Renting advice on landlord ending tenancy

BitterAndTwisted

No-one is being antagonistic. The OP has been given some facts and a poster has voiced their opinion. An opinion which I share, actually.

I ruddy loathe landlords wanting their cake and to eat it, too.

Evict the tenant and then put your blessed property on the market, I say.

G_M

As explained, you are safe till March unless your contract has a break clause which the landlord implements.

Decide how cooperative you wish to be over viewings, surveys, valuations etc. Eg
* None. You wish to refuse all.
* No restriction. You are happy for landlord, agents, surveyors etc to come in any time, without notice, whether you are there or not
* Only in your presence. ie by arrangement at any time so you can be present
* Onlyon specific days /temes eg weekends, or Monday/Thursday evenings/whatever

Then write a polite letter to the LL specifying the above so there is no misunderstanding.

If you fear/suspect the LL has ignored your conditions, change the lock to enforce them. Keep the old lock to replace later.

nurse-money

My deposit is in a recognised safe scheme

nurse-money

We don't want to be awkward but Ido t want strangers wandering round when we are not in. I've said I want to be there for all viewings but it's three months still before we go so I wonder if they are being a bit ridiculous viewing already

BitterAndTwisted

OK, well that means if the landlord or their agent is on the ball they might know how to issue a valid Section 21 Notice. Not all of them do.

No protected deposit equals no valid S21.

YOU decide what you want and tell them. Send a copy to the agent as well, so there's no doubt about your wishes. Estate agents have been known to ignore whatever tenants say and enter any way, because they sometimes believe that as the landlord has instructed them to carry out viewings they are free to come and go as they please. They aren't

BitterAndTwisted

nurse-money wrote: »

We don't want to be awkward but I don't want strangers wandering round when we are not in.

Of course you don't. I doubt your landlady would relish complete strangers poking about in her home when she's not there either.



I've said I want to be there for all viewings but it's three months still before we go so I wonder if they are being a bit ridiculous viewing already

In my opinion they are being ridiculous, but some landlords/ladies want to continue receiving rent right up to the date of exchange. That's the "having their cake and eating it, too" bit.

G_M

nurse-money wrote: »

We don't want to be awkward but Ido t want strangers wandering round when we are not in. I've said I want to be there for all viewings but it's three months still before we go so I wonder if they are being a bit ridiculous viewing already

Not at all.

They are showing round prospective buyers, not prospective tenants.

They do not need to wait till the tenancy ends and you leave before they sell. They can sell while you are still there.

You will simply have a new landlord until the tenancy ends.

However, if they are planning to sell the property 'with vacant possession' (ie empty) to a buyer who wants to live there themselves, then yes, it is a bit ridiculous!

RAS

nurse-money wrote: »

We don't want to be awkward but Ido t want strangers wandering round when we are not in. I've said I want to be there for all viewings but it's three months still before we go so I wonder if they are being a bit ridiculous viewing already

The LL has no right whatsoever to do viewings during the tenancy.

You probably need to establish that with them and the EA at this stage.

However you are prepared to be reasonable and that means

1. No viewings over the Christmas/New Year period.
2. One of two viewing slots per week (maximum) thereafter.
3. A ruddy good reference.

G_M

RAS wrote: »

The LL has no right whatsoever to do viewings during the tenancy.

You probably need to establish that with them and the EA at this stage.

However you are prepared to be reasonable and that means .....

Sorry RAS I have to disagree. This comes up SOooo regularly....

* The tenancy agreement may well give the landlord contractual rights
* the common law right to 'Quiet Enjoyment' that is frequently quoted here to support the claim that LLs have no access rights, is not an absolute right.
* tenants and LLs both have rights, which can conflict
*Only a judge can decide which right prevails

I agree that it is a rash landlord in practice who walks roughshod over the tenants right, and imposes his own right without first going to court.

However tenants must also recognise that LLs do have certain rights.

Thus I agree with you that compromise, and mutual agreement, is the best way forward.

Yorkie1

BigAunty wrote: »

Are you sure you didn't get served one up front with your rental agreement? They can be served any time, including at the start of the tenancy.

A valid s.21 can no longer be served at the start of the tenancy with the rental agreement. This is because the deposit must have been protected, and the prescribed information served on the T, before a valid s.21 notice can be served.

I wonder whether the landlady is oblivious to the good practice of serving an S21 and is expecting you to leave without any official service of this document because of the end date of the contract or if it will soon come in the post. In theory, an S21 is not required because tenant's should be cooperating with the terms of their contract.

This reads as though you are saying that the tenancy has an end date and the T is obliged co-operate by leaving at the end of it.

This is incorrect. The tenancy has an initial fixed term of a certain duration. At the end of the fixed term, the tenancy continues on all of its previous T&C except that there is no longer a fixed period and it goes onto a rolling periodic basis.

There is NO requirement for the T to leave at the end of the fixed term and if the LL wants the T to leave a S21 will ALWAYS be needed (assuming no S8 breaches of contract are available).

In reality, many landlords will serve it ahead of the end of the tenancy because the notice period is 2 months in duration (and should be timed with the expiry of the fixed term contract).

If the S21 is served during the fixed period of the tenancy then it does not need to expire in line with a rental period.

Until a recent case, the expiry of LL's notice at the end of a rental period was considered to apply to notice actually given after the expiry of the fixed period. A recent case seems to state that this is no longer the case, and that 2 straight months is OK in this situation too.

If, for example, a tenant refuses to leave at the end of the fixed term, and they haven't served an S21 on a timely basis with its expiry ahead of this, the clock starts from scratch at the end of the term - the tenant's get another two months in the property before the landlord can take the next legal step by applying for a possession order in court. That's why the S21 and the fixed term normally overlaps as a time saving device.

Sorry, that's not correct for the reasons explained above.