe 1 month notice is valid, but I was asking if I was right (which seems I am if I can prove we changed the rental period), and what could I do to make the Landlord accept this notice.

What is this "shelter" you mention please?

And thank you all again for your help, much appreciated

Edit: I guess is england.shelter.org.uk ?

Yellowstar_2

Pedrolo wrote: »

It was on my original post, apologies for not making it clearer.

The problem is that after giving a 1 month notice, the Landlord is saying I should give 2 months notice instead.

I believe 1 month notice is valid, but I was asking if I was right (which seems I am if I can prove we changed the rental period), and what could I do to make the Landlord accept this notice.

What is this "shelter" you mention please?

And thank you all again for your help, much appreciated

Edit: I guess is england.shelter.org.uk ?

Yes - Shelter can be very helpful in matters like these.

However, also I urge you to check your contract carefully. As far as I know (and I hope someone here will correct me if I'm wrong), a statutory periodic tenancy (SPT) arises after the fixed term ONLY if there is no provision in your tenancy agreement for what happens after a fixed term. So see what your contract says. If nothing, then you probably have a SPT and you need to give notice of one rental period.

However, your tenancy agreement might make other provisions, in which case a SPT might not apply. For example, it's possible that your tenancy agreement says that the tenancy rolls on periodically after the fixed term, and that you need to give two rental periods notice to end it. I've had a tenancy agreement like this before (I think it's called a "contractural periodic tenancy" - although this phrase may not be in your agreement). In which case, your Ladlord may well be correct.

Also, I assume you're in England/Wales?

Yellowstar x

Pedrolo

I'm in London.

Here is what the agreement says:

1.5.1 The Term shall be for a definite period of 6 months from 12/10/2011 to 11/04/2012 If the Tenant remains in the Property beyond the end of the initial term and no new fixed term tenancy comes into being then the Tenant will have a Statutory Periodic Tenancy by virtue if Section 5 of the Housing Act 1988

2.5.2 While the tenancy is periodic notice must be given and must expire before the day before a Rent Due Date.

On April, we signed an "extension" for another 6 months, which has now expired. They offered to extend again but with a £25 a week increase, so I did not sign it.

I'll contact shelter and see what they say.

cheers,
Pedro