Landlord selling up

Legacy_user

Hi all,

We’re in a very awkward situation. 2 months ago, my landlord expressed his interest in selling his house that we have been renting for the past 5 years. We’ve tried to delay for as long as possible but he has now marketed the property and we had our first set of viewings today. The place we are looking to move into won’t be ready until January 2019. Between the sale of our current house and purchase of our new place in January, we’ll have nowhere to go.

I emailed the landlord 2 weeks ago requesting that he delays the sale of the property but he didn’t respond. I emailed him once again today and he replied in a rather defensive fashion.

I said something along the lines of, “Please consider what I’ve said in this email otherwise I’m afraid we will have no choice but to exercise our right as tenants to delay the process” to which he replied in a way which was almost ‘bring it on’.

I really didn’t want this to go down this route as we have been perfect tenants for him but I need to know where we stand, what we can do, and how long we can delay.

Also, our current agreement ends in September and I also doubt he has protected our initial deposit which may work in our favour.

I’d appreciate everyone’s replies on this matter.

Many thanks,
Dan

Slithery

It doesn't matter if he sells it, your tenancy continues with the new owner as your landlord.

The only way for the tenancy to be ended is by the courts, after the expiry of a valid S21. Unless your deposit is protected then your LL can't issue a valid S21.

Please read...
Ending/renewing an AST

If you are in a fixed term until September then you should be fine, it currently takes about 40 weeks for eviction proceedings after the expiry of an S21 which will easily take you past January.

G_M

Please describe your tenancy:


* fixed term?
* start/end dates or term
* or periodic?
* periodic since when (exact date please)

Have you received a S21 Notice? On what date was it served? Expiry date?
Have you checked it is valid? See

S21 checklist (Is a S21 valid?)

If the LL sells the property and you are still in occupation, the buyer will become your landlord. Your tenancy is unchanged.

If the LL wants you to leave before selling, he must evict you properly. See:

* Ending/renewing an AST: what happens when a fixed term ends? How can a LL or tenant end a tenancy? What is a periodic tenancy?

System

Thank you both for your quick replies.

So, since I first posted, he's sent a lot of patronising emails trying to 'put me in my place'. I won't let him get away with it and am now up for a fight, not the way I wanted to go about doing things.

It is a fixed term tenancy, which ends on 22nd September 2018. They have been 1 year contracts since we moved here 5 years ago.

I haven't yet received a S21, but I'm sure I will imminently.

Thanks,
Dan

franklee

Make sure you know what makes an S21 invalid. The Section 21 validity checker by Mark Prichard linked to in G_M's above post is an excellent document so take a fine tooth comb through it.

franklee

danyalaziz wrote: »

It is a fixed term tenancy, which ends on 22nd September 2018. They have been 1 year contracts since we moved here 5 years ago.

Have a look through the tenancy agreement to see if there is a break clause that allows the landlord to end the fixed term early.

System

@franklee Thanks. There is no break clause. Assuming he sends the S21 on Monday, and it's all valid, how long do I have if I drag it out? Also, with little cost to me as a result of court proceedings.

G_M

danyalaziz wrote: »

@franklee Thanks. There is no break clause. Assuming he sends the S21 on Monday, and it's all valid, how long do I have if I drag it out? Also, with little cost to me as a result of court proceedings.

Assuming it is served on/before 22 July, and meets all other validity requirements, then on or after 22nd Sept he can apply to court for possession, and then apply for bailiffs if you don't leave.

6 - 10 weeks?

You may have court costs awarded against you.

tlc678910

Hi OP,
As described above I have gathered reading this forum that for a section 21 to be valid your deposit must be protected and (depending when your tenancy started I think - not sure if it applies when you started renting 5 years ago) you should have been given the EPC of the property and a "how to rent" booklet. The usual advice is if you think the section 21 is not valid don't let the landlord know this. That buys you more time later when it has to be reissued.
Tlc

Edit: looks like the EPC is only required for tenancies taken after Oct 15 (or had a written renewal since then it seems) not for tenancies that started before then and rolled on to periodic. You also need to have been given a valid gas certificate from gas checks it seems for section 21 to be valid.

[Deleted User]

I am afraid if there was a court case for a Possession order and then Bailiffs warrant, the costs are awarded to the tenant. This will cost around £500. If you go to court and the S21 is found to be invalid, costs will be awarded to the LL.

Depending on wait times for court cases to occur (in my area, there was no wait time, I have seen on here people say it can take weeks in other areas), it may take 5 months for two S21's to be issued and the possession order etc. It could take longer if there are longer waits for a court date.

Thrugelmir

danyalaziz wrote: »

So, since I first posted, he's sent a lot of patronising emails trying to 'put me in my place'. I won't let him get away with it and am now up for a fight, not the way I wanted to go about doing things.

To be frank you probaly set the ball rolling........

I emailed the landlord 2 weeks ago requesting that he delays the sale of the property but he didn’t respond.

Sometimes doing nothing is the best approach to wasting time away.