To be really fucked off with the estate agents?

[CundtBake]

The flat that I rent has been put up for sake. DS and I moved in about 2 years ago.

We signed a new lease in January, and paid for it to find out two days later that the landlord had decided to sell (grr).

I've gone over and over my tenancy agreement and it looks as if I'm not allowed to give notice to my landlord if I want to leave, he has to give me notice or I wait until my contract is up (not til the end of the year) so at the moment I'm stuck waiting not knowing when I will have to go or not while they have lots of viewings and try to sell my flat.

A few weeks ago a couple turned up at 9.30am on a Saturday for a viewing nobody had told me about. The estate agent that arranged it hadn't turned up either. They were very embarrassed and apologetic so I let them in and showed them round but I phoned the estate agents and complained as did the couple. I was told it wouldn't happen again.

Today I went out in the morning for the day and didn't check my phone a lot (was busy with DS). When I did check it I had a text confirming a viewing at 3.30 I'd not been told about. It was 3.45 by this time and when I called the estate agents I was informed that the viewing was going ahead at that very moment.

I'm really upset that they let themselves into my home without me knowing. I wasn't prepared so the place was a bit of a tip but regardless I feel so violated. I let them know I hadn't been informed and they said they'd look into it but tbh I'm not expecting much results as it's happened before.

I'm sick of feeling like an inconvenience in my own home it's making me miserable. The estate agents couldn't give to shits about me now that they're trying to make more money off of my flat but I'm still paying very high (London) rent to live here and I feel I should still be entitled to relax in my own home.

I don't feel like complaining to he estate agents will do anything as I've done so twice and they don't seem to give a shit about me anyway.

What do I do?

Spme of the legal advice on here is absolutely wrong.

Personally I would try and keep it amicable. Start my ringing the landlord not the agent if you can. Discuss it rationally with him. You might find he would be keen for you to go. Personally I won't buy a tenanted place, it's a nightmare of you want to move in.

Which parts of the legal advice given is wrong, holidays?

Husband lawyer...legally talk to cab...better done friendly but they taking the monkey...

Thank you all for advice. It's my first time renting and I'm a bit clueless about this stuff. I'm also a bit of a wuss so haven't been as tough as I probably should have been.

I will be reviewing my tenancy agreement with someone who knows about that kind of stuff tomorrow, then decide what to do from there. I'm glad I'm not being unreasonable though!!

Why should op leave her home before the end of the year? LL signed the contract, he can't give notice (2 months btw) till approx beginning of November/end October. OP has paid for the year-long lease and is fully entitled to be left in peace. No visits from LL or agent, no inspections, nothing. That's the law and the lease cannot supercede that, whatever it says about 24 hours notice or anything else.

While I understand OP may have to make nice if she needs a reference, the fact is the LL told her he was selling two days after she paid for a year-long lease. That looks pretty scabby to me, and I wouldn't be bending over to make nice to someone who had stitched me up like that.

as others said.
you don't have to let anyone into your home if you don't want to.
other people (ll, agency, mil) can only enter without permission in an emergency (as in blue lights).

I think OldLady's advice is right - it's what I thought too. First of all he's stitched you up as he obviously wants you paying the rent until the place is sold. If he'd told you before you signed another year-long lease you might have given notice which might have meant the place being empty before selling, meaning less income for him. Secondly, I think you can refuse viewings until the last 2 months - presumably he has to give you two months' notice if he wants to end the lease at the end of the year so I don't think he can arrange viewings until then, i.e. November and December. As everyone has said you have the right to quiet enjoyment of your home. You won't have quiet enjoyment if you've got viewings for the next year plus all the uncertainty of it. I think he's tried to pull a fast one but in reality I think he might have shot himself in the foot. Find out your rights first of all then broker a deal with him - he lets you out the lease or you tell him you're staying the year and no viewings until October.

the right for quiet enjoyment lasts until the lease is up. not 2 months before that. no matter what the contract says.

I'm a LL if you have an assured short hold tenancy you have a contract to be there until the end date on the tenancy agreement. If that date passes and you stay, you need to give one months notice and the LL needs to give 2 complete months notice to get you out by serving a section 21 notice. Even then, an eviction order by the courts would be required if a tenant still doesn't move out as the section 21 is intention to take possession.

Despite whatever it says in the tenancy agreement, as most will have a section about viewings, you are under no legal obligation to allow any viewing at all although it's best to keep LL on side. You'll want a reference and a less stringent inventory and quick return if your deposit.

Changing the locks is against the tenancy agreement unless you provide keys to the LL or their agent so is not worth doing.

the right for quiet enjoyment lasts until the lease is up. not 2 months before that. no matter what the contract says

Not true, it's for the entire tenancy until the tenant leaves. The tenancy agreement will most likely have that clause but it can't lawfully be enforced.

joy that's what I meant, thanks for writing it so much clearer!

Even if they give 24 hours notice you do not have to say yes if it is not convieniant.

No one should be just entering your home but you.

Tell them to fuck the fuck off and you won't have any fucking viewings at all.

Just because you can't see anything in your contract about giving notice, that doesn't mean you're not able to. By law there are only a few types of tenancy agreement that apply (assured shorthold is the most common) so the landlord will still be bound by the law. Get yourself to the CAB with a copy of your tenancy agreement, or go to a drop in legal advice clinic and speak to someone who knows what they're talking about.

This is your home. You're paying for it. You have rights and he has obligations.

Id change the lock barrels regardless of what happens. It's always a good idea in a rental. It can be very easy to do. There are guides on YouTube.
It's cheap too.

When I was in a similar situation I agreed to Wednesday afternoon and early evenings (up until 7) and Saturday morning 10-12. I still required notification of the visit but it helped the agent to have an idea when I would be agreeable. I also made it clear to the agent that I only wanted genuinely interested potential buyers being shown the house. I felt by working with the agents I had more control. It was in my interests for someone to buy the house ASAP

I agree with the last poster. Give the agent set times you will be available for viewings and stick to it rigidly. If someone is seriously interested in the property they will fit in with whatever viewing times are available. The agent is not adhering to the rules. You are paying good money to rent your home and you call the shots re viewings, not the agent. Put your food down hard YANBU.

As for changing the barrels in the lock, you can, as long as you put the original lock back in when you leave! You can't lock them out once you have vacated but they cannot simply let themselves in whilst you still live there. It is a criminal offence, not breaking, but entering without consent is trespass (and a few other possibilities too).

CAB for certain, and a shitty letter to the landlord about the lack of professionalism on the part of his agents and how it will only make the property harder to sell if you are forced to turn prospective buyers away because you have not been asked, etc, etc.

Errr... what the hell grounds is the LL going to use to evict you? He can't use the excuse of needing the place back to live in, (a) unless there was a clause in your agreement about this having been his residence in the past (which I imagine you wpuld have mentioned), but most importantly (b) because evicying you to sell is not a legal ground. He is not entitled to do that within your lease, particularly eith no break clause or end to the lease in sight.

Therefore, no more viewings: tell the EAs that you have signed a lease, so they're not actually entitled to sell the place, and do they really want to waste time with this property, and piss off viewers, when there's no commission to be had?

As for yhe LL, uou can negotiate if you like, but if I wrre you, I'd start looking to move, and things you could demand for an early movr on your part cpuld include:

• rent discount till you move (rrmember: they need your agreement to sell before the lease is up). If you're willing to move, this ought to be the minimum you will accept. After all, it will cost you in time, effort and MONEY to move, so you should be better off moving than staying
• they pay all agents' fees for your move. Checkout inventory for this place, plus all the up-front fees for your next place (referencing, and all those other little earners agents adore)
• also, limiting viewings until you move, and reminding them of your legal right to quiet enjoymrnt.

You do have the right to live out your lease there, and if you need it for school, for example, please do stay. However, if you want to get away from this probably rather broken relationship AND if the LL will make it worth your while to let him realise money at your inconvenience, you may prefer to move.

Good luck!