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ahfat41

My son is currently sharing a flat with four people.  One of the flat mate is causing problems and have ben asked to leave.  Due to coronavirus it is difficult to find a replacement tenant.  Since they all signed a contract, will the other three liable to make the shortfall it is about £700 a month until they find somebody.  Thanks

princeofpounds

Very likely yes. If their contract says 'joint and several' (or words with a similar effect, but that's the normal phrase) then yes, and almost all contracts that are not rent-a-room will say that.

TripleH

1. I live in a block of flats (all rental) there has been a lot of movement with people leaving and new people arriving so it is possible to get someone in (but not without some unique issues)
2. Are they signing a new contract and are they all named in the existing contract Or do they all have their own contract with the landlord?
3. Depending on the contract, but I suspect that yes they as a group are renting the flat for £x a month and that is what they have to pay regardless of if 1 person or 4 people pay. The landlord can chase each person named on the contract for the full rent but will choose the easier targets offering the least resistance.

eddddy

ahfat41 said:

My son is currently sharing a flat with four people.  

Are you and/or other parents guarantors? If so, the landlord might decide to persue you and/or the other guarantors for the shortfall in rent - as you might have more assets than your son and his flatmates (depending on the terms of the AST).

dimbo61

So can you supply more information.
Is your son a student ?
Did he sign a joint and several tenancy along with the other tenants ?
Are you a guarantor for him and the rest of the tenants ?
Are the rest of the tenants looking for a replacement tenant ?
Spareroom is good or Uni accommodation office if students.

MaryNB

My flatmate moved out early in lockdown. We're on a joint tenancy. The area I live in usually has a very high number of people looking to rent. Although the demand was significantly reduced we still found someone within a week. We usually get about 20 enquires in the first few hours, in lockdown took nearly a week to reach this number. I did pay for a premium ad on SpareRoom to speed up the process (we would be liable for her rent if we couldn't find a replacement), and so our ad would be kept top of the list, but in hindsight probably didn't need it. 

Get the ad up on as many platforms as possible asap. It's going to be harder to find someone obviously but still plenty of people moving around.