Landlord waiting to pull out? 2 weeks and still waiting for the tenancy agreement

thorlak

Hello,

First time user here. I'm looking for some advice on the following matter.

My wife and I made an offer for a flat through an estate agent about two and a half weeks ago. The landlord initially made a counter offer asking for a bit more rent than what we offered. We had to sadly stop there since we offered our max limit and couldn't go any higher.

A couple days later, the estate agent called us saying the landlord had been thinking about it and he'd be happy to accept our initial offer. We were glad to hear this and happily paid the securing deposit.

It's been 2 weeks since we paid for the securing deposit and 1 week since we passed all our referencing checks. As soon as the estate agent told us all checks were all good we gave notice to our current landlord we would be vacating the property in 1 month. However, I am worried since we haven't received the tenancy agreement yet.

I've called the estate agent today and he said they usually receive the tenancy agreement one or two weeks prior to moving. This sounds a bit strange to me. If the referencing checks are okay, surely all there's left to do is just print and sign a tenancy agreement by both parties, correct? Why the need to wait until one week prior to moving?

Is it normal for a tenancy agreement to be prepared to take this long?

Should we be worried? And if so, what can we do in this situation?

G_M

thorlak wrote: »

.... the landlord ...... happy to accept our initial offer. We were glad to hear this and happily paid the securing deposit.
What (exactly) does the receipt say?
Does it mention a tenancy start date? Was a date discussed or put in writing anywhere?

It's been 2 weeks since we paid for the securing deposit and 1 week since we passed all our referencing checks. As soon as the estate agent told us all checks were all good we gave notice to our current landlord we would be vacating the property in 1 month.
This seems very rash unless you actually have a written, signed contract with a start date for the new tenancy

I've called the estate agent today and he said they usually receive the tenancy agreement one or two weeks prior to moving. This sounds a bit strange to me.
This is quite common, though leaves an element of uncertainty.

If the referencing checks are okay, surely all there's left to do is just print and sign a tenancy agreement by both parties, correct?
Yes
Why the need to wait until one week prior to moving?
No idea.

Is it normal for a tenancy agreement to be prepared to take this long?
Sadky yes

Should we be worried? And if so, what can we do in this situation?

Check what documentation/guarantees you do have.

Go in and politely insist on a tenancy agreement.

daphnemoon

Hi there,
In all the properties I have ever rented I had to sign the agreement on the same day as getting the keys.
I've mostly gone via a LA, recently I was sent a copy of the normal agreement to check through a week or so before we signed.
Also the same happened when one of my landlords dealt directly with me, they were their own agent!
I've always given notice as soon as it is confirmed by the agent that everything has passed, otherwise you can end up with two tenancies overlapping and you end up paying more!!
Hope that helps