Rent Increase

tshirtsuntan

Hello Everyone

I am currently renting a static caravan from a landlord who owns many caravan sites across my region.

I moved in and was given an agreement which started on the 7th July 2012.
All has been fine apart from when my boiler broke down one Saturday and I had practically break his arm to get one of his employees out to repair,( the sites are his business and he employees Gas fitters /plumbers, electricians etc).

I received my usual invoice for rent this month along with a letter to increase rent starting 22nd December 2012.

My contract allows for rent increases annually.
As I have not been there a year yet can he do this
I have also noticed that my rent date keeps on creeping forward

i.e one month it will be say 29th of said month and the following would be 26th and each subsequent month it will move forward again.

the rent is paid 28 days in advance.
I know this may sound silly , but like most of us life i get paid one a month on the same date, if the rent date goes past that (i get paid 24th of every month) I am not going to have cleared funds to pay it - I have not challenged this as i wanted to get a second opinion here first,and my Landlord may well be in the right.

I just have not ever come across this style of invoice before.

my contract by the way is not a short term -well it does not imply that it is on any part of the document.


Thanks in advance

HappyMJ

What is your agreement exactly? A normal property would be let on a assured shorthold tenancy but a caravan could be let on a different basis depending on how static it is. Is it connected to the electricity and the water supply and on it's own meter? Do you pay council tax? Do you have a landline telephone connection? Can it be moved fairly quickly by hitching it up to another vehicle?

Fire_Fox

Your rent dates will creep if you pay every four weeks (28 days), then you will have thirteen rent dates a year instead of twelve with a monthly schedule, so you would need to save up and budget for that. If you would like to change to monthly ask your landlord but expect payments to go up slightly to make up for the thirteenth payment.

As regards the rent increase in December write to your landlord and politely remind him you have not yet been a tenant for a year, he might have made a simply mistake. What sort of tenancy agreement does it claim to be? Information here that might be of use
http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/renting_and_leasehold/mobile_home_tenancies

tshirtsuntan

Thanks to you both for reply.

the caravan is connected to mains water supply has its own electric meter and I purchase bottled gas from LL.

C/tax is my responsibility as is sewerage rates.

the static is designed (according to contract ) to be quick release from such utilities and can be towed away in under 5 minutes.

I have a landmine connection.

the 28 days makes sense now (though a bit sly) surprised most LL'S do not employ that method. 13 payments in 12 month's? I know the kind of reaction i would receive if I asked my boss the same!

Still I do not have to stay here I suppose!

Firefox in reference to rent increase does that mean i shouldn't be expected to pay an increase?

the agreement does not imply what kind it is so I have to guess it is what they call a 'periodic'

if it was short term it would say on the front page ?

thanks

tshirtsuntan

that's landline!! not landmine!!! or i would be in trouble!!

Fire_Fox

tshirtsuntan wrote: »

that's landline!! not landmine!!! or i would be in trouble!!

You made me giggle, thanks! :rotfl: If your contract clearly states you have an increase after twelve months I would expect that to be adhered to, that is what you both agreed to so no IMO you should not have to pay. Like I say could be a simply mistake given he has many caravans, maybe he does all his rent increases in December or twice a year and you have ended up on the wrong list.

I don't pretend to know anything specific about caravan contracts, but am sure others who do will be able to give you better guidance. If you have/ should have an AST you do have to stay there for the fixed term or at least keep paying. If you can feel free to post up a copy of your contract and link to it, just remove any identifying information. Otherwise you can type in any relevant clauses so the regulars can say what they think it means.

HappyMJ

A periodic tenancy is a short term agreement. It's from month to month or in your case every 4 weeks. You can refuse to pay the increase and pay the original amount and if the landlord really wants the extra money they will have to terminate your agreement by giving you 2 full rental periods notice during which time you are only liable for the original amount of the rent.

tshirtsuntan

Ahh thanks folks you have been so helpful

I will post specific about my tenancy shortly

Glad I made you laugh,I giggled myself when I read it back !!!:)

PasturesNew

tshirtsuntan wrote: »

I have a landmine connection.

Is that so he can evict you quickly?

tshirtsuntan

Very funny PasturesNew!!!

tshirtsuntan

Gosh............now im reading about protected and unprotected sites (mobile homes) if the land is Private (unprotected) which it is( LL owns the land) I have no rights whatsoever!


If you rent a mobile home on a protected site, you should have a residential contract with the site owner. This is an agreement that gives you the right to live in a mobile home on the site. The contract does not need to be in writing - if the site owner has given you permission to occupy the mobile home and accepts rent from you, a contract exists. Few people who rent mobile homes are given written agreements.

If your mobile home is placed on private land or only has planning permission as a holiday site, you will live on an unprotected site.

At any time. If you live on an unprotected site, you may fall outside the protection of the law on eviction. This means that you can be evicted without the site owner serving a notice or getting a court order. It would be unwise, however, for a site owner to remove your mobile home without a court order, as this could lead to a breach of the peace.

If you live on an unprotected site and the site owner wants to evict you, get advice immediately - call our advice helpline or use our directory to find a local advice centre.

If you have a written lease with the site owner, check to see if it says how long you can stay on the site. Get in touch with an adviser if you need help.