Landlord Changes Locks To keep Scumbag Tenants Out – But Is It Legal?

Nige: Thank you for the reply. Harsh words, brutal reality, but I appreciate the honesty and the advice. Yes, I only have one property, and it is supposed to be my home. I only wanted to rent it out for three months while my current house is being sold. I will talk to the Council about their housing benefits claim, but I don't think she claims housing benefits on my house; she might have claimed using another address she lived at previously, I don't know.

With regard to her lies to secure the tenancy, I suspect that her references which I received by email, were written by herself (by the style of writing and lack of actual contact with the people who provided the references), but I can't prove it. Even if I manage to trace her previous landlord and get him to confirm he did not provide the reference, it is not a sufficient ground to remove her from the house, and the court process will still be lengthy, right?

I know that I will never have pity or charity for anyone for the rest of my life. I wish I could march up to the house and smash her face in. I wish she would burn in hell. I will make sure she is marked. However, none of these can repay my losses - financial, emotional and mental, the horror of being arrested by police when I simply wanted to ask her why did she do this to me. If any of you who are reading this have any advice, can you share here or get in touch with me? You can laugh at my stupidity, but please help me. - From a desperate landlord.

@Anita

I have a great deal of sympathy for you but for the sake of your kids you need to step back from this and learn from it, trust me it could be a lot lot worse.

Not giving you a lecture but maybe helping others let's consider what went wrong.

1. You let your property without properly examining your legal obligations as a Landlord.

2. The period was supposed to be short term so instead of giving her an Assured Shorthold Tenancy you should have given her a holiday let. Deposit and Eviction to not apply.

3. You failed to verify ALL of her references and you probably did not have several interested tenants.

4. You tried to take control of matters by going there and of course were arrested, this is because you let the property and she is now entitled to quiet enjoyment of the property.

5.You failed to protect the deposit so you may be liable to pay a sanction of between 1x and 3x the deposit. I can help you minimise that if it ever goes to Court but I will first try to help you out of this mess and avoid Court.

6. Did you even check her ID and confirm she has a right to live here, that is now a legal obligation.

This is your house but when you rent a house it becomes someone's home, now in this case you have rented to a nasty little bytche but the law is designed to protect the decent tenant.

For most tenants there is just six months of secure tenure, after 4 months they are entitled to 2 months notice, before you can serve that notice you need to get your ducks in a row. I can help you with that but I am guessing you did not give her an EPC, How to rent and may not have even got a Gas Safety Certificate. These and the deposit protection and the Prescribed information are all part of the prerequisites for an S21.

So before we go down that road we need to consider what will get you the best result in the shortest possible time.

To understand this you need to understand WHAT SHE WANTS, it could be any or a combination of the following.

1. Is looking for a roof over her head for the longest time?
2. Is she looking for Council Housing after being evicted?
3. Is she looking for a payday over the deposit.

As it stands you best case cash flow scenario is that you get the rent from the Council IF she is entitled to Housing Benefit, but if she is on Universal Credit, it will be paid direct to her.

Now IF her goal is to get housed by the Council you have some leverage because if when applying to them she got into arrears on her most recent property they will consider her as intentionally homeless.

Depending on what she wants there may be a way to get her to reach a settlement and mutually agree to end the tenancy agreement.

I would need to see the agreement but many have a clause that can terminate a tenancy if she has told lies about referencing.

However, if her goal is to get 6 to 8 months accommodation for one months rent and deposit then all you can do is get your ducks in a row as far as paperwork is concerned and then issue the S21 when you have completed that, of course she will not make it easy if that is her goal but there is more leverage.

If you are unable to get the Council to pay her rent direct then you can take her to Court with a Section 8 Eviction Notice for non payment of rent after 2 months of arrears. You may have to wait 6 weeks to get a Court date, but this can terminate the contract and Judge willing give her 2 weeks to leave, then County Court Bailiffs who take 4 to 6 weeks on average. All of these timescales depend on the area. The S8 will leave her with a CCJ which you can pursue her for.

So let's talk about leverage and settlement, park your anger and your despair, let's look at your potential costs.

6 months rental of a property with your kids @ £1000 a month maybe (depending whether you are north or south, do not give your location or anything that may personally identify you).

Court Fees and legal costs, on S8 they will be part of the CCJ but you will have to pay meanwhile. Budget £1000 to £2000 including bailiffs.

Sanctions, best case if she goes to Court is 1x deposit and Court fee but she may try to get it in a Counter claim which is cheaper, budget £1000

Then there is moving costs and maybe damage to your property, boiler could cost you £3k. If she trashes the property by letting homeless friends stay there you could be looking at thousands.

So one possible answer is to try and reach a settlement, to make it sweet enough that she reckons she is better off going by mutual agreement including a settlement over the sanctions over your deposit failure.

The leverage you have will depend on whether she ever plans to work and get credit again or whether she may be an alcoholic, drug addict or someone with mental health issues.

If she plans on getting credit one day you can inform her that not only will you get a CCJ but you will escalate the money element of the CCJ to the High Court and pursue her forever. The truly hardened criminal is not that scared but anyone who wants to lead a decent life get a car or credit will consider this.

You can also frustrate her, you can call one of the big six energy companies, inform them that you bought the house and ask them who energy is with currently as you have had no bills. They have access to a database that tells them who it is with, if it is dual fuel she may have split it.

If you get the company she is actually with they may tell you it is them. It is only at this point that you explain you are a Landlord and you would like to caution them that she is not paying rent and so you suggest they mitigate their loss by putting pre-payment meters in.

If you find out from her that she wants to be evicted by bailiffs to get social housing then can use that as leverage.

The trick is to offer her a settlement agreement, it should reflect your potential costs and at the same time say to her that you will not take legal action or muddy her chances with the Council nor will you go after her housing benefit.

I suggest you do this via a local Solicitor, you will have to pay the settlement to a Solicitor, they will pay her if she gives up the property by mutual agreement.

In the first instance you need to ask her what she wants, say you want to resolve things amicably and propose a settlement but you need to understand what she wants.

Because of your history you may be too close to this, you may need to use a mediator, some Councils have them, I know one or two.

If you need to send me anything private use the Landlord Forum link at the top of this page and once you have joined and clicked on email to activate your account you can use this link to send me a PM.

http://bit.ly/davidpip

This site has all you need to understand your legal obligations, the eviction options, how to deal with deposit failures and how to propose a settlement.

Take a deep breath and accept that you have to make the best of a bad situation, it is going to cost you money one way or the other.

@Anita

In your latest message you say short term was 3 months, the minimum term in UK for AST is 6 months.

If you did not give her a written agreement one is created by statute.

The best solution would have been a holiday let.

@Anita
David has embellished my reply and his words heeded.
I'm afraid that you are not alone in this mess but as David says you now have to get the best case solution. Nobody is laughing at you here as most of us have had similar in one way or another.
But KEEP AWAY from the property at all costs . You are currently the victim and the very last thing you want is to give a tenant ammunition with your conduct if or when it reaches court.
Prepare for the worst. Anything else is a bonus.

Yes I'm afraid the words seem harsh but the law is stacked well and truly against you by virtue of your lack of legal knowledge on property. You won't be the last either. I regularly update a friend who is a manager in a letting agency with info that various bodies send me. She is often unaware that some matters have changed because nobody updates her. I took someone to court to evict...amicable end of tenancy..and the government...bless their little cotton socks in safe jobs and fat pensions..changed the forms overnight delaying matters by three months.
If you need to chat email (put ''LANDLORD QUESTION'' IN SUBJECT LINE) me at sheerwater@ntlworld.com and I'll give you my phone no. if you need to chat. I'll even phone you back as I don't pay for calls.

In the meantime sort your own living arrangements out to stabilise things. One point you say is that your current house is up for sale. You can cancel the sale as long as it hasn't gone to exchange. On the positive side this time of year is not the best to sell and traditionally house prices are better in the spring so you might get a better price to offset this disaster. If you can abandon the sale do it. The council will not rehouse you as you intentionally made yourself homeless. Then you will be thrown to the private sector and probably end up with at least a six month let or even the worst scenario is the council will rehouse you in a B and B.
I know you work hard but have you discussed matters informally with a bank to arrange a line of credit to ease you over this period ? You don't particularly want to end up with CCJs against you because you cannot pay what a court orders when in fact you could clear those when your current house sells.
Is your new house...the one you let mortgaged ? Have you landlords insurance? Lots of questions I am afraid.

@David,

"In your latest message you say short term was 3 months, the minimum term in UK for AST is 6 months."

-It isn't, there is no minimum term for an AST.

"The best solution would have been a holiday let."

-It would have been a sham and Anita would be in the same position.

@Benji

Sorry was late at night, I meant the minimum before an S21 can be used, but S8 is possible as I pointed out.

With regard to Holiday let, the point I was trying to make was that she dived into this without considering the legal position she was putting herself in.

She could have structured this a holiday let (probably would have screwed that up too) or a company let, hell, she could have moved her brother in and he could have had the girl as a lodger (with her authority).

She clearly only intended to let for a short period but rushed into it.

Hopefully other will learn from her experience.

Hi can you advise please,

I had my parents renting a house from me and my wife and they were sole Joint tenants on the AST, both my parents passed away this year but they had my brother living with them as a lodger,he was never on the tenancy agreement which we agreed to in writing clearly stating he was not our tenant and had no rights of tenancy but was there as a lodger who we considered to be a "excluded occupier" and they were his landlords, he paid no rent, was told what room he could have and was given free meals and everything done for him by my parents, a freeloader in reality.
Now my parents have passed away and their ast is due to expire in 13 Jan 2018 can we just change the locks on my brother whilst he is out as we stipulated clearly in our letter that upon their death as its written in the agreement their tenancy ends one month after we are made aware which obviously we are and so does his right to remain there, and brother is refusing to move out.

Can we wait for him to leave and just change the locks on him and give him his belongings back, help and advise appreciated.

Thanks

@David Carter

NOPE.

The technical way of doing it is a section 21.

I had a similar case. Tenant died. Had darling fcin kids over the age of 18 who wrecked the house when she went into hospital.
They had the right to remain.

There are several ways to handle this. Write to the executors with a section 21 notice .(Post with 1st class stamp with cert of posting...no other way) (Even if the executor is yourself) The reason for this is that the excutors technically wind up the estate. Then the executors write to the occupants saying a section 21 has been issued. (and possibly issuing their own section 21 for safety as it is a sub let) Again 1st class stamp and cert of posting.
This can be followed up in court if it comes to it.

The other way is for your brother to surrender the keys to yourself. Make sure you receipt this and that a witness is present.

PS in my case I couldn't claim against damage on my insurance because the tenancy was in tenants name only and insurance wont pay. Without proof who did the damage as the younger kids were still there the police would not take action. No police report=no insurance.

Thus the real crux of the problem was a single name tenancy and when the eldest became 18 the tenancy renewal should have been changed to joint names. Cost to me £4k and tenants estate was worthless.

@ David Carter,

Pretty much as Nige said but also look at section 8 ground 7, or more advisedly, get your solicitor to look at s.8 g.7.

@David Carter
Just one other point which you may or may not wish to do. If there is any damage to the house ie rubbish clearing onwards then this can be claimed against the estate and may save inheritance tax if applicable.

@David Carter

What you have not mentioned is whether you have actually communicated with your brother?

To you he is a freeloader but to your parents he was their child, as were you.

Isn't the loss of your parents a time to try to resolve issues?

Even if not, you may find that opening up lines of communications now will save you a lot later.

Is he a beneficiary of the will?

I’m from the other side, I’m a tenant! Never had council home, always PR. I’ve moved out of North London (my home) once to care for mum. Txhen back ‘home’. Never been evicted from being bad tenant. Just been unlucky. 1st PR property (.excuse my words but have problems in head) dirty shithole, cold windows held on by a few taks. After 2 years All OUT they wanna sell. 2nd PRProperty beautiful loved it. I was born there😁 once again good tenant....All OUT AGAIN ..3rd PT In my birth town pretty property outside BUT looks were revieling ....yes looks perfect! But it was far from it Property-still in my Home town ...housing advice after eviction eg paying landlady after left £260 skip £180 lock changes

@Lyns

I am not clear what your problem is after all that history, this seems to be what you are asking advice about

"All OUT AGAIN ..3rd PT In my birth town pretty property outside BUT looks were revieling ....yes looks perfect! But it was far from it Property-still in my Home town ...housing advice after eviction eg paying landlady after left £260 skip £180 lock changes"

I am not clear what a skip has to do with anything or it's cost.

I am going to assume you have been evicted illegally (A tenant of an AST cannot be evicted in the UK without a Court Order, preceded by a 2 month notice S21/S8), if you were a lodger or had a holiday let then rules are different.

If you have been illegally evicted you are entitled to have a locksmith gain entry to the property and change the locks or you can hold the Landlord responsible and get up to £300 a day for loss of tenancy.

As you appear to have a live case it may be better to contact me via the Forum.

Hello,

I stay In Aylesbury, England, and i got your email off a blog post about tenants and landlords. So I was hoping you could help me by giving me proper advice.

I stay in a shared apartment rented out by my landlord(He doesnt stay in the building). I have only stayed for 2months and he says I should pack out giving me 2weeks notice as agreed on at the start of rent( there is no paper signed, no tenancy agreement signed)

I dont have a problem with vacating, but the problem is at the end of that 2weeks, I will be out of England on my vacation which has been planned since February. I calmly explained to him that vacating the property is not physically possible as I wont be around to either search for a new apartment or move into one.

He threatened to throw my loads out, of which I have told him legally he cant. I dont owe him rent, and I intend to pay him this incoming month rent too, even though I wont be on the property.

What do you advise?

Thank you

A desperate tenant

@Nick

If no tenancy agreement is given then as long as you are not a lodger or it is not a holiday let, then a Statutory Period tenancy is created in law with a minimum term of 6 months, the contract then runs from month to month.

The landlord would still have to do

EPC
How to Rent
Gas Safety
Deposit Protection
Prescribed Information for Deposit

BEFORE a no fault Section 21 notice could be issued

You do not have to leave, you should contact your local Council to inform them, the Landlord may be known to them. You should also try to gather evidence of his threats in emails so you can report to the Police. They can then caution him that any further attempts to force eviction will potentially result in criminal charges and huge fines.

You are entitled to change the locks as long as you put them back when you are legally obliged to leave.

Do you have a friend who can stay in the property to protect your interests?

Thank you so much David!

I sent an email to my local council this evening, explaining the situation to them. Hopefully they get across to me soon enough because i will be travelling by 30 of this month.

Also, a friend suggests i dont renew my rent with him yet, as he is known to be very hard with money, she thinks i might find it hard to get back my 2weeks deposit with him, if i need to move at the end of August, the moment i come back from my vacation.

What are your thoughts on these?

Thank you so much, you have atleast allayed my fears

Also, to your question, I dont have anyone that can stay in the house in my absence. But i can get a friend to check in often while on their way to work and back. Is that legal? As this means i would have to give the person my keys to the house either way

@Nick

Of course it is legal to have someone check your home, but I would strongly advise you (or they) change the cylinders of the lock, they cost £3.

I can give you a very strongly worded legal letter to email them if you contact me via the forum. Look at post 289 above for details of how to contact me via forum.

I advise people to always pay the rent due.

Are you SURE this was not a holiday let, are there any emails suggesting it was a holiday let?

To be honest he would need evidence that it was a holiday let which is why it was really foolish to not have a contract.

What is the basis for the other tenants you share with? How long have they been renting, to they have contracts?

Hi David. Thanks so far.
I have joined the forum and tried to search for you, but I'm having issues navigating the site. I'm not so tech savvy.

The council has gotten across to me and said the landlord is so much in the wrong that I need to inform him I must stay in the property for minimum of 4months, after which he then gets a SECTION 6A?? Do you know what this is??

I am very much interested in that strongly worded letter you proposed. Could you send it to my email?

Alternatively, this is what i composed myself;
"Dear [Landlord], I have just been contacted by Aylesbury Vale council because I have reported the issue to them. I have been advised to tell you that you cannot evict me from the house until i have stayed a minimum of 4months in the property, also you need to serve me an eviction notice of 2months using either section 6A. I have been advised to involve the police if you try anything otherwise, or alternatively to give them another visit. It is in your best interest to get the WIFI in the house fixed, because living in this house for the past 2weeks has been hell for me. I will be paying my rent for the next 4weeks on Friday, with the WIFI deduction(as you have said on our previous phone conversation), if you have anything else to the contrary proposed, do let me know by replying this message"

@Nick

I have your email now so I will contact you directly.

Form 6A is the latest version of Section 21 notice that as I advised above in post 302.

CONFUSINGLY FOR LANDLORDS

There is a new version of 6A that is also called 6A, if you serve the old one after June 1st 2019 it may be thrown out, the way to know you have the right one is that is mentions the Tenant Fees Act on First page.

You are actually allowed to regain possession by having a locksmith break in, but I advise you change the locks while you have possession, if he breaks in he will be breaching the prevention from eviction act 1977, fines are eye watering.

I have known cases with charges, fines and sanctions exceed £40,000.

He would probably have to pay you around £400 per day for loss of amenity for each day you are prevented from entry to the property, plus costs of you staying in a local hotel.

Even though he took only 2 weeks deposit he needed to protect it so can face sanctions of up to 3x the deposit for that, whether or not he evicts you.

The only exceptions to the above is whether there is written evidence of a Holiday Let, but the law comes down pretty heavy on Landlords trying to fake those. As I said above he would have been better off giving you a contract.

The other exception is if he is a live in Landlord, he would need to prove he or his family live there and if you found him elsewhere on voters roll etc, then he would lose that argument.

Hi David,

Here's one for you.

We have a basement with a bathroom and small kitchen. We.rented a room out to a couple. Whom after months have become difficult.

They've been served with a section 21. Since forth lots of drama, council, planning etc. All above board for us.

They've stopped paying rent with 5 weeks to go. What do we do?

Three emails sent over the arrears. No reply.

They are due out october 7th. They live in our home downstairs. They used the council to say it was a separate living area which isn't the case.

Come the 7th can we just walk downstairs and change the locks or?
What can the council do to us?

We have a public order in place due to abusive behaviour.

Thanks

@Sarah

Why did you serve a S21, did you give them an Assured Shorthold Tenancy?

Is their part of the property self contained with it's own locks?

Do you share ANY common parts of the property?

Hi David,

Served due to abusive behaviour, loud noise, dog urinating on carpets, etc. At this point they were paying rent.

Two months notice was provided. They have an ast that expires october 1st. They have put locks on to keep us from using our own areas. Removing the locks this week as planning and council have approved.

Prior to them barrackading the door, we shared store rooms, kitchen, garden, rear access, etc.

@Sarah

Your mistake was to give them an AST, as live in Landlords they are lodgers, I have fought and won many deposit protection claims where lodgers try to suggest they have an AST.

The difficulty you have is you gave them an AST, unfortunately the A stands for assured, which means they can't now be evicted without a Court order, that means either a S21 or S8.

You have the right to remove the locks they have put on the rooms that are shared, you could also remove the doors just to prevent the too and fro of them trying to put them on again.

I would suggest you use a locksmith so that you have a 3rd party, you may also want to call the Police if there are orders in place, explaining that there is an order of due to abuse and you are repossessing common areas.

You should not let them get or maintain possession of common areas., it is also a fire risk if they have barricaded themselves in with furniture or similar.

I would be wary that they may not leave in October, thus creating an SPT (even though you have issued the S21.

Hi David,

They didn't sign an AST in the first place. They got the council involved whom pressured us into an AST. There is no signed AST.

We spoke with the council today whom tried back tracking over the S21. Our solicitor said it's valid and they are out on October 21st. Hopefully they will disappear before then.

The locks come off on the weekend as they keep tripping the electrics and restricting our boiler use.

How likely are we to get in trouble if we just change the locks on the 7th. First time offender etc. We have had so much trouble from them and beyond stressed. The women has been very abusive to me whilst holding my baby.

@Sarah

I would be happy to check your paperwork, I have had cases where the Landlord had been persuaded to issue an S21 when there was no AST. It will really depend on the communications and other paperwork that established the occupancy.

To be honest my experience of such a difficult situation is that it will probably go all the way to bailiffs.

I would STRONGLY advise changing the locks to deprive them of access without first putting certain things in place. In such cases you can be made to pay £350 a day just for their loss of tenancy, but they could call a locksmith and the Police to regain possession and that would make them think they could do what they like.

Once I get the details I may be able to help you force the Council to take responsibility for them.

As you have a live case I suggest you contact me via the forum using the link below

https://www.landlordforumproject.co.uk

Join the forum, confirm the email and then follow the link below which has an option to send me a private message (at the bottom left of the screen it takes you to).

http://bit.ly/davidpip

Hi David,

It won't let me search you? Any ideas?

Their tenancy expires october 1st. After the 7th, we cannot keep them in our home. The abuse received is too much. I feel we are hiding in our own home. After her being abusive towards me and the baby it's become too much.

The council seem to be playing games with us. Not returning calls, emails, etc.

Hi

I am looking for some advice. I went abroad for 6 months an a friend advised me to rent my house out. She also recommended a young lady to me. To cut a long story short i rented my house to this lady an while i was away she also had a friend move in with her an she started claiming housing benefits. When i arrived back after 6 months i realised she had only paid for rent twice in that 6 months. It has been over a year now an me an my daughter are living with my mum. The tenant an her friend are refusing to move out. She called me an told me she had moved out an left a surprise in the house for me so i went around had to take a lock smith with me who started drilling the locks an the nect minute i hearing screaming an shouting coming from inside the house her an her friend are stood at the window filming an screaming an shouting. Stopped drilling the lock an the police arrived explained the situation to them. A couple of days later i get a letter from the court they are now suing me for stress an anxiety an they are not leaving me house. What can i do ?

@Riz

I am not clear whether it was the tenant who claimed Housing Benefit or "friend" she had move in.

If it is the friend claiming Housing Benefit, the first thing you do is call the Council, tell them that the person claiming housing benefit is not a tenant, give them a copy of the tenancy agreement.

If it is the Tenant claiming Housing Benefit, the first thing you do is call the Council, tell them that the person claiming housing benefit has not paid 4 months rent and you would like to have it paid directly, at the same time you inform them that she has moved somebody in with her and is subletting.

Either way, give them a copy of the tenancy agreement.

This will cause their Housing Benefit to be suspended pending investigation, it is possible that they did not declare that they live with the other person, so if that is the case they will have to repay maybe half or even more of the Housing Benefit. Note that I say Housing Benefit, but it is possible that the claim is Universal Credit, in which case you call Job Centre Plus and

As you went abroad and did not even check your bank account to notice you were not getting rent, I am concerned whether you carried out the prerequisites for eviction. These are Deposit Protection, Prescribed Information for Deposit Protection, Gas Safety Certificate, EPC, How To rent. You may also need to be licensed, depending on the area of the property (check you Council Website).

As this is live and you have given your name I would not say here whether you have done the above, rather, user the instructions in post 313 above to contact me privately via the forum.

As you have more than 2 months of arrears you can issue a Section 8 notice, this does not have the prerequisites of a S21 notice, you can then ask the Court to hear both matters together. You will need evidence of the call, so take screenshots of your phone that shows the date and time. Also gather other evidence, such as emails. Get a statement from the locksmith to the effect that you were both shocked to find someone in there because the tenant had called you and told you she had abandoned the property.

When a Judge sees the Section 8 and Arrears they are likely to see the case for what it is, a stunt to try and get some easy money.

You might want to employ the services of an Estate Agent to carry out an inspection of the property in accordance with the tenancy agreement terms, it is likely she would object if it was you, but the agent in independent. If she refuses to let the agent in then have them write to you to confirm that. If they DO let the agent in then have them film the condition of the property, this all helps in Court.

You can also add your legal fees to the Section 8.

I am astonished you got Court papers 2 days later because all Courts I know are backed up, are you sure it was not a letter from a Solicitor?

For now all you can do is accept that you have a professional bad tenant, if you did fail to protect the deposit I can help you with that too. Contact me via the forum.

Hello, I was wondering if you could help me. I am the landlord of an apartment which is let through an agency and since last April my tenant has been defaulting on his rent. He narrowly avoided the Section 8 by clearing his arrears only to slip back into them almost immediately at which point I served the Section 21 with 2 months notice. He is due to leave the property on 5th Feb and is currently in 2 months of arrears. If he doesn't vacate on 5th Feb, can I change the locks because he hasn't been paying and his tenancy is up or will I have to seek a court order to evict him? Any advise would be much appreciated!

@Caroline

NO you may not change the locks!

Let me be clear for the sake of all readers, NO AST TENANT MAY BE EVICTED WITHOUT A COURT ORDER.

Such a Court Order will come from following the legally prescribed process of Section 21 or Section 8 in most cases.

Professional bad tenants love it if you forcefully evict because they can potentially claim £350 a day plus a range of other fines apply. The worst one I know of resulted in over £40,000 of fines but I am sure that there are others that were higher.

You also risk Council putting you on the bad landlord register which may result in an obligation or refusal to be licensed.

Some Landlords have what I call "bluff" terms, that is terms that are contrary to common law and this void, I have even seen one that said a Landlord may evict a tenant in 3 days if there are arrears. What such foolish Landlords do is then give 30 days (also void) in the hope that the tenant does not call Shelter, the Council or a plethora of other homeless charities. They then end up on the wrong end of all kinds of attention.

At times like this I recommend Landlords check that their S21 was completely valid, this means you have evidence that EPC, How to Rent, Gas Safety, Deposit Protection and Prescribed Information were all valid within first 30 days of first tenancy.

https://www.propertyinvestmentproject.co.uk/blog/i-havent-protected-my-tenants-deposit/

If this was the first tenancy and you did not FULLY comply with the legislation within 30 days, then you need to do so before the tenancy falls into a Statutory Periodic Tenancy or you will face double the sanctions (1x to 3x the deposit for each tenancy).

In your position I would be reaching out to tenant to arrange an inspection, explain that the idea is to give him a chance before the exit inventory to rectify any non wear and tear issues. When you do this, offer him two dates, one an evening in next 7 days and the other a weekend afternoon.

Keep it friendly, his response to this will give you an idea of his mindset.

Once you are face to face you can ask him whether he will agree to a payment plan for his arrears, be sympathetic and ask him how much he thinks he can afford. Try to get 50% and then a commitment to deal with the rest over 3 months but be prepared to go to 6 months.

The carrot you can dangle is that once the arrears have been settled you would be prepared to provide a positive reference.

If he remains then you give him one final warning that if he does not vacate within 7 days you will proceed with the enforcement element of the Section 21 Eviction Procedure which will result in him paying all the fees related to the Eviction (typically £2000).

As he has hit S8 threshold again you can issue another S8 notice, do it in person if you do the inspection, just say "oh I need to give you this, it is just because the arrears are over 2 months". It may encourage him to bring down the arrears.

If you believe the tenant is on Housing Benefit you can apply for it to be paid direct, in my experience, once this happens the professional bad tenant is motivated to go and look for their next mug. If you do not do this then the tenant will continue to get the LHA rate for rent but pay you nothing. If they are in a busy area they know it will takes months to get a S8 hearing and Judgement.

Dear David

Please help me.

I needed to move from my flat for a year to assist with making care arrangements for elderly family who has health issues and has developed alzheimers ( the long term prognosis was not good). In order to ensure the costs of my flat were covered during that period, and to ensure I align with insurance obligations, I rented out the flat via an estate agent. The Tenants found were a couple and after all the necessary checks were completed, a joint tenancy agreement was signed for a period of one year with a break clause at 6 months. The contract started May 2019.

• 3 month into the agreement, August 2019, the tenants notified that they wished to leave the property, reason being they had split up
• The agent notified the tenants that the earliest point they could leave was at the six month breakpoint in line with the tenancy agreement, which would mean their leave date would be November 2019
• One of the two tenants left anyway, but continued to pay their half of the rent until November. The other continued to stay in the property but confirmed they would leave at the agreed date in November
• The tenant who remained then defaulted on their half of the rent in October
• As the remaining tenant was due to leave in November, we felt that this would have been settled at the end of tenancy
• Due to my changing personal circumstances, I was in a position where I generally needed access back into my flat anyway for the purposes of looking after my son's needs. Timing wise this was ok, as we already had set the date for the tenants to move out in November
• The November date came, but the tenant did not leave
• At this point both tenants were no longer paying the rent
• On attempting to discuss this with the remaining tenant, he told the estate agent that he was not moving out, and had no intention to do so. He had sort advice from the local council, and they told him not to leave my property. This advice was given even though he had defaulted in rental payments, and even thou his earnings meant he should not qualify for council housing
• I sort legal advise, and a Section 21 notice was served giving him the required two months notice. The notice stated he had to leave in January 2020
• During that period he continued not to pay rent
• The estate agent requested access to the flat so they could do the necessary checks, but the tenant ignored all calls and did not provide access
• The date when he was due to leave in January came, but the tenant did not moved out. He continued to state he had no intentions to do so
• As it currently stands he is 4 months in rent arrears. During those months I have had to pay the costs for the flat or risk losing it if I default in payments of the mortgage and council costs
• We have applied to court for hearing to try and regain access and I have received a date for March 2020, however, the lawyers have prewarned that the process could still take months for a number of reason - a) if he contests b) if court gives him more time before he has to leave c) if further order is needed for bailiffs to be put in place, and ballifs may take time come out a d execute if eviction awarded
• To add insult to injury I have incurred a number of other additional costs due to this individual persisting on staying beyond the period he was due to leave.

I physically cannot upkeep paying for this individual. My personal mental health has deteriorated due to the stress of the circumstances as I am struggling to maintain finances to upkeep the costs of the flat (mortgage, council charges e.t.c.) since the tenants continue to default in rental payments. Because the reality of my situation, these are costs I am having to bare on top of covering my own costs of living and maintenance for my child. I am no longer able to provide for my own child as I would like to.

I need my home back.

If this continues even just a couple of months more, I will not be able to keep up financially. The flat is my only home and I fear losing it all together if I dont keep up payments. I will be homeless and the current struggle of this is killing me, I struggle to sleep or eat on a daily basis due to the worry. It breaks me to have to tell my child we cannot do things because I can't afford it as I am being forced to pay for a stranger.

I fail to see how this is legally allowed.

The law is effectively providing protection to individuals who have no legal right contractually as they have breached fundamental terms of a contract. The law and the way it being applied financially imposing strangers on law abiding citizens inforcing them to upkeep them. This is all favourable to tenants, but significantly detrimental to those affected and their families.
This is no different from protecting a theif and giving them the rights to stolen property at the cost of the rights of the rightful owner and I fail to see how a law can be designed to do this.

To add-how can local authorities feel its right to push people they cannot look after onto people who cannot afford it expecting them to take the costs of these strangers, strangers who they have no link to.
How can the law set out that I could face prosecution if I try to gain access to my own home, that I pay for, and instead favour to put me in a position of homelessness.

Throught this process my fundamental rights to enjoyment of my property and enjoyment to my family life have been breached (it is my home).My mental health and family life has been affected which no amount of rebate will ever rictify. Those in charge of setting the law, and those who enforce this, simply need to change the law all together. It is unjust,unethical and breaches all I believed the law stands for.

In addition the way the legal process is set out in dealing with these matters (the slowness of proceedings, and providing extra time for tenants at various stages) simply ensures further financial loss unnecessarily.

To this point, David, I would like your advise firstly on what I can do to get my home back in the quickest way possible.

Also during these periods when forced to go through legal proceedings, do you know if there is any financial support available until the process is over? And or any provisions where mortgage/ council fees are in place?

As a secondary matter I would like to be able to get the money owed back covering all costs incured/lost during this process. In your experience does this happen?

Finally, if the tenant is required to pay, how much time are they given to make those payments? And will the system ensure I get every penny back?

Hi,

I just got on and changed the locks on my home and refused them entry.
They had the council involved etc etc. End of the day they'd had their notice and all above board.

3 months on and I've not. Seen them. Or the council. They tried calling the police there and then. I showed the police the paperwork of section 21 etc. Also mentioned they were beigg abusive to me. In my own home and I felt threatened. I mentioned I had moved back home.

They told them to leave and stayed until I changed the locks.

The council couldn't do a thing as they don't own the property and it's mine.

I haven't had any trouble since. It's funny how you are the one in distress and the council etc try to help the scumbags not paying rent. There is no justification in renting anymore. They wonder why landlords are decreasing.

I would just wait for them to go out and change the locks. Out the notice on the front door and move home ASAP.

Best of luck

@Sarah

You have been very lucky so far but this may still come back and bite you in the tail.

For the sake of other Landlords, let me make it clear, YOU CANNOT BE EVICTED WITHOUT A COURT ORDER IN THE UK and the eviction must be performed by Court Appointed Bailiffs.

Serving a Section 21 is not a Court Order, even if you took them to Court and got the second stage done.

I have had clients charged £11k for re-entering a property that appeared to be abandoned because the Tenants said they were on holiday visiting sick relatives.

You can find yourself banned as a Landlord in the UK, you can also be fined under Protection from Harassment Act and Protection from Eviction Act as well as landlord & Tenant and Housing Act, with elements of each giving fines. You could be made to pay £350 for each day of lost tenancy.

You will find that the Council CAN do something and by supporting or bringing prosecutions in their own right or supporting a tenant in doing so you may face fines and criminal charges.

The Council do not support the scumbags as you call them, they simply follow the LAW.

The ignorance of the Police in these matters will not help you.

You mentioned that you had moved back home, that could have given you Section 8 terms but they would need to have been enforced by a Court. You seem to suggest you used S21 not S8

You may have been lucky or you may face prosecution in the future, but it is very risky

As a landlord to protect yourself it is often worthy to approach the issue as if you were the tenant and to look at your options, If you need further external clarification see the Shelter website.

https://england.shelter.org.uk/legal/harassment_and_antisocial_behaviour/harassment_and_illegal_eviction/what_is_illegal_eviction

They were lodgers whom decided to barrackade themselves into my home. I changed the locks, they were removed by the police. It solved my problem.

They lived in my home. As excluded occupiers the terms are different.

They hadn't paid rent for 3.months and section 21 and 8 had been issued. The police sided with me as they had been abusive.

@Sarah

You did not say they were lodgers, you suggested you moved back into your home which came over as after evicting them.

A s21 brings to an end an Assured Shorthold Tenancy not a lodger agreement.

The terms of a genuine lodger with a live in Landlord have far less protection.

Usually they can be evicted with just reasonable notice, perhaps two weeks, then locks changed, you still have to be careful of their property.

We have had several cases where lodgers tried to get their license deemed as an AST as they alleged the Landlord was no longer resident, one was extremely vexatious and completely without foundation.

Hi
now had new tenants for two months from Feb 2020, Being new to letting our 1 bedroom flat I didn't make the security checks that was required, took them on trust, told that he had a good job as as groundsman manage in a local holiday park and she a self employed hair dresser.
he had the sack last January so when he took over the flat lied as no job, she works as self employed but now out of work owing to the corona virus.
1st month paid the rent in two payments could not afford the total deposit so reduced to help them out, this month no rent at all.
being retired we rely on the rent to pay our bills.now telling me he has a phone appointment with the universal credits, all i get is convincing lies after lie. HELP they need to go
Dennis

@Dennis

The law has extended the notice period for evictions but you can still issue notices at the appropriate time.

I would drop them a line saying

"We are all in difficult times so we want to support you as best we can. For our insurance can you please provide evidence of your loss of employment for both you and your partner, together with evidence of your claim for Housing Benefit and or Universal Credit for each of you".

If they are on benefits as suggested, then once they are six weeks in areas you can apply to the Council for the Housing Benefit to be paid direct to you, if they are on universal credit then you apply at Job Centre Plus.

If you have a mortgage on the property you can ask for a 3 month payment holiday, this will extend the mortgage by 3 months.

I would be writing to the Council now, enclosing a copy of the tenancy agreement, informing them that rent was not paid on time before we had Coronavirus pandemic. What you can expect is for them to tell you that you need to wait six weeks.

I know this is not as much as you had hoped for but these are unique times.

Do not even attempt forcing eviction, they can break back in and you will face very serious charges and fines up to £40k.

I wish you and yours well.

Hello

I wondered if anyone can advice.

I am in the process of evicting a tenant via S8 route. The case is already in court and at the possession hearing 6 months ago I already had a CCJ against the tenant for over 2 months arrears. It should have been a mandatory possession, but the tenant is legally aided and made a counterclaim for an unprotected deposit (false claim as a deposit was never paid). I submitted my defence for the deposit back then.

The judge adjourned for directions and in the meantime the tenant's solicitor also applied to get the default CCJ Set aside - and the hearing for the Set Aside is now consolidated with the directions hearing for the possession. No date for the hearing as been given yet due to the current Stay on possessions.

In the meantime, the tenant has surrendered the keys and completely moved out last week due to the stress involved and I guess due to the fact she knew she was lying regarding the deposit.

Any advice on what to do next? If I officially discontinue my understanding is that I am liable for the legal costs up to now which I want to avoid indeed. I feel like I essentially won my case but not sure how to end the whole court process? The debt is under 2 months now but not a lot under (this is due to the fact I got the rent paid directly to me from Universal Credit)

@Larisa

I would not give up your claim for one reason, leverage.

The CCJ is a decision already made, at the time of the decision the account was in arrears and so a perfectly valid decision.

Furthermore the tenant has demonstrated bad faith by misleading the Court and totally inventing a deposit that was never paid. I would suggest you seek your legal costs or (if no law firm used) fixed costs in defending that vexatious claim.

Do not be confused by the two month arrears requirement on S8, the decision was made validly by the Court and if it was not for you getting direct payments it is unlikely the arrears would be below two months.

I would also file a complaint with the SRA against the legal aid solicitor or firm for participating in that without verification it was a valid claim, this is the absolute basics of law.

The tenant abandoned the property, but did they give notice that they intended to end the tenancy in accordance with the tenancy agreement terms? If not you ask the Court for another month's notice.

BTW make sure you have written evidence of the abandonment by the tenant of the property, I have known tenants give up the keys and then come back later saying they were pressured to do so by the Landlord and bringing a case for forced eviction. If you have nothing in writing send a letter to her law firm saying

"I note that your tenant has abandoned the property, I will now be seeking to accelerate the hearing as the eviction element is no longer a factor but I would like to give your client an opportunity to settle this matter without involving the Court. This will save your client the additional legal costs from this moment forward."

@Larisa If you discontinue it must be with an agreement by her firm on the following

1. She pays the Court fee and does not seek any costs from you
2. She pays your legal or fixed costs.
3. She agrees to pay 50% of the remaining arrears plus 10% for the next 5 months.
4. She provides a verified forwarding address.
5. She pays the notice period rent if not paid.

You can add that to her law firm letter saying that you are open to settlement subject to the above terms, otherwise you will be continuing the claim and seeking costs for your law firm to complete the case. You may throw a bone by accepting 50% of 5 above if they act promptly.

The benefit for her is she will reduce how much your legal fees will cost her.

I am not sure when your case will actually be heard any time soon, there has been a backlog of 10,000 cases a month and the eviction suspension has been extended to the end of August, by then it will be around 50,000 plus the usual 10,000 a month.

So you are very lucky she has gone and you must be extra vigilant on tenant referencing for your next tenant, I would use a 3rd party and still call the references yourself.

Hi

We have a lodger in our property whom share facilities with us and we want him out of the property. His room backs onto the garden and he's been urinating on the floor of this shared area (we have security cameras showing him doing this and asked him to stop) as well as using our bathroom products and lying constantly (I understand these would be hard to prove though)
My girlfriend is the lead tenant and he has no contract with us. Even if he's paying rent can we ask him to leave, give him two weeks notice and then change the locks if he refuses to leave? Could we tell our bank to refuse payment and then refuse cash if offered to us on the basis that were no longer renting the room to him?

And advice would be appreciated.

Regards
Andy

@Andy

Lodgers have hardly any rights.

The law only states that you need to give reasonable notice, this could be deemed as 7 to 14 days.

If you can find a similar room on spareroom.com and can show he should be able to find another room promptly then 7 days should suffice.

Next time get a lodger license which would have a gross misconduct type clause.

If there has been any threat of violence then you can evict immediately and ask the Police to be present.

You refer to your girlfriend as Lead Tenant which suggests you sublet and that your Landlord is not aware, be careful about doing that as it would likely be a breach of your own AST.

I think the way to handle this is to both record audio on your phones for your own record of events and ask him for a private chat. Mention the urinating and say you are giving him 7 days notice to quit, give him a written letter to confirm the notice.

If he responds aggressively then he would be giving grounds to immediately evict.

Such a person might well steal from you so consider putting locks on your bedroom and putting anything you value away for safekeeping.

Definitely change the locks.

@David

Thanks David, appreciate the advice. Tenancy agreement is up for renewal so want him out in line with that as well Angola the revolting behaviour.

I'm not worried about the violence but yes, theft of small things which he's already exhibited could lead to bigger theft so will consider the locks on doors and definitely changing the locks.

If he hasn't left on quit date or say the day after, can we call the police and have him removed for trespassing or do we need to wait for him to leave and change the locks while he's out?

Thanks
Andy

@Andy

I think it is far easier to just change the locks once the notice has expired, carefully pack his stuff and store it safely to avoid a false claim that you destroyed his Ipad etc.

If you have a cylinder lock you can have a replacement cylinder ready and fit it in minutes once he exits the property.

I would give him a printout of the Shelter page on evicting lodgers so he can see he has no rights.

https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/eviction/eviction_of_lodgers_and_other_excluded_occupiers

This could be used if you wish to call the Police if he does not leave, in order for them to make sure he is evicted peaceably.

It can be easier to change the locks and then if he is aggressive upon return you can call the Police, give them a copy of the now expired notice and the shelter printout, then ask them to tell him to cease his public order offences.

Remember you are acting as his Landlord in this situation, so you are the Landlord.

As an Assured tenant your own tenancy is secure whether renewed or not, it would take until next year to get a Court Order for eviction.

I would strongly advise against subletting again, if you can't afford the rent ask the Landlord to add another tenant in return for a drop in the rent or at least get their permission to sublet.

If your home is social housing (aka Council / HA Housing) it is illegal to sublet and you can be imprisoned for fraud. I only mention this for the sake of other readers.

@david

Thanks David. I did read the shelter page but I'll print and include it with the notice.

It's a private accommodation so no worries on the fraud part.

I'm the DIY guy so I can change the lock pretty quickly. I think he'll probably leave fairly peacefully anyway. He keeps saying how his mother works for the police abd has told him it needs to go through the courts and has attempted to persuade us of this too. He's either lying to try and convince us or he's unaware of his rights and has been advised incorrectly due to this. Either way, he won't be around long.

Really appreciate your confirming what I thought was true. Second opinions really help so thank you

Regards
Abdy

So I don't think my tenant is still living at the property as they are never in when we go round, we have had no contact, apart from universal credits telling us during to a change in circumstances they won't be paying the rent for the tenant anymore. The electrics seem to have been shut off too. Can we enter the property to check the house over to make sure things are OK?

Good morning,

I am looking for your opinion on the following:

I am a landlord with an excluded occupant (we live in the same house and share a bathroom/kitchen etc). They have been taking illegal drugs in the home and so we have agreed 28 days of reasonable notice for them to leave.

Are we able to legally change the locks for all doors on the house after this 28 day notice period?

Thank you for your help,

@Simon

Personally I think you are being very generous, I have not seen the agreement but I would imagine it has terms that allow for eviction where there has been gross misconduct, such as committing a criminal offence or breaking certain terms. Maybe in future use a lodger agreement as they are even easier.

It may also be worth checking whether the occupier has a right to rent in the UK, they still have 28 days but it adds to the grounds, otherwise it is going to come down to the terms of the agreement and check the date of expiry if it is a periodic agreement rather than fixed term.

I have a low tolerance for drugs, not so much for people choosing to erode their brain, but having them used on the premises and the people it brings to the property.

I once had a client who had a Tenant who was in debt to his dealer, he left with rent owing and some undesirables came demanding payment for debts owed to them. He had already trashed the place and sold the appliances but they smashed the gas meter (it had no money but was easy to access and break).

Of course once the agreement has been terminated and the occupier has left you can and should change the locks immediately, maybe the night before so the moment they go out they can't come back in (check windows and back doors are all locked).

If they refuse to leave you can ask the Police to attend to keep the peace or you can evict without force, have a video going, a witness and sound recorder. If you have two locks you can change one early but not use it until they have gone, also you can have a new cylinder ready for a nightlatch or euro type lock that can be fitted in minutes.

The way I would approach it is to get them free information, sign post them to spareroom, airbnb and the Council if you think the Council owes them a housing duty.

I am approaching this from a very different perspective. Yes, I am a landlord that has done everything correctly and by the book. But I am still frustrated by the fact that the system is still being gamed by tenants who clearly know how to exploit the system and know they can get anything from 4 months to 8 months free rent before I can get them out at greater cost to me still. I know it is against the law to change the lock. So here are my questions:
1. If I change the lock, who is suing me?
2. If I get sued by whoever, what are the penalties? If it is only a slap on the wrist, I can take that instead of being constantly made a real donkey of by these people.
3. Would the court ever consider mitigating factors when "sentencing" a landlord who has changed the lock? In my case that would be:

a. Tenant has deliberately avoided paying any rent for many months.
b. Has made it impossible to be contacted as he has either blocked my numbers or refused to answer any calls or call back when left messages
c. Does not respond to emails and letters or any form of approach.
d. Violates several clauses of his AST agreement
e. Endangers the safety and security of other tenants (I have a small 4 person HMO) by giving his keys to strangers and bringing in dangerous pets. All expressly forbidden on the AST.

I am landlord ..and I am given my house to company let for 3 years and one year breaking clause and now he stopped paying rent for last 3 months ..one mistake I did I did not take deposit protection scheme ..because I am first time landlord …I did not much about this law ..but now he stopped rent +not taking my calls+very poor response on emails.I received last email on 7 th nov he written this email he asking for electricity and gas certificate ..I already send through email on oct months but in 7 th nov email he said he said he leave the house but he want more than one week and you can use my deposit as rent side by side he need deposit certificate .on 8 th nov I gave him written notice to vacant my property and gave him 10 days not charge any rent but till now I did not get any response .its very difficult to manage the financial things because I have to pay mortgage when I received the rent but now it’s really hard time for us because bank need regular payment what can I do ..can i take loan and return his deposit .he used my house as a service accommodation as a hotel ..but I know oct month I did not see any movement in my house ..what can I do please advise