Advice please, Landlord wants us out

bdpm2003

Hope someone can advise

I have fallen behind with my rent due to circumstances beyond my control.

I am behind 1 month (missed march) but am hoping to have the money to pay by the end of the month.

LL came to my home yesterday and asked about the arrears i explained and he said 'not his problem' and that he wants us out (me and 4 kids)

Told me i had a week to leave, i told him he needed to serve me a written eviction notice and had to give me 30 days notice and he said no, this is my notice, i have a week.
When i said that the law says he has to give me 30 days notice in writing he said he didnt care about the law and wants us gone
I explained that i'll have the money by the end of the month but he said he still wants me out AND the money

I've heard things in the past about my LL and he was clearly trying to scare me yesterday (threatened to take me to court and get a CCJ so i couldnt get credit or rent another home)
I'm worried what i could do if i come home one day and he's changed the locks on me?

My contract ran out in october and im on a month by month, my estate agent ran off with my deposit so i dont even have that.

I just dont know what to do, am scared to do the school runs incase i come back and can't get in

Where would i stand legally if he did that? could i break in?

TIA

slopemaster

Get onto Shelter as soon as you can.
In the meantime you might change the lock barrel so he can't get in when you're not there.
If you feel threatened, call the police.
(But be prepared for the fact that they don't know the law.)
Good luck.

slopemaster

Oh yes, your LANDLORD is responsible for the deposit, even if it was the agent who ran off with it - becos the agent works for the landlord.

Others will be along to advise more fully than I can.

BitterAndTwisted

In order to evict you the landlord will need to apply to the court. Either by issuing a Section21 Notice aka a "no fault notice" giving you two rental-periods notice and then by applying to the court. As you are on a periodic tenancy there is no contesting this one. You will have to go. Or, he coud issue you with Sectin 8 Noice but you have to owe two months rent on the date of issue and when it gets to court. You could avoid the court awarding possession by keeping the arrears down to less than two months but he could apply on one of the discretionary grounds whch is being constantly late with the rent.

In the meantime change the BARREL of the locks on both the front and back doors. Most barrels can be bought at hardware stores for less than a tenner each, and you only need a screwdriver to do it. I would urge you in the strongest terms possible to do this as soon as possible.

Slopemaster is right about the deposit: the agent took it as agent/representative of the landlord. Just because the agent has absconded or gone bust before passing it over to the landlord does not mean that you've lost it. In fact, if your landlord has not lodged it in one of the deposit-protection schemes it means that any Section 21 Notice he issues will fail at court. Result!

Fire_Fox

bdpm2003 wrote: »

Hope someone can advise

I have fallen behind with my rent due to circumstances beyond my control.

I am behind 1 month (missed march) but am hoping to have the money to pay by the end of the month.

LL came to my home yesterday and asked about the arrears i explained and he said 'not his problem' and that he wants us out (me and 4 kids)

Told me i had a week to leave, i told him he needed to serve me a written eviction notice and had to give me 30 days notice and he said no, this is my notice, i have a week.
When i said that the law says he has to give me 30 days notice in writing he said he didnt care about the law and wants us gone
I explained that i'll have the money by the end of the month but he said he still wants me out AND the money

I've heard things in the past about my LL and he was clearly trying to scare me yesterday (threatened to take me to court and get a CCJ so i couldnt get credit or rent another home)
I'm worried what i could do if i come home one day and he's changed the locks on me?

My contract ran out in october and im on a month by month, my estate agent ran off with my deposit so i dont even have that.

I just dont know what to do, am scared to do the school runs incase i come back and can't get in

Where would i stand legally if he did that? could i break in?

TIA

1. If you are in England or Wales the landlord needs to serve you TWO months notice in writing (section 21 no fault OR section 8 non payment of rent) and then go to court if you don't leave. This takes another couple of months
http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/notice_to_quit.htm
2. Landlord is responsible for returning your damage deposit, you are contracted to them not the agent. Isn't it lodged with one of the three schemes?
http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/paying_for_a_home/tenancy_deposits
3. Landlord is not allowed to threaten or harass you, see Protection from Eviction Act. He cannot change the locks legally, the police should protect you but they are not the greatest in such circumstances. Read up on your rights and quote them at the police. Illegal eviction is NOT a private matter.
http://england.shelter.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/23382/Harassment20and20antisocial20behaviour20EW2202D20harassment20and20illegal20eviction.pdf

4. Sorry but landlord is correct your financial difficulties are not his problem, he may have a mortgage to cover and you are in breach of contract. Be sure you are claiming all the benefits you are entitled to, then prioritise as per the debt charites Payplan and CCCS. Rent, basic food, council tax, forget virtually everything else, cancel all your direct debits. Go onto a debt management plan if you need it
5. Landlord would have to evict you on a section 21 notice unless you are two months in arrears with rent. You would be two months late the day you miss the second payment not after two full months. If you are evicted through the courts on a section 21 the council may rehouse you for up to a year. If you are evicted on a section 8 you will be deemed intentionally homeless and they do not have to rehouse you, basically do not let this happen
6. Are you on the council housing list? Do this ASAP.

thesaint

What date did your tenancy start?
How long was the fixed term?
Contact all of the deposit protection schemes, and see if your deposit is held with any of them.

Does your tenancy agreement state anything about changing the locks?

dacouch

I'd be tempted to speak to the private rental officer at your local council for a bit of advice and so they're aware your landlord may try to illegally evict you / harass you.

Keep a written record of any interaction with him and if you know he's coming around try and have a friend around as a witness.

Your landlord is on a very sticky wicket, if he does start to harass you report it to the police as illegal eviction or trying to harass you out is illegal.

bdpm2003

Thank you all for your replies.

The LL doesnt have a key to the property as it was changed when i first moved in by us as i'd lost my keys and he was never given a copy.
I'm more thinking if he breaks into the property and changes the locks while i'm out, can i break back in or call the police to help?

He's already said he's not bothered about doing it by the law and that he just wants me out but atm i think i shocked him by arguing back and insisting that he has to give me 30 days notice in writing
I dont think he's used to dealing with women and his attitude is very negative towards me for the fact i'm a unmarried mum, he asked me to get the money off my husband on saturday and when i said i didnt have a husband he asked how i can have children if i have no husband. I was very tempted to be extremely rude and vulgar in response but restrained myself.

After this experience i will be moving out but when i have somewhere else and not because he says so

I had already been looking as have had other problems with him recently and also because i found out i was paying the electric bill for the flat downstairs which he owns and had been since i moved in in 2011

I just want to be able to go without being forced or him changing the locks and me losing all my belongings

Thanks for all your help everyone

RAS

|Speak to both the Local Private Tenancy Officer at the Council/Housing Advice Centre and to Shelter.

One of them might be prepared to put a letter out to him tyhat halts him for a while.

Has he re-paid the electricity charge for the flat downstairs?

Have you checked with the Council that he has planning permission and Building regs to cover the conversion (assuming it is a conversion)?

19lottie82

OP, he needs to give you TWO months’ noticein the form of an S21 notice, and this has to be served on the same date in themonth that your agreement started (usually your rent date, if you pay monthly).i.e. if you moved in on the 1st of the month, and your tenancyagreement states the 1st, he must now wait until the 1stof May, to issue you with the two months’ notice.



You don’t have to leave once the two monthsis up, it just means he can APPLY for a court date to regain possession of theproperty, this could take another 2 months (or more). If there is anythingwrong with the S21 in regards to dates or wording, the judge will reject it andhe will have to start the whole process again.



And as others have pointed out, a S21 isinvalid if the deposit is not protected. For it to be valid, he must returnyour deposit in FULL, then issue you with the S21.



He would be a fool to “break in and changethe locks” this is an illegal eviction and is a serious criminal offence.



As advised, contact Shelter’s helpline foradvise, and also your local housing office to make them aware of the situation.

G_M

If he breaks in, you call the police. Breaking and entering. Make a photocopy of your tenancy agreement and keep it with you so you can show it to them to prove you live there.

He can evict you for no reason, but must issue you a S21 Notice with 2 Tenancy Periods Notice (at least 2 months). Then he has to go to court. You will NOT get a CCJ.

Or he can evict you for renat arrears. He must issue you a S8 Notice and then go to court. For the S8 to be mandatory, the arrears must be at least 2 months rent when he serves the S8 AND when you go to court. You will NOT get a CCJ.

You LL is responsible for the deposit. IS IT REGISTERED? Check yourself with each of the 3 schemes. If not, he has broken the law and YOU can claim up to 3 times the deposit.