Would this be intentionally homeless?

[Miley89]

Would this be classed as intentionally homeless?

I'm panicking as it says if we are seen as intentionally homeless the council have no duty to house us and social would remove my child :(

What does it say? The photos with handwriting aren't clear. What do they mean that you haven't look d after the property?

So looking at those reasons the landlord wants to sell the property as part of their pension retirement plans and because the property has been neglected. Is that correct?

He's saying that we have neglected the property and caused issues due to lack of ventilation etc...

He also wants to sell the property

Have you?

We've been here over 10 years ofcourse there is wear and tear but we have a report from enviromental health that says this property doesn't have proper ventilation and so many other problems.

Are there rooms without windows and have you been drying clothes on the radiators?

I had to leave a rented property years ago. The landlord wanted to sell, but also tried to claim I'd damaged the property. I wasn't classed as intentionally homeless, and whilst I didn't get a council/HA property, the council did help me find somewhere and paid the deposit for me. SS were never involved and my children were never seen as "at risk" in anyway.

No I don't think so, if you have the report to back you up re lack of interior ventilation.
but you must get and take advice from your LA housing department. My u see standing is that to get picked up as homeless by them You have to wait it out and stay put until the landlord has the possession order and hires the bailiffs to force you out...

Can I ask why you weren't offered a council home?

Go to your local law centre Op, or contact Shelter. I used to challenge these decisions as a legal professional and in this type of scenario a positive outcome is possible with the correct advice.

And don't take advice from your Local Authority as they are the ones who have made the determination of intentionality - ffs

Local authority?

Me? Because the waiting list even for homeless people is years here. But finding a private landlord who was happy to sign up to the deposit guarantee scheme meant I was housed before my current tenancy ran out. Plus I could stay in the same area as DCs schools which might not have been the case with a council property. It wouldn't have been the end of the world to have moved areas, but they were settled in school. And moving house 2x in 6 months, plus their dad moving out as the relationship had ended meant I wanted as little change as possible.

I'm no expert but I don't think this would class as making yourself intentionally homeless. If you couldn't get a council house because you'd done something your landlord didn't like, that would open up tenants to massive abuse from landlords.

I would imagine that for this situation to end with you being intentionally homeless you would have had to do something

• that you totally 100% knew would damage the house
• really could have easily avoided doing if you weren't really lazy and LIKED damaging the house

If you'd constantly let the bath overflow to a point where the landlord had to rip the bathroom back to the floorboards, yes you knew what you were doing and were horribly lazy not to stop doing it, you 100% don't deserve a council house.

The council. They make the rules. They can interpret their own rules to suit themselves rather than to help you. Helping you costs them money.

Oh sorry :( I thought it was because you were seen as intentionally homeless that the council wouldn't rehome you

Do not leave the property.

Wear and tear and mould issues do not constitute making yourself homeless. Speak to your council housing department on Monday - explain what he is doing and they will help.

Whilst council housing officers are stretched - too many people being made homeless, too few council houses to offer them - they are also human and do their best to help. They are seeing lots of landlords wanting to sell up because rules have now got significantly stricter, but their job is to house those who need housing, and all the ones I know take that duty seriously

And don't worry about your child being taken off you - even if they were awful people only worrying about cost, it would cost a lot less to accept you are statutorily homeless and house you than it would to put your child into care, so that's just NOT happening.

They will advise you if the eviction is legal, and whilst it is incredibly unlikely you will get given a council house, if you are evicted they will have to put you in temporary accommodation or help you to find private rental you can afford whilst you wait on a council list for permanent accomodation.

Could you look for somewhere else to rent privately?

you will be seen as intentionally homeless if you don't get the LL to evict you, if you just pack your bags and leave then this often seen by local authority as making yourself homeless.

I would go to local council and see what their process is, they will most probably want you to go on the council home/housing bidding list and bid for a home

how many bedrooms you need will make a difference to how quickly you'd be housed - 2 is often the sweet spot

one beds are the most difficult followed by 4 beds

Also take the paperwork with you, it's surprising how often LL don't do the paper work correctly and then when it gets to court they have to start again - right back at the very begining. Having council look at the paperwork will give you a clue to whether this might happen.

for a while I worked in council office and often people would come in complaining that they hadn't been offered a home, the main reason was, they hadn't been bidding and consequently if they don't bid they wouldn't get a home. Make Sure you know exactly what you have to do and make sure you bid every week if that is the system - its often done on an algorithm, so the more you bid the higher up the list you within your band.

I expect the LL doesn't want the deposit to be returned - have you checked the LL put the deposit in a proper scheme - if its not been done then they can't evict you. Do you have a gas safety certificate if you have gas? again without this you can't be evicted

@CrotchetyQuaver is correct as many councils will insist you wait ttil the bailiffs are due before they will treat you as homeless. You must also make sure you keep paying the rent.

After 10 years in the property a certain amount of wear and tear is expected. The LL is responsible for the upkeep of the fitments such as bath, toilet heating et and if they fail its his responsibility not yours. If you have a report from environmental health about some disrepairs and faults he probably does not want to rectify them and is using the "I want to sell" excuse to get you out. Also unless he had a robust set of check in photos he will not be able to prove, after 10 years, that you did damage so
it will be difficult for him to nab anything of your deposit.

You do need to speak to the council before you do anything and also shelter or citizens advice.

Be aware that under current legislation he MUST sell the house and CANNOT relet for a year after evicting you. So if he just refurbishes then relets at a higher rent he has broken the law. Keep an eye on the address and if you see he had relet grass him up to the council.

It depends on the council. Some you need to wait to get evicted, some will accept a valid eviction notice.

However there is incredibly low available council stock in most areas and you may be put in temporary accommodation while you wait, the quality and standard of which is… variable. Refusing this for any reason will likely strike you off their list, even if it’s a mission from your child’s school or your work, so looking for a private rental in the mean time
may be prudent…

Is it damp as you’re expected to manage damp as a tenant, opening the windows everyday, using a dehumidifier in the winter, not drying clothes inside, spraying damp with a mould killer etc. I rented a centuries old building for years and managed the damp. But I don’t think this means you’ve made yourself intentionally homeless as they want to sell anyway, it just means you won’t get your deposit back. I’d look for a private rental until/before you’re evicted. If you haven’t found one you’ll probably get placed in emergency accommodation until there is appropriate housing available.

So what have you done to try and help the situation?

The landlord is selling the house. The rest is conjecture.

Thanks to labour’s amazing new law, to evict someone you have to take them to court so now you’ll have a CCJ against your name and struggle to find somewhere to rent, they’ve really screwed tenants AND landlords.

If you have had Environmental Health involved you won’t be considered intentionally homeless (or shouldn’t be) and this is likely to be seen as a retaliatory eviction.