Is she being diddled by her landlord?

madmalteaser

I'm actually asking for advice for a friend who recently handed in her 1 month's notice to her landlord after moving in with her boyfriend.

Her landlord has since stated that:

a) she will have to continue to pay rent until her year's tenancy is up in September or a new tenant is found.
b) she will have to continue to pay council tax and utility bills until her tenancy is up or a new tenant is found.
c) she will have to pay costs for the landlord to advertise in order to find a new tenant (!!).

Now, I know for a fact that last one is utter rubbish but we're a bit unsure about the other two. But here's the clincher. The contract she had for the place states, in the very first clause that this is all valid for 3 years - she has been living there almost 4. Does that mean everything in the contract is null and void?

Please bear in mind she is a single mother of an 8 year old boy and has already started contributing to bills at her boyfriends place so she is currently paying to keep 2 homes running on her single persons salary which she simply cannot afford. Also, she has left the house in good order, clean and in exactly the way it was when she moved in. The landlord still has her £1000 deposit.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I know this is a really big worry for her.

Doozergirl

When was the last contract signed? ie. has she renewed it since she moved in?

Incisor

Go with what Doozergirl says. The contract is the issue here. 8 year old sons don't come into it, nor 7 or 9 year old. If the contract is for 3 years and she has not signed another, then look to see waht the contract says about the period after 3 years.

PasturesNew

madmalteaser wrote: »

a) she will have to continue to pay rent until her year's tenancy is up in September or a new tenant is found.

If she signed a 1 year agreement, this is normal. That is the whole point of signing a 1 year agreement.

madmalteaser wrote: »

b) she will have to continue to pay council tax and utility bills until her tenancy is up or a new tenant is found.

If she has moved out she can pay £0 council tax for some/all of the remaining period, which she can establish by contacting the local Council for their rules on empty properties.

For utility bills, it would be the standing charges. She would need to contact each utility company to ask them.

madmalteaser wrote: »

c) she will have to pay costs for the landlord to advertise in order to find a new tenant (!!).

Yes, if she wants to be released early from the 1 year. It's normal (legal) that she is responsible for her landlord's advertising and lettings agency fees to find a new tenant, until the end of her 1 year is up.

madmalteaser wrote: »

Now, I know for a fact that last one is utter rubbish but we're a bit unsure about the other two. But here's the clincher. The contract she had for the place states, in the very first clause that this is all valid for 3 years - she has been living there almost 4. Does that mean everything in the contract is null and void?

It's not the total length of time living there that's important. The question is if she signed a 1 year agreement.

madmalteaser wrote: »

Please bear in mind she is a single mother of an 8 year old boy and has already started contributing to bills at her boyfriends place so she is currently paying to keep 2 homes running on her single persons salary which she simply cannot afford. Also, she has left the house in good order, clean and in exactly the way it was when she moved in. The landlord still has her £1000 deposit.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I know this is a really big worry for her.

Her personal situation is her concern and responsibility.

Without further information, I see nothing wrong in what the landlord is saying.

The amount of notice people can usually give under an AST is one full months' notice from a rent date. But because she signed a 1 year agreement all the above seems fair, legal and reasonable.

If there is any relevant further information which changes any of the above, then post it and we can give opinions/advice further.

madmalteaser

Doozergirl: Good question and I don't know the answer. I presume if she did renew her contract then everything in it still stands?

PasturesNew wrote: »

If there is any relevant further information which changes any of the above, then post it and we can give opinions/advice further.

Sorry, I realise I should have said that points b and c are not in the contract and this is the first time she has ever heard about these. Does that make a difference?

Doozergirl

a, b & c would all stand if she has renewed her contract to end in September.

madmalteaser

Doozergirl wrote: »

a, b & c would all stand if she has renewed her contract to end in September.

Even if b and c were never in the contract?! How is that possible? Surely that would mean I could make a contract for someone to live in my house and simply say in it this is what you owe me per month and then when they hand in their notice say that they owe me this for this and that for that. Am I understanding this correctly?

Issy01

If she is within a fixed term then she is Liable for a and b.

As you say think c is a load of rubbish.

Lavendyr

I personally dont' see how she would be liable for b). If she moves out, the council must take her name off the list of people living in the house (and add it to the place she moves to), so she would no longer be liable for council tax at the old address. Ditto utilities, if she's not named on the bill how can she be held liable?

SquatNow

You need to find out what the terms of the contract say and when she last renewed.

Without that all answers so far are mere speculation.

Basically if she renewed for 12 months then she has to pay the rent and bills (except council tax) up until september or until the LL finds a new tennant. If the LL finds a new tennant before september then he can charge her the costs of getting that new tennant.

If she didn't renew then her original 3 year contract turned into an AST and she has to give 1 months notice on or before a rent date.

PasturesNew

The tenant is always responsible for paying the utilities, unless the landlord has specifically stated not (very unusual/most usual in a shared or student place).

So being responsible is actually between the tenant and the Council and utility companies, not between your friend and the landlord; he was just pointing it out. IF, however, she is replaced by a new tenant, then her responsibility for utility bills/Council tax will cease as theirs begins.

As for paying for the landlord's costs, he doesn't even have to LET her leave early really. That's a separate and private agreement that he's considering it. And so it's only right/just that she should pay for his costs to find a replacement for her.

These things don't have to be in the contract because they're just the way life works.