Witholding my rent AIBU

[littledragon99]

I'm a woman in my late 40s, living in a 3-bed Victorian terrace in West London, where I pay £1,200 a month with all bills included. I signed an AST in May.
I work in recruitment and DJ on the side. Despite being skilled in my job, financial difficulties have arisen following my mother’s death, and I've struggled with timely rent payments. I’m currently in therapy to manage my depression.
Recently, my landlady has begun Airbnb-ing the living room, removing the communal space I was paying for. Given this change, I believe the £1,200 rent is no longer justified.
Additionally, she inappropriately contacted my boss, (my boss was my reference) about paying rent directly and has threatened eviction. I’ve consulted Citizens Advice and suspect my deposit wasn’t placed in a Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS), which may breach legal requirements.
Due to these issues, I’ve withheld my rent since August 1st and am prepared to take further action if needed.

Hopefully op isn’t self medicating on the dj scene as it wouldn’t be unusual. Certainly wouldn’t help her bills or adhd.

' This landlady was okay to bypass the credit checks by using my boss as a reference instead.'

and you are now abusing her kindness !

the next landlord / landlady will not be so considerate.

and don't expect your employer to give a reference next time as you have taken advantage of that kindness too.

1st month (10 March) i paid £1850
(£1200 deposit + pro rata rent of £844 (moved in on 10th and would prefer to pay from 1st)
2nd month (11 April) I paid £1200
3rd month (31st May) I paid £1750 21 days late
4th month (29 June) I paid £1850 20 days late
5th month (10 July) I paid nothing
6th month (10 Aug) I paid nothing

I now owe £1755 so she can't serve me a section 8 yet right?

It sounds like you can't actually afford your rent, hence the late/erratic payments, and now you're trying to find a way to justify not paying?

omg you haven't paid rent for 2 whole months !!!

and you have only paid the rent on time once ?!!!

wow I expect you are just going to do a runner on Sept 9th when your 6 months is up, as the landlady won't be renewing your contract.

@littledragon99 Are you not mortified that she's going to be coming after your boss to pay your debts?

The landlord could actually serve a notice on, I think, s11 which is that the rent is persistently late. It's quite common for landlords to serve on 2 grounds. The first that there were rent arrears of X amount equal to 8 weeks rent, the other being that rent was persistently late and there were always arrears, not necessarily 8 weeks.
You really are treading a dangerous route in all this.

and my friend Google says yes she can !!!

' A landlord can issue a Section 8 notice to evict a tenant who has an assured or assured shorthold tenancy (AST) if they have a legal reason to do so. This could include if the tenant has broken the terms of their tenancy, such as by:
Not paying rent or paying it late. '

and not only do you pay the rent late, now you are not paying it !!!

And from the Shelter website - whom you have been advised to contact several times:

Why landlords use section 8 notices

Most people get a section 8 notice because they have rent arrears.

The reasons your landlord can evict you are called 'grounds for possession'.

The grounds to evict you for rent arrears are:

• ground 8 - if you owe at least 2 months' rent
• ground 10 - if you owe some rent
• ground 11 - if you keep paying your rent late

Is it just me or does 1200 and 844 not equal 1850?

Akd why do you think this is acceptable behaviour?

so right now She can evict you on all these grounds.

Wrong.

In the UK, Section 8 notices are typically served when tenants are in arrears. For this to be considered a mandatory reason for possession, those payments need to be late by: 2 months if rent is paid monthly. 8 weeks if rent is paid weekly.

I'd start packing sooner rather than later.

Omg she and I both didn't do the math.
I don't think it's acceptable behaviour but I'm just sg myself. Believe me I'm not a bad person its just when I get overhwlmed I bury my head in the sand

And you have been given lots of really good advice here. I suggest a quick phone call to CAB now.

lol at the op playing the victim when she’s paid zero nill rent for two months.

STOP !!!

stop finding excuses

pay the rent
pay the arrears

Trust me, she will have done the maths now. No chance your contract will be renewed, and if I were her I'd pursue you through the small claims court.

Isn’t there also a. Clause About charging interest on late payment. 🙃

But she can't serve me a section 8 because my deposit isn't protected, no?

So what? Nothing excuses you from paying your rent.

I'm not sure what you're trying to get out of this thread OP.

Nothing you've mentioned excuses you from not paying rent, and she's very likely to evict you as soon as she can.

That’s a section 21 and it is protected you told us that. 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

This! Now!

btw you owe £2400 which is 2 months rent as £1200 + £1200 = £2400

Protected late and I was never informed hence voiding the whole thing from what i understand