Notice to quite - Scotland

RyanSBrown

Hello,

I am a private renter based in Scotland. Recently (Jan 21st) I was given a notice to quit and was told that I must vacate the property on the 25th of March, I was obviously disappointed but started looking for a new property. Luckily I managed to find one and was told that I could move in immediately. Today (7th January) I contacted my letting agent to tell them that I would be moving out of the property, they replied by saying that was fine but I would be liable for rent up until the date of the 25th of March. I am now faced with the prospect of losing the property and with no guarantee of finding a new one. Is there anyway I can leave this property before the date and not pay the remaining rent?

Regards

R

Pixie5740

RyanSBrown wrote: »

Hello,

I am a private renter based in Scotland. Recently (Jan 21st) I was given a notice to quit and was told that I must vacate the property on the 25th of March, I was obviously disappointed but started looking for a new property. Luckily I managed to find one and was told that I could move in immediately. Today (7th January) I contacted my letting agent to tell them that I would be moving out of the property, they replied by saying that was fine but I would be liable for rent up until the date of the 25th of March. I am now faced with the prospect of losing the property and with no guarantee of finding a new one. Is there anyway I can leave this property before the date and not pay the remaining rent?

Regards

R

Were you given any other notice other than a notice to quit?

Were you given an AT5 form before signing your current tenancy agreement?

Did you have a fixed term contract or had that come to an end?

Legally you owe rent until your tenancy agreement ends. You can physically leave the property before the end of the tenancy but you still need to pay unless you can negotiate something with your landlord. Notice to quit aside, would it be possible for you to stay put if your landlord won't negotiate?

RyanSBrown

We were given a notice to quit and a AT6 The fixed term had come to an end on the 25th of January and the landlord said that if I wanted to put a months notice in, that was the time and because we have gone past that date it would now be two months notice (as laid out in the initial rental agreement.). Icould stay put but would they not just take me to court? I am worried that if I lose this property and I havent got another one I will be out on the street. Thanks for replying by the way

pinklady21

The Notice to Quit means that your landlord has brought the tenancy to an end. You need to look back through the paperwork you got at the very beginning of your tenancy. Did the landlord give you an AT5 form BEFORE the tenancy started?
This is important. If you DID receive one, you have a Short Assured Tenancy. If you did NOT receive one, then you have an Assured Tenancy which gives you slightly more rights.

You have been given Notice to Quit, but you do not have to leave until the landlord gets an order to evict you. This used to mean going to court but this has now been replaced with the First Tier Tribunal (Housing and property chamber) in Scotland.
https://www.housingandpropertychamber.scot/who-we-are
A similar process using the same law, but less formal.

So you do have a little longer than the two months to find somewhere else to live. Ultimately, if the landlord has produced the correct paperwork, then you will have to leave eventually, but if you choose to stay put, the landlord will have to go to the trouble and possible expense of evicting you.
Therefore, if you have found somewhere else to live, try and negotiate with the landlord - will they allow you to leave straight away and let you off with paying rent once you have gone if it means they get their property back without the hassle of having to go through the eviction process?
You can only ask! Best of luck.