Landlord As Tenant?

GDB2222

Ah yes, this:

EDIT: I should also add they go in our rooms without asking, ignore lots of repair requests even when I offer to help carry them out, and steal our knives and other various items


The landlord is entitled to inspect, subject to notice. Clearly, stealing things is wrong. Repairs, well the OP has not been specific, but that seems another problem. Yet, the OP has renewed the lease twice! Why?

G_M

As you and your house mate have separate contracts, neither of you have 'exclusive occupation' of the entire proprty. You have 'exclusive occupation'of your own rooms, with the rest of the property (less the other bedrooms) being shared.

The landlords can therefore enter the shared areas (and the 3rd bedroom). So his 2 week occupation each year is valid.

Theft of your items is obviously..... theft. Report to police.

I would be tempted to add a lock to your door. The worst that could happen is the LL tells you to remove it which would take you more than the two weeks he was there, wouldn't it...... ("sorry - waiting for my friend to come over and lend me some tools!" etc). Be carefulnotto cause damage. Use filler on any holes when you leave.

Here is information about EPCs. If you did not receive one, the landlord cannot serve a valid S21 Notice if he wants to end the tenancy.

if abroad:
a) how do you pay rent? To the LL's own bank? If so, you need to deduct his tax unless he's given you a letter from HMRC (see HMRC (Non Resident [= overseas] Landlord Scheme) ). Or to a UK agent?

Rent is not due unless the landlord has provided you, in writing, an address in Eng/Wales 'for serving notices'. Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 S48. From what you say, he has used the agents address for this. Assuming the agent is in Eng/Wales, he has complied.


If you want to know his actual address, you can use the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 S1.

GDB2222

If you damage the door adding a lock, that may be a big deal. The OP says there’s provision for a padlock, though.

Saying things are stolen is a big deal. You’re alleging dishonesty, whereas someone may just have mislaid something. Cutlery, in a shared house, for goodness sake! The police will not do anything, and you just create ill feeling for no purpose.

As to the landlord evicting, is there any reason to think that he wants to?

jessovbhe

I thought if the landlord lived in that would make me a lodger? Everywhere else I have just looked online says it is not possible to have an AST (which my contract is) if the landlord lives here.

Is it meant to specify in my contract about whether I am renting the room or the whole property? It appears to say I am renting the whole property. Thanks

jessovbhe

Saying things are stolen is a big deal. You’re alleging dishonesty, whereas someone may just have mislaid something. Cutlery, in a shared house, for goodness sake! The police will not do anything, and you just create ill feeling for no purpose.

Both of us have noticed things going missing or being hidden in bags or underneath their things. I am not talking about cutlery, I mean expensive knife sets for cooking that are easy to disginguish from others

jessovbhe

Your contract is really clear you are responsible.

The council would deem you both responsible. Are you sure they are being paid?

Yes they are always paid and the estate agent is aware that everything is inclusive and paid by the landlord

jessovbhe

You seem to be saying that you rent one room plus have the use of the kitchen and bathroom.

You are storing stuff under the stairs. Does your lease allow this?

I am struggling to see what the landlord is doing that is so wrong? Sure, he’s not afraid to voice his views about you. If he let that room to another tenant, they might do the same. Different people have different opinions about cleanliness.

He needs some space in the kitchen for his own food. Did you leave some space free for him, or did he have to clear some space?

Essentially, what you have is a shared property where one of the sharers is absent 50 weeks of the year. That sounds great to me. But you like it so much when they are absent that you resent them turning up at all. It’s understandable that you feel like this, but not entirely logical. What’s more, you seem to be using all the storage space for yourselves and not leaving a third free for the landlord.

It says in my contract that I am letting the property, which is defined in the particulars as the house, not just the room. Or am i missing something here?

My lease doesn’t disallow me to use any other part of the property. Neither have the estate agent or landlord told me I am not allowed.

There are plenty of cupboards free for food, they just decided they would rather mine and move my things to an empty one. I wouldnt mind if they had asked.

We aren’t taking up all the storage space. Every cupboard (around 4/5) in the upstairs and downstairs hallway is locked except one which is full with their things and has the boiler in it. I would say it is reasonable to use a few square metres under the stairs to store some things like an exercise bike, especially when there is nothing in my contract to suggest I can’t do this. By that logic I also wouldn’t be allowed use the kitchen cupboards for food which would be ridiculous.

Are you suggesting that the landlord is legally allowed to be a tenant in an AST? That contradicts some things that others have posted so I’m confused

jessovbhe

The landlord is entitled to inspect, subject to notice. Clearly, stealing things is wrong. Repairs, well the OP has not been specific, but that seems another problem. Yet, the OP has renewed the lease twice! Why?

He doesnt provide notice. The first time he came my flatmate was away and I arrived home to 2 strangers (him and his wife) sat on the couch. Thats an extremely uncomfortable and even scary situation to be in. They have never done an inspection and never requested access or given notice for anything like that.

I renewed it twice because I can’t afford anywhere else at the moment and it is very cheap. If I could afford it I would move!

G_M

The contract as written is poorly worded and inappropriate. Clearly you do not have exclusive occupation of the entire property, since there is another tenant with a similar contract. You cannot both have exclusive occupation of the property.

The reality (as opposed to the contract wording) is that you have a room, and your housemate has a room, and you share the rest. There is a 3rd room that the LL retains. Each room is exclusively for the use of one of you.

The reality of the siuation is that it is a shared property, and you each have your own 'exclusive' rooms but share the kitchen etc. Whatever the contract specifies, by remaining there for as long as you have you have accepted the situation as it actually is.

You could, at the start, have contested the contract, by claiming its wording did give you 'exclusive ocupation' of the entire property, and that the LL was in breach of your contract by allowing another tenant to move in. However I do not believe a court would accept this after your acceptance of the set-up as it is for so long.

As for whether you are lodger or tenant
1) it is clealy not the LL's main residence. You are not sharing his home.

2) the contract for all its faults, does refer to you as a tenant. A contract can certainly grant additional rights by its wording

The LL is not his own tenant. He has simply not granted anyone a tenancy for the 3rd bedroom. In a shared property, each tenant has a contract for their own room + use of shared spaces. The bedrooms are not shared spaces. As I said above, the wording of your contract does not make this distinction and is poorly chosen, but your acceptance of the status quo means that you have accepted the contract not as it is written but as it is set up.


Of course, much of this is open to interpretation. A judge may take a different view and you could make an issue of it toobtain clarification eg


* come to an agreement with your housemate to take action
* change the locks to prevent the LL's access
* wait for the LL to either
1) attempt to force entry (call police?) or

2) write demanding access, or

3) start eviction proceedings


If 3), you an housemate contest,claiming you have tenancies and any S21 is invalid.


But frankly, I would either move and find a LL who does things properly, or accept that the cheap rent makes up for the downsides of the situation.

parkrunner

jessovbhe wrote: »

He doesnt provide notice. The first time he came my flatmate was away and I arrived home to 2 strangers (him and his wife) sat on the couch. Thats an extremely uncomfortable and even scary situation to be in. They have never done an inspection and never requested access or given notice for anything like that.

I renewed it twice because I can’t afford anywhere else at the moment and it is very cheap. If I could afford it I would move!

And now you know why it's cheap. What would yo do if he said ok I'll not stay here again but your rent will be going up?