AIBU to think this is a really shitty way to behave?

[ballinacup]

An acquaintance was talking very proudly today about how she has evicted her tenants. She's done it completely illegally by sneaking in whilst they were out and changing the locks.

Yes, they were shitty tenants, but I still think making someone homeless without notice is a bit off. However, it gets worse.

She will not give the tenants their possessions. She finds it hilarious that the couple have called her on several occasions in tears, begging for their five month old's clothes/bottles/cot. Acquaintance's sister is expecting so she's given all of their stuff to her.

She stormed into the office fuming today as the tenants are taking legal action against her. Aibu to hope she gets into serious trouble for, essentially, stealing from a baby?

Of course not. If my house was in negative equity and I had to move, I would do what I had to to protect my finances as best I could, which would unfortunately mean renting the house out. But it's a bad situation all round.

If you're an accidental LL without financial backup, what happens if you have to evict a tenant? Either you do it legally and backrupt yourself, or illegally and risk a fine or worse. Plus, realistically, you'll never be a great LL - you don't WANT to be a LL.

It's a big mess really. I think perhaps being able to hand the keys to a house back, and walk away from the debt, as in America, would be a good idea.

Plus, realistically, you'll never be a great LL - you don't WANT to be a LL.

It doesn't mean someone won't be a good landlord just because its not what they want to do. I didn't particularly want to be a landlord, but that doesn't conclude I'm not good at it. I don't really want to work either, but that doesn't mean I'm not good at my job. Which I am. At both.

Hmm, well perhaps you are the exception. But there are a lot of LLs out there who, while being basically ok people, don't have the money, knowledge or inclination to be good LLs.

Hmm, well perhaps you are the exception. But there are a lot of LLs out there who, while being basically ok people, don't have the money, knowledge or inclination to be good LLs.

And there's plenty of landlords that are. I'm not an exception. Before buying my own house, and after leaving home at age 16, I lived in 18 different rental properties. Of those, 1 tried to cheat me out of my bond, 2 refused to do ongoing maintenance, and the remaining 15 ranged from completely acceptable to bloody brilliant. So (with my very small scale study ) I don't think I am an exception.

To be honest from what I know of accidental landlords they are often the best on a day to day level as they are still both emotionally and financially attached to what was their home and it is still often the only property they own. In my experience it can be professional landlords who care less about their day to day dealings with tenants as they are the ones getting the daily phone calls about tenant issues from multiple properties. That said as an accidental landlord if a tenant were to give up paying while I would extend some sympathy to individual circumstances we would not be in a position to sort out their financial problems. we like a lot of others are struggling to meet our own. As I said this is not an unusual situation given the complete financial collapse in Ireland. Also you cannot hand back the keys here as the backs are entitled to recoup the difference between their sale price and the mortgage value so that is simply not an option. I don't know if that is the same in the UK maybe not.

Yes it would be another. An individual would still be required to pay back the full amount of the mortgage loan, even if the house didn't fetch that value. No one would want to do that if there was another option.

In my experience it can be professional landlords who care less about their day to day dealings with tenants as they are the ones getting the daily phone calls about tenant issues from multiple properties.

Yes, the same experience here.

OP I'd be inclined to ring myself. Then again they soun. Like they can hold their own and already twigged she's not had a house clearance in. If they were consistently late with payments she's obviously had ample time to start the correct legal eviction process. I have no sympathy for the world of shit she's about to land both feet in to.

Good I hope they are fighting back. Serves her bloody well right.