Advice on breaking rental contracts for elderly parent

tomcorby1

My father is a disabled 89 year old who this June had to move into supported accommodation due to his frailties (he cannot walk on his own and suffers multiple illnesses). This new accommodation is run by a housing association and is difficult to secure so he had to accept the offer when it became available.

His previous flat was completely unsuitable for his mobility and health needs.

Unfortunately 18 months ago he had agreed to a 24 month rental lease on his old flat that does not terminate until July 2025. I suspect - but cannot prove - that he was pressurised into this new contract. It has no escape clause and his previous landlord has refused to cancel it. He is therefore paying rent on both his supported accommodation and his old flat. He has been doing this for 6 months. 

This has put him under severe financial and mental pressure as he struggles to cover the cost of two rentals.

I realise that he is under contract, but what are his options - his old landlord is unreasonable?

Any advice is gratefully received

Baldytyke88

Should someone be acting on his behalf, with power of attorney if you think he is under mental pressure?

I thought a normal housing contract was 12 months, but just with any contract, a longer contract can have advantages.

https://www.gov.uk/power-of-attorney

elsien

Negotiate with the landlord and agree to cover the cost of finding a new tenant? That’s going be cheaper than covering two lots of rent for the next 18 months or so.
it’s not going to be in the landlords interest either to have a property left empty for that length of time. I wonder what the landlords insurer would say about that, And if that’s a point you could make to persuade them to reach a compromise?

theartfullodger

Is it cleared etc?? What about utility bills and council tax please??

He/you could take the strategy of just stopping paying landlord (and any other bills) then seeing what greedy landlord does.  He could sue for debt (the easy bit is getting court judgement, the difficult bit is collecting the ££££) but might feel this would put him in a bad light.

Artful, another greedy landlord...

Good luck!

FlorayG

The landlord may seem to be unreasonable but he is within his rights. Ask the LL what it would take to let your father out of his contract and see what the LL says. Has your father moved everything he owns out of that flat - could it be immediately let if the LL was agreeable? If so speak with him. Remember it will cost the LL at least one month's rent to get a new tenant but that could be covered by your father's deposit on agreement

youth_leader

That is sad, best wishes to your Dad, I hope he is getting the care he needs.  

Murphybear

Have you looked into the benefits he would be eligible for?  If he has needs care then he could be entitled to Attendance Allowance.  Depending on his income he could be entitled to Housing Benefit.

Theres lots of advice/help on the Age U.K. and Citizens Advice website.  

saajan_12

Sorry to hear about the illnesses. If he lacked capacity to make the decision to sign a contract, then what POA or similar was in place and did the LL even know about this? The threshold for pressuring into signing is very high, think gun to head not heavy convincing. 

Assuming the contract was entered into legally, then yes its now a fixed term. that can have pros and cons, some tenants would prefer the security of a fixed term with no rent increases or eviction in that time, so it isn't inherently unreasonable. Once agreed, its certainly not greedy or unreasonable to enforce that agreement. 

The time to deal with it was in June 2024 when he was leaving, rather than paying in full for so long. He could have tried to negotiate an early termination by paying readvertising costs plus rent only until the flat was relet (which it probably would be in the last 5 months). He can still negotiate this now, but the saving vs the rent for the rest of the fixed term will be much smaller. 

Alternatively if he really can't get anywhere with negotiating, then stop paying rent. LL would presumably serve an eviction plus may claim for contractual losses eg readvertising but this will take longer to stop the bleed than the negotiation route. 

theartfullodger

Murphybear said:

Have you looked into the benefits he would be eligible for?  If he has needs care then he could be entitled to Attendance Allowance.  Depending on his income he could be entitled to Housing Benefit.

Theres lots of advice/help on the Age U.K. and Citizens Advice website.  

Run this with/for him
https://www.gov.uk/benefits-calculators

FlorayG

Please don't 'just stop paying rent' that will mean LL has no income at all from the property and can't let it to anyone else. Awkward he may be, but he may also be needing the income.
What you could do is contact the landlord and say" My father can't afford the rent so from next month he will no longer be paying it. Sorry but you will have to take him to court for it. Bear in mind he is 89. On the other hand, if you're willing to negotiate early release from contract he's willing to meet you halfway"
This gives the LL the option to be helpful or put HIMSELF in the situation of having no income from it

Herzlos

tomcorby1 said:

Unfortunately 18 months ago he had agreed to a 24 month rental lease on his old flat that does not terminate until July 2025. I suspect - but cannot prove - that he was pressurised into this new contract. It has no escape clause and his previous landlord has refused to cancel it. He is therefore paying rent on both his supported accommodation and his old flat. He has been doing this for 5 months.

Is he competent to make his own decisions now and at the time?

In any case, he's 89, so what does he have to lose by just not paying the rent on his old flat? Some bad credit?