to think the estate agent is taking the piss?

[Lostandlostsomemore]

In a nutshell, moved into this house end of January and have suffered racial abuse from the next door neighbour ( my husband is black )
Spoke to the letting agent who liased with the landlord, landlord didn't want police involved and she intended to sell once the year was up anyway ( they didn't inform us of this when we signed, having 2 young kids in tow ) and I received and email from the estate agent back in June saying " the landlord I happy to leave the contract as it is so you have until January 28th in the property, however is happy to accept your months notice when you find something suitable for you and your family "
Anyway spent the last month searching and can't get anything, so many applicants to each house, lots specifying no children etc.
Anyway we have been offered a housing association property 20 miles away, as my husband has a local connection ( work and parents ) to that area.
If we want it we have to sign the tenancy on Monday so 15th, so last night I emailed the agent giving a months notice saying we would vacate on the 10th September as per agreement to give a months notice.
Didn't think anything more of it but just checked my emails and they've emailed back last night basically saying that the notice must be given at the end of a rent period so on the 28th august and we are liable for the rent until 28th September.
We physically cannot afford to pay for 2 properties for 6 weeks, a month was going to be hard enough, 6 weeks will be impossible with council tax for both added into that. In the email it says as part of your contract you must give notice on the rent due date however as the tenancy was a fixed years contract there is nothing in there apart from giving the months notice at the end of December to leave end of January.
Surely as I have a written email asking for a months notice with no mention on what day that needs to fall on this is now an agreement with me and be landlord and it doesn't have to be given end of the month?
I can't lose the new home for our kids :( but the agent has £1500 of our money in a deposit so either way they're going to take it aren't they

That's a great result. Good luck in your new home!

It would also be worth reminding them that they were the ones that sent you a letter(email?) to say that they would be happy to take a month's notice when you found somewhere new.

They might think it's obvious this means a standard month from rent day type month's notice but the wording of the letter is at worst ambiguous and at best seems to indicate they would be happy to have your notice from the point you know about your next house. As this is about breaking the contract early it's very reasonable to assume this - why should one bit of the contract about notice dates stand when you've just been told it's ok to break the contract. It's not reasonable to keep to expect you to keep to the dates in this circumstance as you would end up in the house enduring additional abuse for up to a month if you found somewhere else a day after the rent/notice day.

Might be different if they'd allowed you to go to the police to reduce the harassment but they asked you not to and said that you could leave with a month's notice - which is all you're asking for.

(sorry if this cross posts with anything - thought I'd posted it earlier and I'm in my phone so don't want to check and lose it all!)

Glad that they have seen sense about the notice period.

I am so sorry that you suffered racist abuse from the neighbours, it must have been horrible. I didn't actually read your previous thread, but I must say why would you have to wait on your landlord's 'permission' to report it to the police? It's not up to them, is it? And now your horrible neighbours have got away with it.

Sorry, don't want to make you feel bad, but I would still report it, honestly. Or they will continue abusing others and thinking there's no consequences. Maybe in a month's time you could report it as you finish the contract?

I hope you are all happy in your new home, sounds a much better choice.

Yay for the landlord! Hope it's a smooth move for you all.

Sorry for the late reply.
I initially spoke to the letting agent about it as I was aware our lanlord owned most of the houses along our road so wanted to see whether they were also his tenants.
I was happy to involve the police but I didn't want to stay living beside these horrible people regardless of the police involvement, it wouldn't have taken back what was said and I wouldn't have my kids living next door to that.
Then the landlord got in contact and allowed me to break the contract early but on the condition j didn't involve the police as it would affect her being able to sell :(