Leaving before end of 3 months notice

Fire_Fox

Landlord must serve proper written notice to quit (section 21) or the contract could be deemed to be continuing. if you are on a statutory periodic tenancy you must serve one months written notice coinciding with a rent period. Clauses requiring a tenant to serve lengthy notice could be deemed to be unfair or unenforceable.
http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/notice_to_quit.htm

Landlord should really have served proper notice of rent increases (section 13) although you have accepted these by paying the increased rent. Hope you have had annual gas safety certificates, if there is gas in the property.

partysis81

Hi, thanks for all the responses, i will try my best to answer the questions.
I have the original agreement in front of me from 2002, the wording is "......for the term of one year from the 20th day of July 2002 and thereafter from month to month until the tenancy shall be determined "
it then says further down "the tenancy hereby created may be determined by the tenant before the expiration of the term certain by giving three months notice in writing, expiring on the twentieth day of any month"

where it says "before the expiration" is this referring to the original one year term??

This is the only official agreement we have ever had, as i mentioned before, every year when the rent increases we get a handwritten piece of paper with a heading of "amendment to assured shorthold tenancy agreement of July 2002" we have to sign a copy of this and so do they, then we keep a copy each. But the only thing mentioned in this is the new rent amount, nothing about the length of thee tenancy.

Hope this has helped xx

partysis81

Fire_Fox wrote: »

Landlord must serve proper written notice to quit (section 21) or the contract could be deemed to be continuing. if you are on a statutory periodic tenancy you must serve one months written notice coinciding with a rent period. Clauses requiring a tenant to serve lengthy notice could be deemed to be unfair or unenforceable.
http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/notice_to_quit.htm

Landlord should really have served proper notice of rent increases (section 13) although you have accepted these by paying the increased rent. Hope you have had annual gas safety certificates, if there is gas in the property.

Yes we have an annual check and upto date records of them xx

Fire_Fox

partysis81 wrote: »

Hi, thanks for all the responses, i will try my best to answer the questions.
I have the original agreement in front of me from 2002, the wording is "......for the term of one year from the 20th day of July 2002 and thereafter from month to month until the tenancy shall be determined "
it then says further down "the tenancy hereby created may be determined by the tenant before the expiration of the term certain by giving three months notice in writing, expiring on the twentieth day of any month"

where it says "before the expiration" is this referring to the original one year term??

This is the only official agreement we have ever had, as i mentioned before, every year when the rent increases we get a handwritten piece of paper with a heading of "amendment to assured shorthold tenancy agreement of July 2002" we have to sign a copy of this and so do they, then we keep a copy each. But the only thing mentioned in this is the new rent amount, nothing about the length of thee tenancy.

Hope this has helped xx

I read that as the three months notice is only applicable within the initial one year fixed term, which would fit in with the legislation on statutory periodic tenancies. Your rent period appears to be the 20th to the 20th which is one month and one day, are you sure solicitors drew this up? I am no legal expert so please listen to people like G_M if they don't agree with me.

You might want to draw your landlord's attention to the legislation when you serve notice, all told it doesn't seem like they know what they are doing - I assume after ten years you'd like to maintain a friendly relationship.

partysis81

It's on Solicitors headed paper, and I've just googled them and they're real.

So if were now in a Statutory Periodic Tenancy, and they've still given us 3 months notice, we are ok to write them a letter stating were leaving in one months time? is that correct? if so, is it only that one months rent were liable for??

Fire_Fox

partysis81 wrote: »

It's on Solicitors headed paper, and I've just googled them and they're real.

So if were now in a Statutory Periodic Tenancy, and they've still given us 3 months notice, we are ok to write them a letter stating were leaving in one months time? is that correct? if so, is it only that one months rent were liable for??

Your landlords have not served you notice to quit unless you have received it in writing in the prescribed format with the correct dates. Yes you only need to serve one month in writing coinciding with a rent period which for you is probably 20 to 19. So if you served notice this week you would be liable for rent up to and including the 19 December. Hopefully one of the regulars will clarify my understanding.

If the landlord does serve you a proper written section 21 you can still serve a counter notice of one month coinciding with a rent period, you are not bound to pay a full three months just because they got in there first. You can also try to come to an arrangement with the landlord if, say, six weeks suits both parties but do get this in writing so it is clear.

Remember you need to be confident the landlord received your notice to quit, not simply that you sent it. It's generally wise to use recorded delivery if you have time or send two copies from different Post Offices getting a proof of posting each time. You can hand deliver but there is always the risk of them claiming it was not received if they are mad at you for not staying three months.

ruggedtoast

Sending with proof of posting is usually fine.

Recorded delivery is a useless service.

GDB2222

The 3 months notice only applied during the first year. You can give notice in accordance with the links G_M provided. You need to do that in writing. Alternatively, you can contact the LLs, tell them that you would like to end the tenancy on a particular date, and see if they agree.

Yorkie1

Your tenancy periods run from 20th of the month to 19th of the following month. Therefore, if you gave notice to end the tenancy so that the LL received it on or before 19th November, you would need to move out by or on 19th December -and would be liable for rent up to that date.

However, as others have said, there is nothing to prevent you and the LL agreeing an earlier date if they are willing to do so. Make sure you get it in writing.

G_M

GDB2222 wrote: »

The 3 months notice only applied during the first year. You can give notice in accordance with the links G_M provided. You need to do that in writing. Alternatively, you can contact the LLs, tell them that you would like to end the tenancy on a particular date, and see if they agree.

Spot on!

:T