Paying only partial months rent as moving out

G_M

1) A 'Heads up' is not notice. Notice is a letter sent to the proper address (or email if the tenancy agreement states email) with a firm date for when you intend the tenancy to end.

The Notice Period must be as required by law.

2) Of course, if you have good relations, you can discuss, and agree, any date you wish, but that is a matter of discretion. Personally, as a LL, I would do this as I understand how difficult purchasing property is - but many LLs will not.

3)

TBagbus: Check your tenancy agreement. Normally you would need to give a full month notice, starting on the rental date,...

Totally inaccurate. This is a SPT so the notice period is determined by the Housing Act 1988 , not by the tenancy agreement.

4) If negotiation fails, the law on notice is specified here:

Ending/Renewing an AST (what happens when the Fixed Term ends?)(What is a Periodic Tenancy?)(How can a LL remove a tenant?)(How can a tenant end a tenancy?)

5)

Our tenancy runs 15th-15th.

I assume you mean 15th-14th???
Note: when giving the proper notice this can make a significant difference so get it right!

Pixie5740

Until you formally give notice, which as HB58 points out, if done properly won't end your tenancy until 14th May then yes your LL can expect you to pay rent until then.

Have you actually exchanged contracts and will you definitely be moving out on 28th April or is that still up in the air?

If it is 100% definite that you will be moving out on 28th April you could negotiate with your LL about paying rent pro rata since you have accommodated viewings but he is under no obligation to agree. Softly, softly catchy monkey.

mrginge

Lets consider this the other way round.

The LL comes to you in january, tells you he is selling the house and expects it to be completed at the end of February.

Then in the middle of february he tells you it is more likely to be end of April.

Today he rings you up and says you have 1 week to leave and he gave you notice in january.

Do you think this is a) legal or b) reasonable behaviour?

The answer is of course no. So why do you think you can act in the same way?

Cissi

thesaint wrote: »

When tenants do this, I tell them to write me a letter(as they invariably tell you this over the phone) giving their notice.

If I receive the letter, I write back stating that it isn't valid, and refer them to their tenancy agreement which states the correct procedure on how to give notice.

(my bolding)
Going by posts on this forum, I'd say most tenants (and landlords) seem to favour texting for important communication...


OP, disregarding what's "fair" or "unfair" for a moment, you need to put your notice IN WRITING as soon as possible, as you haven't given legal notice at all yet. If you're sure about wanting to move out by the end of April (or early May), I would suggest writing it to the letter of the law, giving notice to the landlord by April 14th, to end May 14th. At least this way your obligations will definitely end on this date. THEN, you can negotiate with the LL using the strong cards that you hold - reminding him that you don't have to agree to viewings but that you'll consider continuing to cooperate with him on this IF he agrees to terminate your tenancy on XYZ date instead. Don't do this until you're absolutely sure of your dates though - "99% sure" isn't enough, as countless threads on this board show.


Personally, given that you haven't even exchanged contracts yet, I'd worry less about those 2 weeks of overlap (hopefully you have enough leeway in your house purchasing budget to cover this) - I wouldn't even consider giving notice until you have exchanged. Focus instead on making absolutely sure that exchange happens before April 14th, so that you can safely give notice on your rental by May 14th, and write off the extra 2 weeks' rent as part of the cost of house-buying... If you'd already exchanged then my advice would be different but at the moment there is still a risk, albeit ever so tiny, of things going wrong.

dkennedy1001

Thanks everyone for the valuable advice it is much appreciated and I understand it now from everybody's viewpoint. Hopefully I will get confirmation of the exchange of contracts tomorrow and I will also put in writing my notice letter.

Thanks again

Dan

G_M

mrginge wrote: »

Lets consider this the other way round.

The LL comes to you in january, tells you he is selling the house and expects it to be completed at the end of February.

Then in the middle of february he tells you it is more likely to be end of April.

Today he rings you up and says you have 1 week to leave and he gave you notice in january.

Do you think this is a) legal or b) reasonable behaviour?

The answer is of course no. So why do you think you can act in the same way?

unless, of course, in Jan he had explained he thought it would Complete in Feb but would you mind if the date changed at short notie ie a week and you had responded "no problem I can move in to my sister's at any time so just let me know at least a week in advance and that'll be fine." .....

And then you writen him a quick not confirming this.....

Now, that would be reasonable.

But still not legally binding!

mimilovell

Taking into condersation your landlord has taken a vague estimate of when you will be moving out, and that to accommodate you, he/she hasnt got anyone as soon as you leave. I personally find it rather unfair that he should suffer half months rent, just because you want to move out early. Im just looking in the point of view of putting myself in that persons shoe and just seeing if I would appreciate how this has gone. For me I wouldnt be too happy.

dkennedy1001

Just a quick update, the LL has responded to my request and said he is happy for me to just pay the 13 days and for me to move out on the 28th. Seems like helping out by giving him a very early heads up so he could put his house on the market paid off after all. Guess it's not always about the money or the law...

Happy ending for all.

HB58

dkennedy1001 wrote: »

Just a quick update, the LL has responded to my request and said he is happy for me to just pay the 13 days and for me to move out on the 28th. Seems like helping out by giving him a very early heads up so he could put his house on the market paid off after all. Guess it's not always about the money or the law...

Happy ending for all.

Glad to hear that you were able to discuss this with your LL and come to a mutually acceptable agreement. Thanks for letting us know.