Can he stop paying rent?

propertyrental

There are no grounds to stop paying rent. However, see bold below

nala67 said:

Hi there,

my brother has privately rented a property for the last few years. His contract had terms including a maximum rent increase.
Please quote the clause in full.
The contract is old now and so he is technically legally on a Periodic rolling contract I assume. Correct

My brother wants to stay in the property until the latest September. In September a court case is taking place with my brother as a witness. He will either move to a different area after or decide later but will NOT stay in the property regardless. 
If/when he decides to leave, he will have to serve the proper notice. See the link at the bottom.

A few things have arisen. To note, my brother is a vulnerable adult and has been on UC with housing benefit for the past few years due to disability preventing work. I'm afraid this is all legally irrelevant so far as his tenancy is concerned.

- He always pays rent on time Good
- The rent is still a reasonable amount for the area and property.Good
- the landlord regularly lets himself in without permission and my brother finds out by a note in his kitchen saying something or has been in the bath and seen the landlord peering into the window to the property to see if anyone is in.
if your brother has a (sole) tenancy, he is entitled to 'quiet enjoyment' ie no undue interference by the LL. Change the lock, keep the old lock, and replace it when he leaves. See 'how to' links below.

- boiler is not regularly serviced. There is no requirement for 'servicing'. There is a legal requirement for an annual safety check (not the same thing). If no annual check
1) write to the LL requesting one (for his safety) and if ignored
2) make a complaint to HSE via form LGSR1 form LGSR1.

- second bedroom is unusable due to being FULLY covered in black mould  has this been reported, in writing, to the landlord, at the address provided 'for serving notices?
Might he (tenant) be responsible due to lifestyle? See links at bottom.
If LL ignores, report to Environmental Health.

- other issues include broken tiles due to wear and tear, water damage etc which landlord has failed to repair
reported as above?

- landlord recently let himself in and told my brother he will begin doing the works to the property as he wants to put the rent up £200 - this is 30% increase and against the maximum increase stipulated in the original contract
change the locks. 
If the 'works' relate to the repairing issues above, surely this is a good thing? However, brother could refuse...
If/when the rent increase is proposed, check if it is legal. See link below, but possibly not, so the increase could be ignored (but existing rent must still be paid!)
- there is no deposit protection scheme 
Has he checked each scheme? See link below. Assuming he paid a deposit this is to your brother's advantage
1) he cannot be evicted via S21, so as long as he pays the rent he's secure
2) he can claim the 3 times penalty either now or within 7 years
3) deposit deductions by the LL can be disputed by threatening 2 above
- he cannot always get hold of landlord as he regularly changes his number
there is no legal requirement for a phone number. Only for an address (in Eng/Wales)
Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 S48
- all landlord’s post comes to the property as he has not changed address 
so put it back in the post box marked 'return to sender'. Your brother is not a postman

NOW what has transpired is my brother received a letter to the “occupier” from the council. It explains that they believe it could be rented out and if so it requires a licence which he doesn’t have. As a result, it states that the landlord cannot use section 21 etc. given this new discovery, does he even need to pay rent?
Yes. And it is the LL who needs the licence, not your brother.

My brother needs to know what next action to take. Eventually he will sue for the deposit not being protected but when should he do that? Considering he NEEDS to live there until September. 
wait till he has served proper notice, moved out and claimed back his deposit. If a dispute arises over deposit deductions, threaten the penalty.
He can claim the penalty any time - why do it now?

I should mention the Landlord is not a nice and I can imagine him attempting to hurt my brother or throwing his stuff out / breaking the law. We want to be careful. 
change the locks.

Thanks, 

Post 4: Ending/renewing an AST: what happens when a fixed term ends? How can a LL or tenant end a tenancy? What is a periodic tenancy?

Post 5: Rent increases: when & how can rent be increased?

Post 3: Deposits: Payment, Protection and Return.


https://www.nrla.org.uk/news/damp-condensation-mould-what-landlords-need-to-know

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/housing/repairs-in-rented-housing/repairs-common-problems/repairs-damp/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIPyqtOmprE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXAo7zSN-9o

nala67

sourpuss2021 said:

Is the property in an area where every rental has to be registered?

You should be able to find this on the local council’s housing pages.  

The property can’t be an HMO under any definition if your brother is living alone.   But I believe some councils do have blanket requirements that every single rental needs registering, even if they only have one occupant.

Yes, the property is under a ward where all rentals require a licence. Only found this out by the later saying the property was in contravention. 

nala67

My brother pays council tax, it’s heavily reduced. I am certain all his bills are in order and he is in perfect legal standing personally.

GDB2222

If the LL is offering to fix the place up, I'd take advantage of that. I can't see why you would want to stymie him? You can deal with the proposed rent increase when you come to it.

If you do change the locks, for goodness sake tell the LL. Don't leave him to find out when he tries to let himself in again. 

[Deleted User]

I dont understand why not paying rent is your main concern.  The mould, lack of gas safety and other problems need resolved.

macman

nala67 said:

My brother pays council tax, it’s heavily reduced. I am certain all his bills are in order and he is in perfect legal standing personally.

This is not relevant to any tenancy dispute. It's a civil matter.

ArbitraryRandom

macman said:

nala67 said:

My brother pays council tax, it’s heavily reduced. I am certain all his bills are in order and he is in perfect legal standing personally.

This is not relevant to any tenancy dispute. It's a civil matter.

I think that post was in response to the suggestion contacting the council/responding to the letter addressed to 'the occupier' re the property being licensed might result in the OP receiving a significant bill (ie. implying they were not on the electoral register/paying council tax) - so would be relevant in this case.