Tenancy -Partners and pets

SwissPhil

Morning all,

I've got some questions. Basically I'm living in a property that I've been renting for about 3 years now. About 6 months ago my girlfriend moved in with me, but I didn't tell the estate agents about this. Now, my girlfriend wants to get some cats, so I figured I'd check with the estate agents first. The woman at the estate agency who used to be in charge of my property no longer works there, so the new woman would want to have a look at the flat 'to get to know the property'. As I wasn't sure of my position with regards to the girlfriend living there already, I told them that she doesn't actually live with me yet but would be looking to move in in the near future. As she'd be living on the property (regardless of whether she'd be paying rent), they'd have to start a new tenancy agreement with her name on it, or so I was told.

So, my question is how much trouble am I likely to get into if I tell them that she already lives here? Also, are they likely to try and bump the rent up as there'd be two people living here now? And how much am I likely to have to pay on top of my initial deposit to cover for having two cats in the flat?

Side notes: Having looked through the tenancy agreement, only those named on the tenancy agreement are allowed to live at the property and I would have to get consent from the landlord for anyone else to move in. The same goes with getting pets. Also, my rent is £625 (if that helps with regards to the deposit question - can't remember exactly how much the initial deposit was).

Werdnal

If it is a flat, you may not be able to have any pets as leasehold properties often forbid them, so it may not be something the agent or LL has any control over.

It is up to the landlord whether your g/f needs to be added to the tenancy agreement, not the agent.

See this thread for more info:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4596265

anotheruser

I had to pay an extra £100 deposit pet cat for mine.

SwissPhil

Werdnal wrote: »

If it is a flat, you may not be able to have any pets as leasehold properties often forbid them, so it may not be something the agent or LL has any control over.

It is up to the landlord whether your g/f needs to be added to the tenancy agreement, not the agent.

Is there any legal recourse for the estate agents/landlord if they find out she's already living here, prior to me notifying them? I've spoken to them and they've said there's no problem with her moving in but want to get her on the tenancy agreement.

dgtazzman

Your gf doesn't need to be added to the tenancy, I suspect this is just the agent looking for an excuse to hit you with extra admin and referencing fees. Your landlord is free to give her consent to live in the propery.

My now wife had this on one of our prior tenancy agreements, it was just an extra letter stating she had the right to occupy the property as long as I was the tenant and that she had no claim to the property whatsoever in case I ended said tenancy. No need to change the tenancy agreement itself.

Also I suspect there's no legal recourse for them against you, she could just be classed as your guest as long as she isn't paying you any rent, but I'm not a legal eagle, just seems logical... It would of course have implications on your council tax, but that's between you and the council.

SwissPhil

dgtazzman wrote: »

Your gf doesn't need to be added to the tenancy, I suspect this is just the agent looking for an excuse to hit you with extra admin and referencing fees. Your landlord is free to give her consent to live in the propery.

My now wife had this on one of our prior tenancy agreements, it was just an extra letter stating she had the right to occupy the property as long as I was the tenant and that she had no claim to the property whatsoever in case I ended said tenancy. No need to change the tenancy agreement itself.

Also I suspect there's no legal recourse for them against you, she could just be classed as your guest as long as she isn't paying you any rent, but I'm not a legal eagle, just seems logical... It would of course have implications on your council tax, but that's between you and the council.

So they can't legally enforce this in anyway (the need for a new tenancy agreement)? Just want to get my facts before I speak to them.

RAS

When does your current fixed term end?

moromir

SwissPhil wrote:

So they can't legally enforce this in anyway (the need for a new tenancy agreement)? Just want to get my facts before I speak to them.

The landlord can 'legally enforce' their position on additional occupiers (i.e. if they want your gf on a tenancy agreement and you refuse) by simply serving you the appropriate notice to leave (i.e. at the end of your fixed term or the correct notice if you are on an SPT).

They may also be open to a 'permitted occupier' clause (i.e. girlfriend can live there but no occupancy rights or liability for the rent), the major downside to this is if you do a runner, the LL still has to go to court to take possession of their property and in the meantime can't pursue your girlfriend for the missing rent.

Different landlords, different strokes. Some don't mind other occupiers being in the property without being on the tenancy agreement, others insist that they are.

I could make compelling arguements for the reasons why all tenants should be listed on the agreement but I don't think its going to add anything to the discussion right now.

SwissPhil

RAS wrote: »

When does your current fixed term end?

Not too sure. Original term was for 6 months, but then in the agreement there is no mention beyond that. Some literature from the estate agency said that after the original term, the tenancy goes on to another fixed term (6 months) or onto a periodic term (1 month).

bjbyorkshire

I posted a similar question to yours but from the landlords perspective. My tenant is getting married this weekend and his new wife will be moving into my property. Fine by me. He has been told by my letting agent that she will need to be credit checked at £95 before being added to the tenancy. I am not really bothered that his wife is moving in but the agents have pointed out that if I agree that she can just move in then my rent guarantee will be invalidated and also I have no recourse to getting her to move out if they did split up as she is then not the tenant. You do have to look at things from both sides as the landlord is not going to be agreeable to someone just moving in if it means they cannot be sure that this new person may then stay in the property in the case of a separation and the landlord will have difficulty moving her out. I am only telling you this so that you can see that landlords are not just being difficult, it's just such a minefield of rules and regs that it makes sense to have both on the tenancy.

SwissPhil

Morning all,

Small update: my girlfriend went into the estate agents yesterday to give them her details, references etc. They've now lumbered her with a £132 'Admin fee' for doing the referencing. Does this seem like way over the odds for a referencing fee? She's not going to be contributing to rent, so there's no need to do a credit check, it's just character references.
It's slightly infuriated me as at no point in all the conversations I've had with them has there ever been mention of 'admin fees'. It feels as if they just ambushed her because she's new to the world of renting!