Advice on eviction notice please

oth77

Hello

I would like some advice on what to do next after having received what I consider to be an unlawful Notice to Quit.

I am renting from a private landlord. My AST is now periodic (monthly).

I have received a notice to quit, although the rent was paid that very day and there are no arrears. I have been late with rent payments quite a few times during the tenancy, so was expecting a S8 notice on that premise, however it appears that the LL has actually issued a S21 notice.

At the top of the notice it reads:

"Notice to quit, given by a landlord of a premises let as dwelling"

That doesn't imply that it is a valid Section 21 notice.

At the foot of the notice after his details and the property details is the following text:

"(notice to quit) on (date notice was received - coincidentally the rent due date) or on the day on which a complete period of your tenancy expires after the end of at least one rent period after the service of this notice"

followed by his signature and date.

I'm not sure I totally understand this last sentence, but I do believe the notice is invalid as by law S21 during periodic tenancy requires two months notice, and that there is no expiry date on the notice. I should also point out that the deposit has not been protected rendering any notice under S21 unlawful anyway.

My main concern is that one month's from the date in the NTQ the landlord may turn up and proceed to evict me forcefully. It seems quite clear that he is ignorant of his legal responsibilities in this matter, so it is not clear what action he may take.

I would like some advice on how to proceed. Should I inform the LL that his notice is unlawful and the steps he needs to take in order to serve a legal NTQ? Or should I wait, calling the police if he does turn up to evict me, and present my case in court, assuming that it will end up in court at some point?

anselld

LL actions are illegal and indeed probably criminal if you can prove harassment or if he goes on to illegal eviction.

However, he is right in one aspect; assuming he ever gets his legal act together and serves a valid s21, you will be gone eventually.

So the question is what do you want to achieve? Stay for as long as possible and stand up to the bullying or find somewhere else to live?

Edit: Details of harassment by LL were removed from OP after posting.

Annie1960

http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/private_renting/problems_with_renting/harassment_by_a_landlord

Here is the Shelter page on being harassed by LL.

kinger101

You need to start looking for somewhere else to live, but ultimately, only the court can evict you. In the meantime, if you haven't already done so, get the barrels on the locks changed so the landlord cannot gain entry.

Vectis

The LL will evict you eventually, whether or not the notice he's served you is correct this time.

You can make life difficult, attempt to claim 3x the amount of the deposit etc but, on a practical level, you will have to move out at some stage, probably 6 months max.

Why not make plans to move now, unless you like hassle and legal battles? Do you want to go through all that?

Why not suggest a suitable date for you to move (3 months?) which will give you time to find another property and get organised?

And, btw if you change the locks be prepared to change them back when you move or you could be charged if the LL has to do it.

Cissi

OP, please confirm whether you're in England and Wales, as Notice to Quit is a term specific to Northern Ireland, and advice could be vastly different.

makeyourdaddyproud

Not a good situation for the LL if, like you say, you have defaulted "quite a few times". It just sounds like your looking for a slip in the statue books so you stay rent free at the landlords cost. You certainly don't have my sympathy.

G_M

Assuming England/Wales:

That is not a S21 Notice.

* references to harrassment in previous posts are premature - a single letter purporting to be a NTQ is not harrassment by any stretch of imagination

* you could ignore it.

* or tell the LL it is invalid

* or pay any rent arrears and negotiate with the LL to stay

* or find somewhere to move to and then give your own (valid) notice.

Annie1960

G_M wrote: »

* references to harrassment in previous posts are premature - a single letter purporting to be a NTQ is not harrassment by any stretch of imagination

OP stated:
'My main concern is that one month's from the date in the NTQ the landlord may turn up and proceed to evict me forcefully.'

This would be harassment, and OP may want to prepare tactics regarding how to proceed if this happens.

Clearly receiving a notice to quit (or whatever it is) is not harassment.

anselld

G_M wrote: »

* references to harrassment in previous posts are premature -.

Details describing LL actions were removed by the OP after posting. It was certainly harassment as originally posted.