Ex still in house rented in my name

teawithmilk

Hi I would really appreciate any advice about a tricky situation I'm in. I have already had some excellent advice from the marriage and relationships board but I have a specific problem over a tenancy agreement.

Basically been renting a house (through a reputable agency) for nearly three years . It isn't a rolling tenancy, I have kept renewing it every 6 months as an AST.

The current tenancy comes to an end in March 2014 and they have already e mailled me (I haven't replied yet) asking me what my intentions are, as I apparently have to give notice 2 months before tenancy ends (this is written into tenancy agreement)

Heres where I have done something wrong: I never named my husband (who was living with me) on the tenancy agreement due to his poor credit record. I know this was breaking the tenancy agreement but other than this discrepancy I have been a very good tenant.

We have now split up and I have moved out. He pays me the rent and I am continuing to pay this rent (on time!) to the agency via the same standing order that I always have so the agency do not know what has happened. I have told my ex to make contact with the agency if he wants to stay on and ask them if they will draw up a tenancy in his name. But he is not communicating with me so I don't know what his intentions are. He is angry with me that I wont just continue with the current arrangements but I am aware that I am doing something illegal and I just dont want to do it any more.

I dont think he wants to move out, and he could easily afford the rent, but the sticking point is the credit check.

I cant second guess what he is going to do - so looking at the worst case scenario he could dig his heels in, refuse to move, and I could be in big trouble.

If he was a normal grown up he would be quickly sorting himself out but he wont talk to me about it, and I can't second guess what he is going to do. He sees me refusing to renew the lease as me "punishing" him in some way. But all I want to do is get this whole mess sorted out without upsetting the agency and landlord.

Could anyone advise?? Thanks

BitterAndTwisted

Why do you think you have done something illegal? As far as I can see you have not. Not adhering to whatever terms there are in your contract is not the same thing as breaking a law.

If you do not wish to continue the tenancy and consequently continue to be liable for the rent you need to give formal WRITTEN notice to the landlord. But if your ex does not wish to leave and remains in the property the landlord will need to go to court to evict him. He's not the named tenant so has no right to live in the property unless and until he's either signed a tenancy agreement in his own name or moves out.

You MUST inform your ex that you will give notice to end the tenancy in March and he will therefore need to make arrangements to sign a tenancy in his own name from March or find another property to rent.

If he proves intransigent you could point out that you could decide to enter the property, pack his stuff, leave it outside on the doorstep and change the locks so you can hand the property over to the landlord/agent in March. He has no right to occupy so he cannot stop you from doing that. Fully expect this threat to fan the flames, so use that threat as a very last resort

Kynthia

What you've done isn't illegal. However once you moved out you have in a way sublet the property and this will annoy the landlord and put you at risk. Your partner can't 'take over' the tenancy as he was never a named tenant. Therefore he needs to apply just like any new tenant would and pass any credit checks. Where you are at risk is that you have to pay the rent even if he doesn't give it to you, otherwise the landlord can sue you. Any damage to the property and you are responsible. You can give notice to end the tenancy but if your partner doesn't leave then the tenancy doesn't end and the landlord will have to evict or it will continue with you being responsible still. Is there any way to persuade your partner to move out?

Guest101

teawithmilk wrote: »

Hi I would really appreciate any advice about a tricky situation I'm in. I have already had some excellent advice from the marriage and relationships board but I have a specific problem over a tenancy agreement.

Basically been renting a house (through a reputable agency) for nearly three years . It isn't a rolling tenancy, I have kept renewing it every 6 months as an AST.

The current tenancy comes to an end in March 2014 and they have already e mailled me (I haven't replied yet) asking me what my intentions are, as I apparently have to give notice 2 months before tenancy ends (this is written into tenancy agreement)

Heres where I have done something wrong: I never named my husband (who was living with me) on the tenancy agreement due to his poor credit record. I know this was breaking the tenancy agreement but other than this discrepancy I have been a very good tenant.

We have now split up and I have moved out. He pays me the rent and I am continuing to pay this rent (on time!) to the agency via the same standing order that I always have so the agency do not know what has happened. I have told my ex to make contact with the agency if he wants to stay on and ask them if they will draw up a tenancy in his name. But he is not communicating with me so I don't know what his intentions are. He is angry with me that I wont just continue with the current arrangements but I am aware that I am doing something illegal and I just dont want to do it any more.

I dont think he wants to move out, and he could easily afford the rent, but the sticking point is the credit check.

I cant second guess what he is going to do - so looking at the worst case scenario he could dig his heels in, refuse to move, and I could be in big trouble.

If he was a normal grown up he would be quickly sorting himself out but he wont talk to me about it, and I can't second guess what he is going to do. He sees me refusing to renew the lease as me "punishing" him in some way. But all I want to do is get this whole mess sorted out without upsetting the agency and landlord.

Could anyone advise?? Thanks

1 you're not doing anything illegal
2 you don't need to give any notice to leave before the tenancy expires, but you will need to pay until march
3 why did U leave?
4 u don't have to name people on the tenancy and in this case to your bonus, tell him to leave. Give him 2 weeks and move on

BitterAndTwisted

Giving someone two weeks to leave is probably not going to work if he cannot take on a tenancy in his own name because of a poor credit-record. He's much more likely to dig his heels in and stay where he is, regardless of the consequences.

It's even possible that if the landlord has to go to court to remove the occupant their costs could be awarded against the OP.

Yorkie1

Kynthia wrote: »

What you've done isn't illegal. However once you moved out you have in a way sublet the property and this will annoy the landlord and put you at risk. Your partner can't 'take over' the tenancy as he was never a named tenant. Therefore he needs to apply just like any new tenant would and pass any credit checks. Where you are at risk is that you have to pay the rent even if he doesn't give it to you, otherwise the landlord can sue you. Any damage to the property and you are responsible. You can give notice to end the tenancy but if your partner doesn't leave then the tenancy doesn't end and the landlord will have to evict or it will continue with you being responsible still. Is there any way to persuade your partner to move out?

Given that the partner is not on the tenancy, then I don't think his failure to move out means the tenancy continues? It would do if they were joint tenants, but he is not a tenant and therefore has fewer rights?

That being said, the LL would still have to evict the partner, but it would be as an excluded occupier or similar - and not under s.21 process, presumably (though I'm not 100% sure).

OP, legally you do not have to give 2 months' notice to leave at the end of March, irrespective of what your tenancy says. No notice is required by the tenant at the end of the fixed term.

BigAunty

Letting agents/landlords are in the habit of inserting clauses into fixed term tenancy agreements to force the tenants to give notice. Nothing like this can overide statutory housing law which means that the tenant isn't required to give notice and can simply move out on the last day. Any landlord that mounts a legal challenge in court relating to the lack of notice wouldn't get very far. In reality, it is sensible for tenants to flag up their intentions to leave or renew and communicate this with the landlord in advance. See the Shelter website for information on how to end a fixed term tenancy agreement.

It isn't illegal in the criminal sense to not reside in the property where you have a tenancy agreement, nor assign it/sublet it to another occupant. It is likely to be a breach of your contract, a breach of civil law so it doesn't carry the risk of prosecution like criminal law. It is a risk to you because you remain responsible for any missing rent and damage to the property that someone else may incur.

If you are worried about your ex failing the credit check, then you could offer to be a guarantor but there are risks to this (such as being held responsible for any rent arrears and damage). Perhaps he has family members that will do this?

If he does not leave when you serve notice to end the lease and the landlord refuses to accept him as a tenant, then they will be forced to take you to court (as you are the named tenant) to regain possession as the possession order will apply to all occupants in the property. See the Shelter website to understand the eviction/possession process.

At the moment, he sounds like he's in denial about the best way to fix this but as he's starting to fingerpoint, is there any likelihood he could be vindictive about this?

Guest101

Not sure about that. The op should just kick him out, however has he gained a tenancy as a sub tenant. Was just thinking about it

Yorkie1

Guest101 wrote: »

Not sure about that. The op should just kick him out, however has he gained a tenancy as a sub tenant. Was just thinking about it

Hmm, that hadn't occurred to me. Not sure of the answer either.

DigForVictory

It's an almost racing certainty the ex will be as awkward as possible, and will make life as hard as possible for the OP, so all advice on how to get an uncooperative ex out of the house (whilst minimising risk of damage etc) without incurring massive bills needed!

Kynthia

Yorkie1 wrote: »

Given that the partner is not on the tenancy, then I don't think his failure to move out means the tenancy continues? It would do if they were joint tenants, but he is not a tenant and therefore has fewer rights?

I think it's possible that if the OP can't provide vacant possession of the property when their notice expires then the tenancy continues. However I'm happy to be proved wrong as I'm not sure, and the fact the ex wasn't on the tenancy could have made them an excluded occupier and therefore easy for the OP to evict rather than leaving it to the landlord. Although Guest101's comment about accepting rent from the ex making them a tenant of the OP certainly adds to the possibility of the tenancy continuing.