Revenge eviction

Tipsntreats

I do have the LL phone number, email and address. I will contact the LL. But I guess the LL is in agreement with the S21. Thank-you for all your replies.
Tips

Voyager2002

Tipsntreats wrote: »

I do have the LL phone number, email and address. I will contact the LL. But I guess the LL is in agreement with the S21. Thank-you for all your replies.
Tips

Maybe... maybe not. However, looking at the situation objectively the agent benefits from an eviction and a new set of fees from a new tenant while the landlord will also face fees and may have a period without a tenant and so a loss of rent. And of course the landlord was better at doing repairs before the agent got involved -- perhaps the agent never passed on your requests for necessary work? And you do not know what the agent said in order to explain why a change of tenant was needed.

Voyager2002

Bluebirdman_of_Alcathays wrote: »

Most people with LLBs don't end up practicing law as any dribbling cretin can get an LLB from somewhere like Uni of South Wales or Hertfordshire or some other rubbish.

By the same token, plenty of dribbling cretins can practice law.

Actually, teaching facilities at many of the "new" universities are of a lower standard than at most of the pre-1992 institutions while standards are externally moderated, so someone who gets a decent degree from a weaker university has probably worked harder and is brighter than someone with an equivalent degree from Oxford or Cambridge.

PersianCatLady

Most people with LLBs don't end up practicing law as any dribbling cretin can get an LLB from somewhere like Uni of South Wales or Hertfordshire or some other rubbish.
Thank you for coming along to the thread long after the OP had asked everyone to quit arguing to add your amazingly insightful comment.

PersianCatLady

Maybe... maybe not. However, looking at the situation objectively the agent benefits from an eviction and a new set of fees from a new tenant while the landlord will also face fees and may have a period without a tenant and so a loss of rent.
Actually that is a really interesting point which I hadn't really considered before.

FBaby

You've requested repairs...here's a Section 21 (although thankfully less of an issue for tenancies which started 1st Oct 2015 onwards). You don't want me doing monthly inspections....here's a Section 21. Today has a "Y" in it....here's a Section 21. I told you this was going to be a long term let but just weeks after you moved in I've decided to sell....here's a Section 21. I'm an ignoramus and just blindly go along with whatever the letting agent I chose does so if you don't want to pay hundreds of pounds for an unnecessary tenancy renewal...here's a Section 21.

The law in this country means that both landlords and tenants have rights that seem above what other countries would consider reasonable. Ultimately, as both sides have been at the receiving end of it, they are both using the power that is given to them to act in their own personal interest. Sometimes landlords abuse them, and sometimes tenants do. Seeing it from one side only is not showing much insight.

OP, your problem does seem to stem from the fact that your LL was overly trusting and reliant on their estate agent. I think most landlords are very naive to believe the speech they get when they sign on that EA are there to act as the landlord would if they manage their property themselves. They don't care! I wouldn't be one bit surprise if when you reported the damp issue, the EA said that they shouldn't be concerned because tenants usually cause mould as a result of poor ventilation and therefore they shouldn't listen to your complaints. Then when it all came out, they probably build a picture of you being a nightmare tenant so that the blame didn't fall on them.

I agree that you should contact the LL directly, although it might be too late now.

Pixie5740

FBaby I was answering the question why some tenants think landlords are out of order issuing Section 21s by giving examples of some of the out of order reasons which would have been clearer if you had chosen to quote the whole thing.

OP, when you say the improvement order was issued "6 ago" is that 6 weeks ago? 6 months ago? What is the exact date it was ordered? What is the exact date the Section 21 notice was served to you?

Note that the letting agent just acts on behalf of the landlord. A letting agent cannot represent the landlord in court so the landlord must go to court himself or engage a solicitor to act on his behalf. It's all very convenient for some posters to try and blame the letting agent but the OP has stated that she has been requesting repairs for over a year but the letting agent was only engaged by the landlord in March 2016. Letting agents cannot carry out repairs without the landlord's authority to perhaps this letting agent thought the only way to jolt the landlord into action was by the OP escalating matters to the council.

In any case, notice has been issued now. OP by all means contact the LL directly and see what he has to say about it all. However, keep in mind that some landlords are cowards and will say one thing to you and then get the letting agent to do their dirty work. There could be ways of extending your stay in the property but if the landlord really wants you out he will (probably) get it right eventually.

Are there any suitable properties in the area you can afford and would prefer to rent? If so then there's nothing stopping you from finding somewhere nicer for you and your family to live, serving your own notice and leaving this reluctant-to-do-repairs landlord behind.

FBaby

FBaby I was answering the question why some tenants think landlords are out of order issuing Section 21s by giving examples of some of the out of order reasons which would have been clearer if you had chosen to quote the whole thing.

Problem is that your posts tend to be very one-sided, quick to point out when tenants are made to be victim of the system, but also quick to point out that landlords are never victims of the same system because they should know what they are taking on and accept that to penalised by the same victims is part of the game.

I personally believe that each have social responsibilities (for better word than moral) and that should drive their choices/actions beyond the law that should be relied on only in extreme cases.

So yes, I think it is wrong to abuse the S21 system as revenge just because you can, just like I think it is wrong to abuse the system that allows tenants to claim x3 the deposit when say tenant has suffered no harm from the deposit being protected late, but go ahead with it just to 'punish' the landlord.

Pixie5740

Absolutely all those landlords who have chosen to start a business should often know better and have done a modicum of research at the very least before becoming a landlord. It's all those have-a-go landlords that mess it up for other landlords as more and more legislation has to be introduced to protect tenants from them.

This is a forum designed for users to "chat and discuss consumer issues," and in the case of tenancies the tenant is the consumer.

Suing for non-protection of a deposit has nothing to do with loss but is a penalty for the landlord failing to comply with the statute. It's the tenant's money the landlord has placed fast and loose with, and it's the tenant who has to take the landlord to court so it's the tenant who keeps the money. There are still a significant number of landlords out there failing to protect deposits correctly even with the penalty in place so how many landlords wouldn't do it if there were no consequences at all?

It's not onerous to protect a deposit on time so it's very easy for a landlord to protect themselves from being sued whereas a tenant cannot protect themselves for a Section 21. If a landlord is incapable of registering a deposit within 30 days then perhaps (s)he is not cut out for being a landlord.

Sootoo

The landlord may have a genuine reason for wanting you out - maybe he wants to sell the house or move there himself - now he's had to do a bit of work on it Has the agent given you a reason? Like people have said he may not be in a rush so best to find the reasons and time scale that he's looking at?