Notice period/rent increase

_Penny_Dreadful

Pages_Tenant said:

_Penny_Dreadful said:

Pages_Tenant said:

Thank you very much for your answer.
do you have any advice on how to approach the estate agent about challenging their request for 2 month notice ?

What date did your original tenancy start?

Let's say for arguments sake that it started 12th January 2022 has was now a SPT.  As rent is paid monthly your tenancy periods would be from 12th to 11th so as long as you served notice by 12th March your SPT would end 11th April.  That's statutory law and your tenancy agreement does specifically say it will be a statutory periodic tenancy, not a contractual periodic tenancy.  That's what I would say to the letting agent.

Thank you very much.

Good luck and let us know how you get on. 

LegallyLandlord

My understanding is that unless you’re in a fixed term, you can terminate with one month’s notice.  

RAS

LegallyLandlord said:

My understanding is that unless you’re in a fixed term, you can terminate with one month’s notice.  

If it's a statutory periodic tenancy. Otherwise, you have to comply with the terms of the contract.

_Penny_Dreadful

RAS said:

LegallyLandlord said:

My understanding is that unless you’re in a fixed term, you can terminate with one month’s notice.  

If it's a statutory periodic tenancy. Otherwise, you have to comply with the terms of the contract.

That's the problem, the tenancy agreement states it's a statutory periodic tenancy and then tries to give a notice period as if it's a contractual periodic tenancy.  Why do people try and get fancy with tenancy agreements?  Keep it simple!

theartfullodger

Thatcher's 1988 Housing Act states that any term concerning ending tenancy does not apply from end of fixed term for SPTs.

Note tenant's notice is not one month (although landlord/agent may agree) but AT LEAST one month ending last or first day of period.

propertyrental

LegallyLandlord said:

My understanding is that unless you’re in a fixed term, you can terminate with one month’s notice.  

I'm afraid you're wrong on two counts (worrying given your user name...).

1) notice under a Contractual Periodic Tenancy (ie where the original tenancy agreement specifies a CPT will arise following the fixed term) is whatever was contractually agreed within that TA.

2) Under a Statutory Periodic Tenancy (ie where the original TA is silent on what follows the fixed term), notice is one full tenancy period (not 'one month'), hence depending when in the monthly tenancy cycle notice is served, notice might be just shy of 2 months.

saajan_12

Pages_Tenant said:

“Should the tenancy become a Statutory Period Tenancy (month to month), the agreement may be terminated by either party giving the other at least 2 full rental months notice in writing”. this is what the contract says. Clear.- potentially not clear, as a SPT implies 1 tenancy period notice, but it also specifies 2 rental months. If the court consider this ambiguous and interpret in in favour of the party that didn't draft it, ie in your favour, ie 1 month. 
Note they could also just say its phrasing issue and just means periodic, with the more specific term being '2 rental months'. You'll only know if / when it gets to court. 

But as my move has been triggered by the rent increase, does the 2 months notice still apply?  - irrelevant, you likely could have challenged the rent increase at least while running down your notice.
Besides, the LL always had the right to increase rent (through the proper notice) and also the right to xyz notice.. that's what you signed on for and could have challenged when signing. The question is just what is xyz. 

the contract term was 6 months, ending January 2020. During this period the notice was also 2 months.

the rent increase was communicate by the estate agent in an e-Mail.- was there a term in the contract about rent increases? Or was this a S13 notice? 



Thank you.

Comments in line. 
If you already have agreed to the new place, then your best bet is now to argue to the agent, that the clause is ambiguous, you interpreted it as a SPT ie 1 month and a court would do the same, so they shouldn't pursue in court.