Issue with landlord and neighbour

yasmin1997

Hello, I'm hoping to get some advice about a situation I'm currently in because I'm really stuck about what i'm supposed to do and it's really upsetting me!

I'm an independent 21 year old girl, I've just graduated from University with a 1st in July and have just started a masters degree on Monday in Post-Production. I have a really busy schedule, I'm in university 4 days a week (all day) and while doing this, I work full time doing night shifts (50+ hours a week) in order to get by on minimum wage so that I can afford to live in a flat.

I've been through the whole tradition of living in halls during my first year of uni and living in a house with fellow students in my second year - both of which were the worst years of my entire life due to the various things that happened.. but that is a another story for another time. During my third year, I finally decided to become independent and rented a private flat.

My flat is nothing special, it's a one bed duplex which is really lovely for me as I've got a little living room, a little kitchen and a set of stairs that takes me up to my bedroom with an en suite bathroom. For a one bedroom flat at £395 per month, it’s perfect for me and bonus - it’s close to uni and close to work!

Now back to my point, I've been a tenant since July 1st 2017 and have never had any problems. The neighbours have always smiled and said hello, I always pay my rent on time and have never had any rent arrears and I haven’t caused any nuisance or damage to anything that was not mine.

Last night at around 18:30 I received a call from a mobile number - I didn’t know who it was and just figured it was a spam call or something. When I answered a man straight away shouted down the phone saying, “Who do you live with??”
Obviously I thought it was some weirdo trying to find out if i was alone in my flat at first so was hesitant to answer but the caller kept demanding to know, I advised in the end I lived on my own but my boyfriend came to stay with me a few days a week ( which he does ) and he finally says “I’m the landlord” - so I was like okay, how can I help? He then goes on to say how he has had a complaint from a neighbour who lives in a flat above me who has accused my boyfriend of puncturing the tyre of his bicycle (which he keeps inside). Obviously I was like, he hasn’t because he wouldn’t do something like that. We’ve lived there for this long and walked past the bike everyday - why on earth would he do this? I proceeded to tell the landlord that this was a load of rubbish and we haven’t done anything like this but he was becoming quite aggressive towards me saying that this was my notice! After more conversation he eventually calmed down and said that this neighbour had evidence (a picture of my boyfriend stabbing the wheel with a fork! Of all things!!!) I asked to see the evidence but he refused to oblige to this and said he was going to evict me. I told him that this was completely untrue and he hung up the line.

Later that evening, I was waiting outside for a lift to work with a colleague and thought I would try and be reasonable so I started to write a note advising that it wasn’t us and explaining that we had nothing to it and as I was stood outside waiting, this neighbour comes out holding the wheel of his tyre and starts shouting and swearing all words under the sun and began to threaten me saying that I was in big trouble etc etc, I tried to be nice and advised that it was nothing to do with us and he said he had a photo which he had taped on the front of my flat door! I went and got it as he eventually left and was so upset, he left a horrible note taped on the door swearing and the photo wasn’t even a picture of my boyfriend, it was a picture of his punctured tyre which proves nothing!

I really don’t know what to do I’m so worried that I’m going to be evicted for this even though I have done nothing wrong, please could anyone advise me what I can do? I'm going to call the letting agency later and advise them I’ve had a random call from the landlord who was quite rude to me, I feel that the whole situation has been thrown out of proportion and I’m so stressed about it now

Pixie5740

yasmin1997 wrote: »

Hello, I'm hoping to get some advice about a situation I'm currently in because I'm really stuck about what i'm supposed to do and it's really upsetting me!

I'm an independent 21 year old girl, I've just graduated from University with a 1st in July and have just started a masters degree on Monday in Post-Production. I have a really busy schedule, I'm in university 4 days a week (all day) and while doing this, I work full time doing night shifts (50+ hours a week) in order to get by on minimum wage so that I can afford to live in a flat.

I've been through the whole tradition of living in halls during my first year of uni and living in a house with fellow students in my second year - both of which were the worst years of my entire life due to the various things that happened.. but that is a another story for another time. During my third year, I finally decided to become independent and rented a private flat.

My flat is nothing special, it's a one bed duplex which is really lovely for me as I've got a little living room, a little kitchen and a set of stairs that takes me up to my bedroom with an en suite bathroom. For a one bedroom flat at £395 per month, it’s perfect for me and bonus - it’s close to uni and close to work!

Now back to my point, I've been a tenant since July 1st 2017 and have never had any problems. The neighbours have always smiled and said hello, I always pay my rent on time and have never had any rent arrears and I haven’t caused any nuisance or damage to anything that was not mine.

Last night at around 18:30 I received a call from a mobile number - I didn’t know who it was and just figured it was a spam call or something. When I answered a man straight away shouted down the phone saying, “Who do you live with??”
Obviously I thought it was some weirdo trying to find out if i was alone in my flat at first so was hesitant to answer but the caller kept demanding to know, I advised in the end I lived on my own but my boyfriend came to stay with me a few days a week ( which he does ) and he finally says “I’m the landlord” - so I was like okay, how can I help? He then goes on to say how he has had a complaint from a neighbour who lives in a flat above me who has accused my boyfriend of puncturing the tyre of his bicycle (which he keeps inside). Obviously I was like, he hasn’t because he wouldn’t do something like that. We’ve lived there for this long and walked past the bike everyday - why on earth would he do this? I proceeded to tell the landlord that this was a load of rubbish and we haven’t done anything like this but he was becoming quite aggressive towards me saying that this was my notice! After more conversation he eventually calmed down and said that this neighbour had evidence (a picture of my boyfriend stabbing the wheel with a fork! Of all things!!!) I asked to see the evidence but he refused to oblige to this and said he was going to evict me. I told him that this was completely untrue and he hung up the line.

Later that evening, I was waiting outside for a lift to work with a colleague and thought I would try and be reasonable so I started to write a note advising that it wasn’t us and explaining that we had nothing to it and as I was stood outside waiting, this neighbour comes out holding the wheel of his tyre and starts shouting and swearing all words under the sun and began to threaten me saying that I was in big trouble etc etc, I tried to be nice and advised that it was nothing to do with us and he said he had a photo which he had taped on the front of my flat door! I went and got it as he eventually left and was so upset, he left a horrible note taped on the door swearing and the photo wasn’t even a picture of my boyfriend, it was a picture of his punctured tyre which proves nothing!

I really don’t know what to do I’m so worried that I’m going to be evicted for this even though I have done nothing wrong, please could anyone advise me what I can do? I'm going to call the letting agency later and advise them I’ve had a random call from the landlord who was quite rude to me, I feel that the whole situation has been thrown out of proportion and I’m so stressed about it now

The short version is that the OP's neighbour is accusing the OP's boyfriend of puncturing their bicycle tyre with a fork. The OP is denying her boyfriend did this. The landlord, or some purporting to be the landlord, is threatening the OP with eviction.

OP, assuming this is England or Wales the landlord does not need a ground (reason) to issue a Section 21 notice to go to court to get an eviction order. Providing the landlord's paperwork is all in order the court will have no choice but to grant him a possession order.

Have you approached your neighbour to get the bottom of this? Is it perhaps a case of mistaken identity? That said, even if you sort things out with your neighbour the landlord could still opt to issue a Section 21. By all means contact the letting agency but remember that you have no contract with the letting agency, they work for the landlord who does have a contract with them.

AdrianC

Send him a text message saying that you will only communicate by post or through the agency from now on. Then block his number. There is no legal requirement that you have to communicate with him by phone.



Definitely tell the agent.


If he's going to give you an s21 and two months notice, then it needs to be in writing. No reason is needed, so whether this allegation is fabricated or not isn't particularly important. You've still got to live with this neighbour, though...

moneyistooshorttomention

Are you sure it was the landlord that rang you? Did this abusive caller actually conclusively prove their identity to you?

I wouldnt be unduly surprised if this neighbour got someone else to ring you pretending to be the landlord - in order to stir up trouble.

As to why they would do this? Well - jealousy for one I'd say. The neighbour is probably a no-hoper and you are obviously someone that is trying to improve your life - hence the jealousy.

Second thought - maybe you personally have a family member trying to stir up trouble in your circumstances and they've set up a friend pretending to be the landlord.

Either way - I strongly doubt this person was your landlord. They probably want you heading into the agency making queries of your real landlord or are hoping you'll just give in your notice and move. Don't!

Mojisola

yasmin1997 wrote: »

Last night at around 18:30 I received a call from a mobile number - I didn’t know who it was and just figured it was a spam call or something. When I answered a man straight away shouted down the phone saying, “Who do you live with??”

Obviously I thought it was some weirdo trying to find out if i was alone in my flat at first so was hesitant to answer but the caller kept demanding to know, I advised in the end I lived on my own but my boyfriend came to stay with me a few days a week

I'm going to call the letting agency later and advise them I’ve had a random call from the landlord who was quite rude to me, I feel that the whole situation has been thrown out of proportion and I’m so stressed about it now

Don't make this worse by accusing your LL of being rude when you have no idea who was on the phone!

Next time you get a phone call from a complete stranger, hang up!

Don't give out personal information, especially telling a random person that you are alone at home.

Red-Squirrel_2

I'm a bit concerned about your judgement on the phone call. A stranger called you, didn't tell you who they were, demanded personal information from you and, amazingly and worryingly, you didn't hang the phone up but instead provided that information!

AdrianC

Where did this random whoever get the OP's (mobile?) number from?

missile

Why did you not ask who the caller was before entering any conversation?

If it was Landlord, perhaps he was angry after being abused by your neighbour. Phone him today, after he has calmed down he may listen to and accept your explanation?

I would suggest neighbour should contact the police. Then you should contact police and report the alleged incident.

After an aggressive confrontation with your neighbour & landlord, perhaps it is time to look for alternative accommodation?

Red-Squirrel_2

AdrianC wrote: »

Where did this random whoever get the OP's (mobile?) number from?

Lots of people aren't very careful with their personal information, the OP is clearly one of them!

scd3scd4

Was he the landlord?


As a person who cycles 20 miles a day I can tell you punctures are a weird thing. I can get two in a week and then nil for a year.


Even a thorn is enough sometimes.


Is there CCTV in the hallway??

tripled

Unless the landlord is best mates with your neighbour, I can't see why your landlord would rant at and try to evict an otherwise good tenant over an unsubstantiated allegation that doesn't concern them.

I'd reiterate the advice above - unless you can verify it was your landlord (is their number on your tenancy agreement?) block the number, certainly do not call it back, and in future don't give out sensitive information to strangers on the phone, whoever they purport to be. If you get a call like that, you need to bring it to a conclusion politely but firmly, and hang up. Some people find that hard, but it is an important life skill to learn to overcome that.

In future interactions with the neighbour, be calm and polite, and don't get drawn into any debate. Hopefully it'll blow over.

With regards to your tenancy, any notice has to be in writing so sit tight for now. If you want to contact the agency you can do so, but remember two things - firstly that you don't know that was your landlord that called, and secondly they are middlemen who work for their pockets first and your landlord second, so don't have your interests at heart.