Agent seems to think tenants unlikely to leave. Is this normal?

[Oricolt]

I own a house, which I would like to sell.
I live overseas. An agent manages the rental.
I have spoken to the agent about my plans, and he is immediately talking about legal action to remove the tenants. It all seems very aggressive. I asked if we couldn't just give reasonable notice, etc., and he says yes, but there's no guarantee they'll leave. Is this normal?

If there are lots of options available then great, but in many places there aren't.
There are currently 2 three bed house available to rent in my town of 34000 people, and both are over £1200 a month.

It's really hard to find a rental property now. So yes it can be impossible to find alternative accomodation. This is part of the problem and why the OP will need to look at the legal side of this and how she may have to evict because if they can't find somewhere the advice will be to stay until evicted otherwise they aren't eligible for emergency accommodation.

Great if they can find somewhere. Not so great if they can't.

In theory they should pay rent up until they leave. In practice it may be a different matter unfortunately.

Is there any chance the tenants might be interested in buying the property themselves OP?

You start by asking them to leave in a month's time. You see how they respond. The manager is warning you that they may not just leave, so you don't start selling the house expecting it to be empty in a month, and then find it isn't because they refuse to leave. You don't know that this will happen though so you don't need to worry about it until it does! Plus honestly selling a house would take 6 months if you are lucky, so you'll find out they are taking the piss and have time to evict them before you sell. Heck, you could easily have the house on the market a month and not have any offers even, and it will probably take 6 months from selling to to actually exchanging contracts.

Have a look at this website. It’s written from tenants point of view but it will brief you on what you need to know

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

also be aware of lots of legal changes coming in May

https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/private_renting/renters_rights_act_changes_for_private_renters

Ive assumed your property is in an England. Be aware the law is different in each of the nations and you will have to toggle if your property is elsewhere in the UK

I've recently sold a rental property, the tenants needed a reference letter and a copy of the section 21 "no fault" eviction notice before the estate agent would even consider them for another rental.

The agent is giving you warning that you need to take it into account in terms of timescales, but it’s not a given they’ll refuse to leave or even necessarily likely. It really depends on your tenants. A low income family with limited options hoping to get social housing might hold out for bailiffs; most other tenants, providing they’ve had several months’ notice, will just organise onward accommodation themselves and leave in the usual fashion.

Section 21 notice period is 2 months. It's also impossible to sell a property with tenants still living in it unless selling to another landlord.

Don't delay op. The law changes on 1 May and you will not be able to sell for 12 months after that.

Ask your agent to issue the section 21 notice as soon as possible. You could consider offering them their deposit back - or a cash alternative, as they will have to provide a deposit and a months rent in advance to secure a new property - if they can find one. Discuss with your agent asap.

So how does this work? It used to be a yearly contract, and you could've just refused to offer a new contract. So you have no contract protection on landlords side of things?

Untrue, we and several people I know, have started the selling/buying process with tenants in situ without selling to a landlord.

We are currently the tenants in a similar scenario, given a S21 at the end of Feb. There are currently 18 properties available to rent in our area, which is a fairly large town. I check all of the websites multiple times a day but houses only get added sporadically. We also have to factor in the DC's schools and so on. If it comes to it, we will keep paying the rent and stay beyond the date, because we've got no other choice. So no, the tenants probably can't just "find another property" just like that.

We've lived here for 10 years and now suddenly we're having to move out. It's a massive, massive shock and upheaval. We've been good tenants and only asked for the absolute basic of repairs (maybe three or four times, mostly bathroom related so urgent) while we've been here, and are absolutely devastated that we're having to leave. Yes it's a risk of renting, but that doesn't make it any easier.

Recently?
It is more of a buyer's market now, with fewer people looking to buy and more people wanting to sell. Therefore buyers are less likely to take the chance on a property with tenants in situ. It's simply a massive risk to offer on a property on the assumption that tenants will leave on time and if a buyer doesn't have to do that, they won't.

As you’re abroad and your agent is more clued up on the local rental market, I’d follow his advice.

Of course, the one-month rolling contract that they requested could be a good sign, because they may be looking to buy. They could be interested in buying your property’.

If you live in England this has never been the case. The landlord must serve a valid notice, a S21 is 2 months notice which could expire at the end of the fixed term. The landlord has always had to obtain a possession order. It was quite possible and usual for the tenancy to continue after the expiry of the fixed term on exactly the same conditions,with the same necessity to serve notice and obtain a PO. Nothing ends the tenancy unless that happens, from the landlord's perspective.

Yes

If they aren’t willing to go quietly it can be months of very expensive and stressful attempts to make them. But for a good reason - as a fellow LL I accept this is part and parcel of what I took on.

You can just open guess they are happy to find somewhere else easily.

Or you can sell with tenants in situ

I don't think they're looking buy because they asked if they could redecorate.

Okay. I guess we just follow the process.

Thank you for the links @AgnesMcDoo - I will read up and get myself informed, especially regarding the May changes.

I don't minimise the effect of evicting people from their home. They've been there a year or so now. It's happened to me as a tenant, and it's horrid and expensive. But I've just left a financially abusive marriage, and selling that house is the difference between me being able to stay in this country with my children, or having to move back to UK without them. I'm afraid I have to sell it.

Only if the person choosing to the buy house is doing so because they want to be landlord.

I was lucky, after 16 years in my rental house my landlord chose to sell, it got sold to a cash buyer in Nigeria who didn’t even want to view the house, the same bloke owns almost half my street now and the same agent manages most of them, when my last landlord wanted to sell, the agent himself told me that just because the owner gave me four weeks verbal notice that it was going up for sale, it doesn’t mean I have to be out and that people who have done their research know that renters in areas where housing is in shortage are told by citizens advice and the local council they can’t get help and that certain things need to be followed.

The letting agent told me he knows that it will be snapped up very quick by another landlord and that he had told the owner this would be his best bet at selling quickly rather than to someone who plans to live in it because it can be a very very long process if you have tenants who can’t find elsewhere and who don’t want an estate agents and randoms being given tours while they’re still living there.

Look into the in-situ thing OP, give some agents a call.

Depends on the people and on the market. If my landlords would inform they were selling, I would be out ASAP. Cause there are a lot of rentals. My only issue is that they require a person to act as a guarantor and they don't accept pensioners or foreigners so my family is out but fortunately I can afford to pay for service.

But if in their location there are 30 applicants per rental, they can't per personal guarantors or can't afford to pay service and can't afford rent increase then they will wait for eviction.

"https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/private_renting/renters_rights_act_changes_for_private_renters?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23224644378&gbraid=0AAAAADwswOyWg3MC43685PHhSvn_0Xd8t&gclid=Cj0KCQjwgr_NBhDFARIsAHiUWr5tTpub3YoXsuAN7b9vDNWfmoVJZGBe_cFyKoB5ivR96yeJJAUCFl0aAiHLEALw_wcB

Read this. If you haven't bought the property yet, I'd be highly surprised if you'd get an offer accepted, searches done, exchange and complete by May 1st.

After May 1st you won't be able to just ask your tenants to leave by issuing a section 21 no fault notice.

You will only be able to ask your tenants to leave if they owe rent or you're selling, etc.

Brace yourself they don’t have to leave if they don’t want to till you go to court and get them evicted possibly by bailiffs
all this takes months and will cost YOU £1000’s
the ball in there court they have the upper hand you have very little protection

Get your facts straight. This applies to new tenancy agreements not existing ones. @oricolt won’t have you wait a year, it will just be that’s there will be a 4 month notice period rather than 2.

I had the experience of s21, we were in a favourable position financially but couldn’t find anyone to rent to us in the two months notice because there were 20 people looking at the same rentals in our area and we didn’t get picked. Eventually we did find somewhere but had to overstay two weeks (still paid rent) and the owners abroad went ballistic it was really unpleasant.
I have just bought a property which was tenanted and they moved out a month before completion so I guess it just depends.

Ask them if they want to buy first.

Our landlord gave us a lot of BS about our flat needing redecoration when we'd been living there a few years, then put it on the market after having greatly inconvenienced us first. It would have looked better with the old paint and tidy than with the ugly new paint and us leaving it messy.

We were uncooperative with viewings beyond what was strictly convenient to us, and we left them with a gap between their sale and our next place because we were so pissed off.

Ironically we would have been interested if we'd been offered first.