Will the holding deposit be returned?

mivona

My daughter was due to sign a contract for renting a flat this week, only to be told today that the current tenant is refusing to move out.

She has paid a fairly hefty holding deposit on the flat in the first place, and I was to be her guarantor.

I am uncertain what the conditions, and wondered if the estate agent will have any grounds to keep her money in these circumstances?

Does she have any grounds for complaint or compensation, given that she was expecting to move this week, only to be told now, at such a late stage, that the property is not available?

They have had the holding deposit for at least 6 weeks now.

Guest101

Of course deposit should be returned.

But compensation? No. Tenancy hasn't been agreed yet

theartfullodger

It depends on the terms & conditions for the holding deposit: Which I can't read from here.. what do they say regarding these circumstances???

Compo?? Depends what she was told/promised: e.g. is an email stating "yes you can move in dd/mm/yyy no worries" she probably does have a case, but just giving a holding deposit, usual terms, probably not.. What does she have from agent or landlord in writing about moving in, dates etc??

mivona

The agreement for the holding deposit stated:
On payment of the holding deposit the property will be removed from the market while references are obtained and subject to the landlord’s approval.
The holding deposit is non returnable should an applicant withdraw before tenancy agreement is signed.
On signing the tenancy agreement the holding deposit will be deducted from the dilapidations deposit.
Unsuccessful references will mean the forfeit of your holding deposit

The deposit was over £600. Scary that they could have kept it all if her references were unsuccessful, but she also doesn't have a signed agreement yet, because although she has tried, and tried to get it done, they kept putting it off until after the date the tenant was to move out (presumably because they knew it was going to be dodgy).

They have said she can have her deposit back (verbally), but she is distraught at losing a place that was so hard to find in the first place.

G_M

mivona wrote: »

....
The holding deposit is non returnable should an applicant withdraw before tenancy agreement is signed.
......
Unsuccessful references will mean the forfeit of your holding deposit

So clearly the deposit is lost if the applicant tenant changes their mind,or fails referencing.

Legal implication is that in other circumstances, eg landlord changes their mind, the deposit is refundable.