Illegal Eviction

alibean121

I rent as a lodger from a resident landlord. My landlord is selling their house. I've arranged a new tenancy and will be getting the keys on the 8th. My landlord told me earlier that they exchanged yesterday and agreed completion on the 7th. Unfortunately I'm out of the country leaving tomorrow and getting back on 7th.

My agreement states a months notice and I pay rent monthly. I don't know what to do. If I go on holiday as planned I am certain I will have had my possessions "removed" by the time I'm back. If I stay, I'll be severely out of pocket on the holiday.

I know a lodger has less legal recourse but does anyone know what my options through the courts would be. I think options to resolve this amicably went when my landlord exchanged.

pjread

Agree to leave early for a refund/rent reduction, then use the savings to put stuff in storage if you don't have a close friend or relative who can keep hold of it for you. See if you can get the keys to your new place on 7th, if not there are worse things in life than a night in a travel lodge or on a friends sofa.

agrinnall

I'm not sure what you're going to be able to achieve before you leave. Is your landlord moving locally? If you pack up your stuff today would he be able to take it with him to his new place so that you can pick it up from there when you return on the 7th (or the 8th when you get access to your place, staying somewhere else for the night of the 7th - perhaps at the LL's expense)?

stator

If he is breaking the tenancy agreement then ask him to waive the last months rent and use the money to put your stuff in storage

BitterAndTwisted

Forget court. You are going to be homeless when you return from your holiday unless you put a plan into action. Either move your stuff now and put it into storage, ask a mate to look after it for you, ask the landlord to do the same thing or resign yourself to losing all that you own.

This house-sale has not come like a bolt from the blue. The timing might not be ideal but your landlord owes you nothing. You have absolutely no legal recourse. You could have been asked to leave with less than 48 hours notice. You patently have had much, much more than that.

lincroft1710

alibean121 wrote: »

does anyone know what my options through the courts would be.

I don't think you have any. By the time any case got to court, the 7th would be long gone.

moneyistooshorttomention

It would be wise to move all your stuff out today without any further hanging around on the Forum. Otherwise the new owner of the house wont hang around before throwing it into the garden and that's where it will be when you come back.

PasturesNew

It's not illegal eviction as you're a lodger and, on paper, have "no rights".

You need to get your stuff out today into self-storage pronto. The lot. All of it.

I'm assuming it's achievable. I'm assuming you've some mobility and spare time, bit of spare cash, ID and no furniture to speak of.

You should be able to get a 6'x6' unit for well under £60/month (as a ballpark figure for what's achievable in most areas). So then it's just a van hire, your own car 3x or a mate.

stator

A lodger still has whatever rights are granted in their tenancy agreement, but the best you could hope for from the courts is compensation.

nidO

stator wrote: »

A lodger still has whatever rights are granted in their tenancy agreement

A lodger, by definition, doesn't have a tenancy agreement.

OP: A lodger still has whatever rights are granted in your license to occupy and if this states a month's notice then you should have a month's notice.
This is something you can go through the courts for if you really want to go after your landlord as he's breaking the terms of your contract, however as plenty of other people have said, it'll be a long drawn out process and unfortunately doesn't help you with your immediate problem.

If the landlord has exchanged contracts on their property then they've basically shafted you, because the 7th is now a hard deadline for them - even the threat of court action from you over your license agreement is a lesser threat than breaking the contract they've exchanged for the sale of their house, so being pragmatic I would just get on with finding some storage for your stuff and a night in a hotel and get things moved pronto on the 7th.

Then send the bill to the landlord after you're gone and point out that you'll welcome reimbursement ASAP or you'll be contacting a solicitor to begin court action for your costs as a result of them breaking the terms of your license agreement.

moneyistooshorttomention

Unless things have changed a lot in the last few years - I doubt a lodger has much at all in the way of rights. By definition - they are living in someone else's home.

Only, in this case, it will be a strangers home come about midday on the 7th and that stranger won't owe them anything.