My mum's tenants won't leave...

ruggedtoast

HamiltonPOLE wrote: »

My mum has a flat in london and someone wants to buy it.

On Nov 28th, my mum gave them a letter reminding them that their agreement ends early December, and that they should be gone within a month of that date.


Now I'm aware that they haven't left, and they're not paying anything towards the property.
I just turned 20, so I'm not aware of the legal requirements regarding regaining ones property.

You could be two thirds of the way through a Law degree by now.

Has your mum actually exchanged contracts with the buyer yet?

Please say no.

G_M

There are 2 potential ways to get rid of the tenants. For full details, read this post here (thanks pixie for earlier link):

1) If the tenants owe 2 months rent, or more, issue a S8 Notice (see the link). Assuming they still owe 2 months at the time of the court case, the judge will awardyou mother possession.

2) Use a S21 Notice:
a) return the deposit in full first (or S21 will not be valid)
b) make sure the property does not need licencing as an HMO, and if it does, that the licence is in place (or S21 will not be valid)
c) issue a correct S21 Notice (with correct dates)
d) wait 2 months till date of expiry on S21
e) apply to court and await court date/decision
f) apply for bailiffs to enforce court judgement

sorted!

2) above assumes the fixed term of the tenancy agreement has ended, or will end within 2 months. If not, wait till end of fixed term).

I too hope your mum has not yet Exchangd Contracts on the sale of the property or she is in deep doodoos!

Be aware that if the tenants are angry about any of this they could

* sue for failure to register the deposit
* report your mum to HMRC for tax evasion if she has not paid tax on the rent
* report mum to council if HMO licencing not complied with
* report mum to HSE if gas safety certificate required and not in place
* report mum to freeholder if it's a leasehold flat with no consent
etc etc

This might also help:

New Landlords (information for new or prospective landlords)

slopemaster

GM is spot on as usual, but there may be a third way.
Bribe them to leave.

G_M

Slopemaster is spot on - a far better solution if it is successful.

buglawton

Pixie5740 wrote: »

Why would an estate agent contracted to sell the property have anything to do with the tenancy?


I have no idea what you mean by a "we'll boot 'em out for you agency". I really hope you're not suggesting that the OP's mum pay someone to conduct an illegal eviction as that would be a criminal offence.

For those who've had a sense of humour amputation, there are plenty of LEGAL agencies that have the LEGAL expertise to conduct a LEGAL eviction for you. You'll see their adverts on any property forum. But I repeat, you'd need to find one with a decent reputation.

Pixie5740

buglawton wrote: »

For those who've had a sense of humour amputation, there are plenty of LEGAL agencies that have the LEGAL expertise to conduct a LEGAL eviction for you. You'll see their adverts on any property forum. But I repeat, you'd need to find one with a decent reputation.

If these companies do things legally then they're not doing anything the OP's mother couldn't do herself using the links to G_M's thread about ending a tenancy. We've already established that at this point in time a Section 21 would be invalid due to the deposits being protected and possibly also because this property might require a HMO licence.

You would have to have written something funny for me to find it amusing.

dancingfairy

Well you have 2 main options - either come to an amicable agreement with the tenants to leave (ie offer them incentives - to pay for their removals, to pay for their next deposit, to pay for their reference checks, to write a good reference, etc etc - what can she offer them to go quickly and without a fuss?) or option 2) is to do it by the book, which could be long and drawn out. This means returning the deposit in full, then serving a correct Section 21 notice (S21). Then waiting for it to expire, then going to court, then appointing bailiffs etc etc.
How desperate is she to sell and what stage of the process is she at? Has she exchanged contracts?
df

allylou2002

Been reading this with interest - I am not a LL or have any desire to become one in the near or distant future but would like to know, if you have a tenant can you ever expect them to leave? Or do you have to have this s 21? What if you wanted your house back? Presuming everything is legal And above board and as it should be ??

Asking out of interest...no other reason! :-)

nidO

allylou2002 wrote: »

Been reading this with interest - I am not a LL or have any desire to become one in the near or distant future but would like to know, if you have a tenant can you ever expect them to leave? Or do you have to have this s 21? What if you wanted your house back? Presuming everything is legal And above board and as it should be ??

Asking out of interest...no other reason! :-)

Broadly:

If you want a tenant out, you issue them with either a s21 or s8 notice to quit (various requirements/prerequisites on which is used and how/when etc for them to be valid)
If the tenant refuses to leave by the date given (as is their legal right to do) the LL then has to apply to the court for a possession order.
When (if) this is granted if the tenants still refuse to leave per this (as is no longer their right to do) the landlord then applies to the court to have bailiffs evict the tenant.

Essentially, if the tenant refuses to go amicably, a landlord can expect to take a good 4-6 months to get a tenant out, assuming the landlord follows exact procedures to the letter.

Guest101

allylou2002 wrote: »

Been reading this with interest - I am not a LL or have any desire to become one in the near or distant future but would like to know, if you have a tenant can you ever expect them to leave? Or do you have to have this s 21? What if you wanted your house back? Presuming everything is legal And above board and as it should be ??

Asking out of interest...no other reason! :-)

Section 21, is how you start to legally get your property back. (Section 8 for other various things, such as rent arrears)

All a s21 is, is a letter notifying the tenant that in two months you will go to court to get back your property.

A tenancy can only be ended by a tenant or a court ( mutual agreement too - but I count this as tenant ).