Term of a statutory tenancy

Guest101

DumbMuscle wrote: »

Just to satisfy your curiosity, here's the reason for the change in tenant:

I originally rented the house in July 2015, for a 12 month period, with my then girlfriend. In April 2016, we asked to renew the tenancy (LL required 3 months notice to renew). - and you thought this was A: normal or B: actually beneficial?

In May 2016, we split up. Amicably - but not amicably enough to live together for another 14 months! Looking into our cancellation options, we had 3 choices:
- Cancel the tenancy, paying 1 month rent in fees and any rent until it was re-let - Or leaving at the end of your initial fixed term
- get a new housemate immediately to replace my ex (who was moving to a different city, as this coincided with a new work opportunity). Because the LA are vultures, this would have involved a fee to vary the current tenancy agreement, and another fee to vary the renewed contract. - That's actually the least of your problems.
- Get a new housemate once the renewed contract had started, which is what happened - hence the change of tenant about a week into the contract - meaning that the current contract is 30 July-21 July. I'm kind of wishing that the LA had insisted on a full 12 month term when we changed tenants, since then I'd not have the gap :P .

You don't have a gap. The tenancy was simply assigned.

DumbMuscle

Guest101 wrote: »

You don't have a gap. The tenancy was simply assigned.

I did not think the renewal requirement was normal or beneficial. I thought that it was the best we were going to get in a city with a horrendously busy rental market, and was well aware that the LA has a reputation for sticking to their word and getting new tenants sorted and serving S21 if you try to delay renewing the contract (which yes, we could have stayed for a bit until evicted, but that's not exactly a *good* option when at the time the breakup seemed unlikely!). These are, oddly enough, the least dickbag letting agency in this city. That is mostly a sign of how bad the others are.

Leaving at the end of the initial fixed term was not an option - we had already signed the contract for the new term (yes, in hindsight that was a bad idea - I really don't need reminding of that).

The gap I'm referring to is the current gap between the end of my fixed term and the completion date on my house purchase (probably going to be 1 week, from 21 July to 28 July). I am aware that I have the option of staying on and forcing an eviction. I am also aware that that will cost me (and my housemate, who is actually leaving a week before the end of the fixed term) 1 month rent unless the LL agrees to surrender the tenancy on or soon after my completion date. I consider it unlikely that he would do that, as the new tenants would be wanting to move in soon after the end of the fixed term, and so the LL would likely need to find new tenants and would keep us on the hook for the rest of the month until he does so.

Also, rents here are expensive enough that it's cheaper for me to go on holiday somewhere for the week between the end of the fixed term and the completion date.

So my options now are:
a) Overstay the tenancy, paying the whole rent myself (because I'm not mercenary enough to make my housemate keep paying her share!), giving 1 month notice on the statutory tenancy created as soon as possible (and by the latest on the 21st July). At that point, either the LL agrees to surrender it a week later when I actually move out (and refunds me for the days after I move), or they don't and I end up paying a full month.
b) Take a week off work, go visit my parents/friends, do some DIY on the furniture I'm getting from them for the new house, take a day to go around IKEA and other furniture/electronics shops, and get deliveries sorted for the week after completion. Put my (limited, the current house is furnished) stuff in a self storage place (at about 1/10 the cost of keeping the rent).

a) would basically only be a good option if I could guarantee that I would only need to pay rent for that first week of the SPT. Otherwise, I might as well take a week off and spend the money on a bigger TV :P