My tenant is not paying me rent AIBU?

[Euly]

The background to this scenario is that I have a rental property who I, against my better judgement, rented to the mother of a work colleague. She has lived part time in the house for the last 12 months and during that time has only paid me two months full rent (and both of those payments were late). She has had a tough year, with several close bereavements, however I have tried to be as supportive as I could, not chasing her and helping her apply for UC. I am now receiving part of the rent directly from UC. Her initial 12 months tenancy is up, she wants to stay, I want her to go. How do I tell her this nicely bearing in mind I work with her daughter and am I being unreasonable? I can’t see that she will ever be able to pay the rent (works part time in a low paid job) and furthermore still lives some of the time with her ex partner and daughter in his house. I am having a moral dilemma!

@Lyralalala the problem is if op applies for a PO it might get picked up by the dj or the duty housing advisor which means it could get messy. Perhaps Op can tell us what it says in the Tenancy Agreement about notice, because a belt and braces approach needs to be taken here. It is also unclear whether it is within the fixed term. If not within the fixed term she should serve a s21, a s8g8 and notice as specified in the TA just in case it is ruled a common law, then everything is covered. Obviously a s21 will only be valid if a gsc, latest version of how to rent, and epc were served.

@jonb6 The OP confired there is an AST, gsc etc, all done properly

for your own good (& you can claim it against tax) join a landlord association like RLA (Residential Landlord Association) the joining annual fee is about £75 it was the most well spent money I ever spent.

Completely agree.

I'm not sure about other areas but the city I work in is running at evictions taking place about a month after they are applied for.

Sorry, I should have been clearer. The evictions are taking place about a month after the warrant of possession is applied for. You have get the order if possession first and then wait for the possession date to pass before applying for the warrant. This could take months.

Like others have said, make sure you issue the S21 and think very carefully about issuing a S8.

As some previous posters have stated, I think you might be best having a good think about whether you want to get another tenant or sell.

If you do keep renting. I’d take some serious advice on what to ask for. Where I live credit checks and 3 months in advance is pretty much the norm.

@Lyralalala sorry but she didn't. She said she has a TA and gsc but no mention of epc or h2r booklet.

Agree a landlord course absolutely essential nowadays. A lot of relevant legislation and huge scope for getting it wrong with all those financial ramifications attached to that.

@jonb6 There's no such thing as a "common law tenancy". She has an AST (as per Street v Mountford blah blah blah...)

OP: Please don't forget to serve the section 21 notice on the correct form 6A. Don't download a copy from a landlord forum, download it direct from the government website (www.gov.uk/guidance/assured-tenancy-forms#form-6a ) and for the love of god read the guidance notes. There are so many things that can render a s21 notice invalid, and if you don't do it belt and braces then you're scuppered if it goes to court.

She said she has a TA and gsc but no mention of epc or h2r booklet.

I’m not sure this is going to go well at all. The CF sounds like just the type who knows how to delay things, including getting a PO.

@Euly is this rental Scotland or England?

What the hell. Of course YANBU. Get rid

@FithColumnist leave the law to lawyers. If an AST has been granted it must be the tenants “only or principal” home. Where it is not the only or principal home, the tenancy will become (or should be granted from the outset) a contractual (common-law) tenancy. Which means the tenancy must be ended in accordance with the tenancy agreement and not the statutory law which does not apply. Hence my suggestion to Op of a belt and braces approach. All the bases are then covered if this matter proceeds to court.

That!

After much wranglng and banging of heads against a wall, that ^^ is the case.

But, as others have said, if OP heloed her gain benefits for the property then she will have said it IS her main residence.... so AST will cover it.

But yes, belt and braces every time! Oddly the most hapless of tenants become ruthlessly efficient when confronted with a S21!

But yes, belt and braces every time! Oddly the most hapless of tenants become ruthlessly efficient when confronted with a S21.

Don't they just.

You may find she refuses to go and you will have to go to court

You should have started the process at the time she first did'nt pay
If you are going to be a landlord you have to be professional, please say you took a deposit and protected it

Why are you worried about the fact you work with the daughter? The daughter clearly isn't worried about it, is she? If she was, she would've helped her mum herself to apply for UC and would be trying to pay back the arrears so that YOU weren't the one out of pocket.

Good luck, OP. Suggest you go through a letting agent next time.

Some letting agents are very poor and don't understand the law sufficiently well to be in business. Doing a good course and then keeping up to date with new legislation is essential now. Fifteen years ago there was very little by way of legislation and what did exist was not complex. Do a course because then you know if your agent is any good.

This is exactly why we sold ours - oh and apart from that one tenant who burned our house down ....

How did the chat go yesterday OP?

Really hope @Euly got things sorted.

When you agreed to rent your place to your colleague's mum, you did not agree that it would be on a rent free basis. She and her mother are the ones that should be mortified about the situation and very grateful for your patience.
Give her notice to leave. You do not need to over explain or apologise. She owes you ten months back rent. Ten months. The situation is unsustainable. Even though her rent is now being covered by benefits there is no sign or attempt to settle the amount owing.
If your colleague asks why, just explain that you cannot sustain the shortfall in the past year's rent or risk it happening again due to unforeseen circumstances. You need a more financially reliable tenant. Her mother owes £x.
Something like this perhaps?
Dear colleagues mum
As you are aware, the agreed 12 month tenancy on the property is expiring on dd/mm/yyyy. I will not be renewing your tenancy agreement and require you to vacate the property by dd/mm/yyyy.

If she contacts you, remind her of this....
The amount outstanding in unpaid rent is currently £x, representing ten months at the agreed rate of £x per month. You have made it clear that you do not have the financial resources to pay back the outstanding amount. Therefore, if the property is vacated by the date above and left in a clean and tidy condition, I will chalk this up to experience and we can both move on. I need a more financially stable tenant and you need a property that is better suited to your resources.

Ahh bum. Missed the update

Did the daughter actually know what was going on? Or are we just assuming she did?
What happened when you served the notice?