Rent Increase During The Coronavirus Pandemic

greatcrested

W33D4VE said:

.... There is not a clause that relates to any increase in rent. The agreement was for an initial 6 months term, which after that period would become a monthly rolling contract...... No I have not received and S13 Notice.
As i said, the increase is not really the issue. My query was to ask if anybody was aware of any recent guideline put forward due to the coronavirus that prevents LL's raising rents during this period

1) without a S13 Notice you can ignore the request for increased rent as it is invalid. However, if you start to pay the new rent, you will be deemed to have accepted it and at that point it will become legally binding.

2) There are no recent guideline put forward due to the coronavirus that prevents LL's raising rents during this period.

newsgroupmonkey_

W33D4VE said:

Thanks both for the advice. I have yet to check my agreement. I am still a bit shell-shocked. I fairness there has not been an increase in my rent since i moved in (December 2015), so it was inevitable at some point. I just did not expect it during this crisis.
I honestly think that they could find a new tenant by Monday. They are snapped up quickly

They can find as many tenants as they like by Monday 

They're not getting anyone in unless you leave. I'm guessing they haven't given you an S21? (Not that it means anything for the next 3 months).

Being reasonable though, a previous LL did this. I wrote them a nice note explaining that my salary hadn't gone up in the previous 12 months (We had a pay freeze at the time) and that I felt it was unreasonable to ask for 7% in the current climate.

You can then choose to make an offer - say ~3.5%, and see what they say.

I think most landlords (and there are quite a lot on here) would rather lose £20 a month and have a bloody good tenant than have to remarket the property and play with fire, particulary at this point. You might think there are millions of people that are ready to move into your place, but I very much doubt it right now.

lisyloo

Well for one thing, they aren't allowed to move in right now are they? It's not essential travel (unless fleeing harm etc.)

Vestraun

Which part of the country are you located in? Name suggests possibly Scotland? 

[Deleted User]

Is the new rent in line with rentals in your area?  If it still is, and you don't want to move, I think its probably best to forget coronavirus (if your employment is secure, different if not of course).  

JayRitchie

The best thing to do would be to see how much other places are going for. Its possible your rent is still pretty fair. If not mention moving and see if they back down.

bap98189

lisyloo said:

Well for one thing, they aren't allowed to move in right now are they? It's not essential travel (unless fleeing harm etc.)

You are allowed to move house. It is specifically mentioned in the Coronavirus bill.

Crashy_Time

deannatrois said:

Is the new rent in line with rentals in your area?  If it still is, and you don't want to move, I think its probably best to forget coronavirus (if your employment is secure, different if not of course).  

Not sure about that, job losses of others will put downward pressure on rents, but this will take a short time to feed through, maybe it`s call their bluff time?

Hippo

So after 4 years and 4 months your LL wants to increase your rent?
Is it inline with the area?

lisyloo

Crashy_Time said:

deannatrois said:

Is the new rent in line with rentals in your area?  If it still is, and you don't want to move, I think its probably best to forget coronavirus (if your employment is secure, different if not of course).  

Not sure about that, job losses of others will put downward pressure on rents, but this will take a short time to feed through, maybe it`s call their bluff time?

Are you mobile I.e. willing to move elsewhere.
my place isn’t perfect but it’s good enough that I can’t be bothered with the hassle of moving somewhere else which has costs and/or effort associated with deep cleaning, inventory etc.
what do you think will happen medium/long term?
personally I think all the restaurants, cinemas, coffee shops (and hence jobs) will be back to full strength, so we are unlikely to see major shifts in rent.
immigrants will still come back both legal and illegal.
so yes have a look around and if it’s now above market value you could consider whether it’s worth your while moving and you just might get a good deal right now. if you get a special distressed deal do bear in mind that it will likely rise in future.
its really down to your resistance to moving and how close to market value the place is, coupled with local availability of similar.
i have great availability, price is ok and I really don’t want to deep clean, inventory and move.
dont forget about the deposit, new agreeement, deep cleaning, inventory hassle and costs.
you need to return the place as it was so defrost the freezer, remove mildew, clean the tile grout etc.etc.