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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Landlord is being a total pain!

55 replies

Frosty6611 · 03/08/2018 14:33

I’d really appreciate some advice if any of you know about this sort of stuff. I have contacted Shelter for advice and they are calling me on Mon morning.

I moved into a private rental in 2012 and had a short assured tenancy agreement.
After that year had passed another lease was never signed and it just became a rolling tenancy.
My landlord wants to sell up and do some major renovation work on the house too (such as changing the whole heating system, repairing the roof, painting all the rooms etc).
I don’t want to move out until Feb 2019 as it’s going to cause so much stress having to move before then.
I paid him a £650 deposit when I moved in and it hasn’t been bonded. There was also no inventory done ever and there hasn’t been a gas safety check done in over 2 years.
Would I be legally allowed to stay here for another 6 months?
And am I allowed to refuse him access to do things like changing the boiler system (which could take over a week of upheaval inside the property).
If he were to put the house on the market and it sold before Feb, what would I do?

I have never paid my rent late in 6 years and will continue to pay him rent on time up until I move out.

I don’t know his new address so would it be ok to email him my notice letter when the time comes, or does he need to give me his address so I can send it recorded delivery?
Thanks for your help

OP posts:
fixingabrokenhesrt · 03/08/2018 14:36

He's behaved illegally but could have you out before then with court and balifs if you refuse to move

Aprilshowersinjuly · 03/08/2018 14:37

Ime keeping him on side and getting a glowing reference is to your advantage.
You def need your deposit back though so be amiable to the jobs and request the money in writing.

TopShagger · 03/08/2018 14:41

You can't really stop him from selling up but he should be reasonable as possible about it and give you adequate notice.

As for changing the boiler, I don't think you can deny him access to do that, he will just argue that it's part of his obligations as a LL (which it is)

If he hasn't put your bond in a TDC (of the approved variety) then he has massively fucked up, and if he refuses to return it in full you WILL successfully take him to court for the sum of 3X the amount plus the original deposit.

Original poster
Frosty6611 · 03/08/2018 14:42

Don’t need a reference as I’m moving in with my partner in Feb. Surely he couldn’t use courts and bailiffs to evict me within 6 months when he hasn’t bonded my deposit. It would make a section 21 notice void?

OP posts:
Pardalis · 03/08/2018 14:43

If your deposit is not in a protection scheme then you can sue for up to 3 times the deposit amount. I'm sure he knows that.

Perhaps you can come to some sort of agreement? He cannot issue you with a section 21 notice until he returns your deposit. The section 21 will have two months to run and the. He can apply to the court for possession of his property. Once granted, there may be a long wait for a bailiff. So that could feasibly run to Feb anyway

SmileAndNod · 03/08/2018 14:43

You should get your deposit back (and a bit more) if it's not been held in a deposit scheme. I'm not sure what the timescales are for leaving when you're in a rolling contract.
I found shelter very unhelpful when I was having LL trouble and definitely not on the side of the tenant. However MN and @specialsubject in particular were an amazing source of help.

Original poster
Frosty6611 · 03/08/2018 14:44

@topshagger to change the whole boiler system it would involve pulling up all the flooring to relay pipes etc. The plumber said it would take at least a week and be a very messy job. Is this not breaching the quiet enjoyment clause of the lease? I don’t mind things that just take a day being done, but not something like that. Thanks

OP posts:
specialsubject · 03/08/2018 14:45

bollocks to a lot of this.

penalties

  • deposit not protected. Sue. you will win. Penalty is up to 3 x deposit.
  • no gas safe. Criminal offence. Look up on the gas safe site for the penalties and how to report.
  • you can refuse access for anything - viewings, fixes, gas safe, painting. He can take you to court to get access for essentials.
  • with no gas safe and an unprotected deposit you cannot be legally evicted.
  • with no inventory he cannot make deposit deductions, but as it wasn't protected that is irrelevant.
  • selling makes no difference, new owner becomes your landlord.

of course if you want to spend another 6 months in this dangerous shithole, paying rent to a crook, because moving is hassle, that's up to you. But rest assured nothing will change and you may suffer.

to work out where you are and avoid another shafting, read this:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-rent

if he didn't give you a copy that's another reason a section 21 will fail.

specialsubject · 03/08/2018 14:45

oooh, a name check while I was typing! Thank you!

I'm a landlord. I hate crooked landlords.

Singlenotsingle · 03/08/2018 14:48

Have you explained to him the reasons why you don't want to move out until Feb 2019? Best to try and get his agreement if you can.
Has he served notice on you?
If you refuse to move after the 2m notice has expired, he'd have to go to court for an eviction notice.
Hard to tell how long all this would take but it would involve hassle and expense.
Unlikely he could sell it with a tenant still in residence, especially if the purchaser knows you don't want to leave.

sirfredfredgeorge · 03/08/2018 14:48

He's behaved illegally but could have you out before then with court and balifs if you refuse to move

Well it would be a tight push, he can't start any eviction until he's put the various mandatory things in order (notifying adress, putting the deposit in a scheme) so I don't think it would be at all easy for the landlord to get it that much sooner than 6 months if you didn't want them to.

What matters though is the strategy to get there in as least a stress as possible, and no keeping a landlord on side is not really a primary consideration.

Original poster
Frosty6611 · 03/08/2018 14:50

@single yes I’ve been very open with him about the reasons for not wanting to move out until Feb. He hasn’t served me any notice as he’s still deciding what to do - whether to sell up ASAP or let me stay until Feb. He’s saying if he lets me stay then he will be doing the work on the boiler etc which I’m very unhappy about

OP posts:
Original poster
Frosty6611 · 03/08/2018 14:51

Just text him now asking him to confirm which scheme my deposit is protected in (I already know it’s not in any as have already checked but just wanted to see what he would say).
He’s replied saying he forgot to do it but he has the funds ready for me when I do move out :-/

OP posts:
specialsubject · 03/08/2018 15:03

yeah, right, like that will work....

the landlordzone advice is let him fuck up. Keep paying the rent (although I'd be on the move, you can get another six month tenancy) and let him issue the sec 21. Ignore it, perfectly legal. He then goes to court to get it enforced and they will laugh in his face. He then has to begin again.

if this is London (common location for shitholes) then even if he gets his paperwork right it can be 8 months to the bailiffs.

Maelstrop · 03/08/2018 15:07

I suggest you email him the legal part where it says that anyone not bonding the deposit will need to pay the tenant x3 back. Also, he can’t, as you know, issue a Section 21 without the gas safety cert in place. I’d remind him of this. You can refuse him/workman entry, that is within your rights.

sirfredfredgeorge · 03/08/2018 15:07

He's clearly disorganised and looking for the easy life, just ignore and don't engage, if you're sure of the date you're going to move out, you can tell him that. At some point, likely quite soon he's going to realise that the easiest route is just to wait until you want to go, there's no point pointing out his failings.

specialsubject · 03/08/2018 15:13

he's not disorganised, he's a criminal with no gas safe cert. Probably no insurance either.

Deposit legislation has been in for 11 years. No-one is that disorganised.

Liverbird77 · 03/08/2018 15:15

Gas safety issue is massive.
Not protecting deposit is wrong.
I have to say though, as a landlord who also wants to sell, the rest of your post made my blood boil. Why should the landlord have to wait until Feb, just so it is convenient for you? What about his life? Two months' notice is fine. I can't believe you would try to force someone into continuing a rental for six months. It's totally unreasonable.

mumsastudent · 03/08/2018 15:22

I would be very wary of stopping landlord doing a gas safety check - however if he wants to update his boiler (because its unsafe & cant be fixed) or its not been checked its you that is in danger & if you have denied him entry it wont look good in court.

CheshireChat · 03/08/2018 15:29

Big difference between updating his boiler because it's unsafe and not wanting to wait to do it until he no longer has a tenant.

I thought he didn't do the gas safety check because he couldn't be arsed?

Original poster
Frosty6611 · 03/08/2018 15:40

@Cheshire yep he’s even admitted to my face that he just wants to replace the boiler system before I move out so he can get a buyer to take the property immediately after I leave and he doesn’t have to fork out any mortgage payments for an empty house. So he basically wants me to stay here paying rent until he decides whether or not to definitely sell, and then he wants to be able to carry out all the renovation work whilst I’m still here

OP posts:
CheshireChat · 03/08/2018 16:09

Well, you have him over a barrel as he's admitted he's not put your deposit in a bond so he stands to lose £1950 if my Math's right.

Ultimately if he kicks you out you can pursue him for that to offset your costs.

I am amused how annoyed special is about this, but TBF it's crap to get tarred with the same brush so I get it. My private landlord is 1000 times better than the housing association was and the rent is cheaper for a better property.

LakieLady · 03/08/2018 16:10

Bloody hell, Frosty he doesn't want to pay any mortgage himself, does he?

I'd say stand your ground, he's acting legally on at least 2 counts.

However, he may need to replace the boiler before he can issue a GSC, if it's really in a bad way.

Rainagain1 · 03/08/2018 16:20

You seem to be on good terms with landlord and seems like he is considering your request to stay till Feb.

I personally would ask for deposit back immediately due to it not being protected anyways. If refused then can point out you could sue for x 3 that amount.
Then offer to stay to Feb and allow works to be done in return for half rent which would be beneficial to you both.
You could then point out the alternative route open to you of courts and bailiffs. But surely you don't want that either?

Polly2345 · 03/08/2018 16:30

No judge will serve an eviction notice if he hasn't got an up-to-date Gas Service certificate and he hasn't protected your deposit.