Lodger lied during application, outcome on page 29...!

GDB2222

Hopefully, he’ll find somewhere. The crunch will come if he doesn’t. 

themastergoose

GDB2222 said:

Hopefully, he’ll find somewhere. The crunch will come if he doesn’t. 

I'll cross that bridge and report back here if I have to...!

canaldumidi

Well done and fingers crossed.

Obviously if you can keep things reasonably amicable and non-confrontational till he leaves that's best, but I imagine the next week will be stressful.

Yes, if he finds somewhere and leaves earlier, refund his rent - the sooner he's gone, with the minimum of argument, the better.

You said you work from home which is good. I'd be wary about leaving him alone in the house. He might vanish with half your possessions. I don't know what work you do, but obviously there's a security issue there so again, best not to leave him alone. In fact if you can pursuade a friend to come and stay for a few days, better still.

Next time, always do a credit check and background check before handing over the keys.

Don't forget to change the locks after he's left. I do this after every tenant change-over as a matter of course, but in this case even more important.

Schwarzwald

Pretty unpleasant situation.

I’d be cautious how to approach the situation and aim at avoiding any situation that may become violent / big argument.

probably not an individual who’s looking for legal representation if you just chuck him out and exchange the lock, however, who knows if he retaliated somehow differently.

i guess I would try to come up with some standard reason why you need to give notice, dont even mention the background check, say your work requires you to leave for 4 weeks in 10 days and you need to give notice.

if that didnt work, i would make sure that you have somebody with you on the day you tell him why he needs to go etc. nobody likes to be called out a liar and usually enters a defence mode, and defense mode can easily start an argument, and arguments can spiral out proportion / become very very unpleasant, etc

i would terminate the lodger agreement but not call him out in the first instance

Brie

I think that you have done the right thing to end the situation and agree that you want to be cautious until he's gone.  And maybe change the locks after, just in case he keeps a key.

All that said....at what point does one forgive/ignore a criminal past?  Even one with violence.  People do change, are rehabilited.   I agree it's very difficult to tell and obviously no one wants to put themselves in danger.  But I would hope that we don't always assume the worst.  It's quite recent so maybe it's too soon to easily trust.  But if it was 10 years in the past or 20?

sevenhills

GDB2222 said:

The big question for me is whether you are prepared to give him notice or want him to go right away? Either way, where is he going to go?

Once you have let them in, its very difficult.

I would worry about what access they have access to whilst you are out. Does your PC have a password, are your bank books secure, valuables in the house and recent bills that they could steal your ID.

But if you worried about all of that, you would never get a lodger.

IamWood

Brie said:

I think that you have done the right thing to end the situation and agree that you want to be cautious until he's gone.  And maybe change the locks after, just in case he keeps a key.

All that said....at what point does one forgive/ignore a criminal past?  Even one with violence.  People do change, are rehabilited.   I agree it's very difficult to tell and obviously no one wants to put themselves in danger.  But I would hope that we don't always assume the worst.  It's quite recent so maybe it's too soon to easily trust.  But if it was 10 years in the past or 20?

I'm happy to help someone in that situation financially but would never put myself and my family in a vulnerable situation.

I tried before and learned the lessons. Sadly someone would not necessarily appreciate the help they have.

The argument mentioned in OP would definitely demonstrate that. That would be enough for me to serve a notice.

comeandgo

Is it normal jargon to say all inclusive in a lodger advert as I would have the same understanding that it meant all food too.  It it said bills included I would understand that to mean no charges for water, electricity, gas or tv licence.

comeandgo

Is it normal jargon to say all inclusive in a lodger advert as I would have the same understanding that it meant all food too.  It it said bills included I would understand that to mean no charges for water, electricity, gas or tv licence.

user1977

comeandgo said:

Is it normal jargon to say all inclusive in a lodger advert as I would have the same understanding that it meant all food too.  It it said bills included I would understand that to mean no charges for water, electricity, gas or tv licence.

Admittedly I've never been or had a lodger, but I'd have assumed it just referred to the usual household bills, not that it was offering some sort of Mediterranean beach resort vibe.