Rent Collection

payingfornowt

tbs624 wrote: »

Merely going to the property every month puts you on very dodgy ground as a LL, or agent of a LL - really - don't do it. The Tenancy Agreement states when the rent is due and how it should be paid, and that's what you need to be looking to.
and that's what the initial letter is for. Don't get emotional in it, and certainly do not say anything that could be construed as a threat - merely politely state the facts, and ask that his/her payments are brought up to date within 7 days.

You also need to make sure that you have your GFs address or an agents address shown on the contract as required by law. If it isn't then you need to issue aS48 notification straight away. How long has the tenant been in the property, when is the Tenancy Agreement due to expire and how many weeks or month's is s/he in arrears?

Thanks tls, it’s a mess to be honest.

It was rented as part of a lettings management company that my GF was a partner in, anyway a long story short the company has split and my GF has ended up with this house and the problem tenant.

The tenant has been served notice to leave when the agreement is up and the tenancy agreement is due to end in June.

Could the tenant decide not to leave in June?

If so would the money paid direct from the DSS continue whilst the tenant is in the house?

All the documentation I have seen has been sloppy at best and in some cases non existent.

Indirectly I am going to have to pay for this, my GF will not be able to keep up her ½ of our rent whilst paying another mortgage. Really annoying!

mlz1413

OP you haven't said what action your partner has taken already to collect the arrears? Has she phoned or written to the tenant?

Either way maybe she should write giving at least 48 hours notice and do an inspection. This will show up if there are any problems with the house. If there are she should discuss them with the tenant at the time and then put in writing the problems and re-arrange a date to go back and check that the problem has been put right.

Your partner should be the one contacting the tenant, she should take a witness with her (it can be you) but the witness should not get involved with any discussion, they are only there as a witness.

Did you get a guarantor for the rent - ie is there someone else you can contact about paying the arrears?

Rabiddog_2

Why not go round to the tenant. and ask them why the rent isn't being paid ? If its because its being spent on drink then perhaps you might invoke some shame and maybe a decision to right the wrong. All this impersonal contact makes it too easy for people to shirk their responsibility's and pretend the problem isn't happening or that it doesn't involve real people, only some corporation. If this person is made aware that you are suffering as a result of his actions, then maybe, just maybe, there will be a better outcome. You never know, he might invite you in for a drink! :beer:

moneysavinmonkey

you are clearly heading into deep waters here... and setting yourself up for a lot more trouble.

Telephoning or visiting the tenant without their consent can be harrassment if the tenant decides it is. They have a right to quiet enjoyment of their home. If you get things wrong you can make it difficult for you to evict them and could potential lead to a criminal charge. I also wouldn't want to annoy your tenant, as they could damage your property. You need to take a professional business approach to this...

1) write a letter detailing the arrears and the amount outstanding. Give the tenant 14 days to respond.

2) depending upon whether the response is satisfactory and if the amount of rent outstanding is 2 months or more of rent you can issue a section 8 possession notice (not an eviction)

3) if the tenant does not leave at the end of the possession period and you have done everything correctly and by the book you can apply to the court for an eviction order.

4) any money outstanding (along with the costs of the eviction) can then be billed to the ex-tenant and if necessary you can pursue this through the small claims court.

Everything needs to be done fairly precisely and in some cases with certain exact legal wording - e.g. the section 8 notice. You really need to get some professional advice and if you partner isn't a member of a landlords association already now would be the time to join - you'll get your money back in no time seeing as you are going to be needing their legal helpline straight away.

Maybe someone else can advise on this as I don't know but as your tenant is in receipt of housing benefits if you start hassling her for payment of rent you may find the council housing officer contacting you, landing you in serious trouble and you could get struck off as a landlord.

moneysavinmonkey

Rabiddog wrote: »

Why not go round to the tenant. and ask them why the rent isn't being paid ? If its because its being spent on drink then perhaps you might invoke some shame and maybe a decision to right the wrong. All this impersonal contact makes it too easy for people to shirk their responsibility's and pretend the problem isn't happening or that it doesn't involve real people, only some corporation. If this person is made aware that you are suffering as a result of his actions, then maybe, just maybe, there will be a better outcome. You never know, he might invite you in for a drink! :beer:

this is a nice thought, but unfortunately the law doesn't work that way. Advising the OP to go round to the tenants and "invoke some shame" could have a very serious consequence for the OP.

Whilst I'm sure the above poster had a very good intention, be aware that advice from a anonymous public forum can be wrong... getting professional advice is best and in the long run can be moneysaving.

moneysavinmonkey

payingfornowt wrote: »

Thanks tls, it’s a mess to be honest.

It was rented as part of a lettings management company that my GF was a partner in, anyway a long story short the company has split and my GF has ended up with this house and the problem tenant.

The tenant has been served notice to leave when the agreement is up and the tenancy agreement is due to end in June.

Could the tenant decide not to leave in June?

If so would the money paid direct from the DSS continue whilst the tenant is in the house?

All the documentation I have seen has been sloppy at best and in some cases non existent.

Indirectly I am going to have to pay for this, my GF will not be able to keep up her ½ of our rent whilst paying another mortgage. Really annoying!

rather surprised that your girlfriend ran a letting agency but doesn't know the law when it comes to rent collection! :eek:

payingfornowt

Thanks everybody, I think I will probably stop meddling.

Does anybody have a template visit letter? I think she needs to arrange a visit to asses any damage on the property as I think there will be some.

My GF has had threatening calls from the tenants neighbours and they are blaming her for the neighbourhood disturbance.

Its really getting to us both financially and she is crying about it daily. My original advice was to let the mortgage go into arrears and have the house repossessed but she wont do this as it will screw her credit rating.

Thanks again everybody, confirmed my thoughts that were simply f****ed!

PasturesNew

Rabiddog wrote: »

Why not go round to the tenant. and ask them why the rent isn't being paid ? If its because its being spent on drink then perhaps you might invoke some shame and maybe a decision to right the wrong. All this impersonal contact makes it too easy for people to shirk their responsibility's and pretend the problem isn't happening or that it doesn't involve real people, only some corporation. If this person is made aware that you are suffering as a result of his actions, then maybe, just maybe, there will be a better outcome. You never know, he might invite you in for a drink!

Because that's illegal, did you not read above?

Renting property is a BUSINESS, not some kind of social networking group where you can drop by and have a chat.

PasturesNew

payingfornowt wrote: »

It was rented as part of a lettings management company that my GF was a partner in,

It worries me, a lot, that she doesn't know the law in these matters. If she was a partner in it, why is she not dealing with it as per the laws that apply?

Looking at the figures, that the HB pays 70% and the tenant pays 30%, for many single people in many areas, it would be virtually impossible to pay 30% out of the £59/week Income Support/JSA.

If the rent is £350/month, then they'd be paying out £105 of it. If the rent is £450/month it would be £135/month.

Maybe the tenant is short of the money in the first place. OK they drink, but if you can't afford to pay a ot of bills sometimes I guess you just think sod it and buy a bottle of white lightning for £2 for the night.

(£59x4.3) - £105 = £148 per month to pay all the other bills and buy food (or drink!), not to mention the cost of looking for work and the potential for having to pay for newspapers and travel to interviews. That's £34/week to live on.

The tenant probably has enough problems without harrassment.

moneysavinmonkey

payingfornowt wrote: »

Does anybody have a template visit letter? I think she needs to arrange a visit to asses any damage on the property as I think there will be some.

If you join a landlords association they have all these kinds of template letters available on their website. Be aware your tenants doesn't have to allow you to visit ( and if they owe you money they probably won't want you to!). Not sure what you can achieve by requesting a visit at this time - if the place is a mess and trashed there is nothing you can do about it until the end of the tenancy.

payingfornowt wrote: »

My GF has had threatening calls from the tenants neighbours and they are blaming her for the neighbourhood disturbance.

Deal with this as best you can, write a polite letter to you tenants detailing the neighbours concerns and contact you neighbours to tell them that you have done this and reassure them that you will not be renewing the current tenants contract.

payingfornowt wrote: »

Its really getting to us both financially and she is crying about it daily.

It's really not the end of the world (you are still getting the 70% rent from housing benefits right??) and can be sorted out step by step. If you girlfriend is crying daily could she be depressed? Take her out for a nice walk and give her a cuddle and stop giving her uninformed advice!

payingfornowt wrote: »

My original advice was to let the mortgage go into arrears and have the house repossessed but she wont do this as it will screw her credit rating.

your girlfriend is right..you are giving her some really bad advice!!!
a repossession is the ultimate last resort - you are unlikely to get full market value, your mortgage lender will charge your repossession costs and chase you for any outstanding mortgage not covered by the sale, and your girlfriend will have a major black mark against her credit rating - in these times of tightening credit she will then find it extremely difficult to get credit and she won't get a mortgage for a long time.