AIBU to want to leave our unlicensed rental before tensions worsen?

[Tiredboymum22]

Our family have been renting for seven years and we haven’t had much luck. We lived somewhere for just under 4 years before our landlord decided to sell the property. We moved somewhere else before being given notice after 6 months. I really wanted to try for a council house and move into temporary accommodation but DH refused as we had a newborn baby so we borrowed money off my mum for a bond and moved into a tiny cottage type house that was out the way for me as I don’t have a car. I was miserable there as the living room wasn’t big enough to swing a cat and it was difficult living there as a family of four.

A family member asked us if we wanted to live in her partner’s house that was in town, closer to the school, and much more spacious. We moved in about 2 years ago and have been paying below market price in rent. He’s been very good with repairs, etc., and left us furniture and everything in good working order. We were under the impression it was a long term let as he wanted to keep this house for his daughter. Anyway, he gave us notice this summer as his relationship broke down unexpectedly and he has nowhere to stay with his kids. We were going to apply for social housing and he was willing to help us before he found out he’d get in a lot of trouble for renting to us unlicensed. Since then he’s had trouble getting landlord insurance and there’s no way for him to register now without getting in a lot of trouble.

I’ve told DH that we should try and leave. The alternative is that we stay for as long as possible and the house either gets repossessed or he pays a hefty fine and can evict us properly. I know that legally he doesn’t have a leg to stand on but I feel like the decent thing to do is to try find somewhere as the latter could take years and cause tension within the family.

The boys’ bedroom is still painted pink and has his daughter’s bed in it. The boys want a bunk bed and a more boyish room but I don’t want to dismantle her bed and paint the room knowing he’s trying to move back. DH doesn’t care and says he has no empathy for him as essentially he committed tax fraud.

I just want to be done with the whole situation but I can’t move somewhere private with DH who just won’t compromise.

AIBU or is DH being unreasonable?

He’s obviously broken the law and whilst I don’t know a huge amount about the laws around private rentals, I suspect he really could get in a lot of trouble. Having said that, it sounds like he’s provided a decent home, at a fair price when you needed some help? Given the family connections, I’d probably try and move, although I appreciate this is a hugely stressful situation for you.

So roughly

You've had 2 years paying below market rent because the house you could afford was too small. Despite paying below market rent, and having furnishings you've had all the repairs done etc.

Your relative will be homeless if you insist on staying.

And your dh thinks your relative is unreasonable?

Wow!

Since you have also benefited from this arrangement, it would be rather mean to drop him in it.
Start looking for somewhere else.

Your dh is being very unreasonable. It sounds as been done as a family favour. Lower rent and good condition property/repairs done. Yes he should have followed correct process but then probably would have changed market rent. I think it’s really awful to stay in a house that’s not yours when you know he needs to move back there with his children.
If you aren’t there legally then I wouldn’t be surprised if he resorted to measures to get you out like changing locks.

Get advice from shelter. Your landlord can evict you because they are about to become homeless. I'd see what your local council needs and consider temporary accommodation, your DH can suit himself. Does your Landlord need to be licensed in your area? The council won't look into insurance etc.

Your DH sounds like a nasty piece of work.

Yojr relative was doing you a favour and would have continued to do so if their own life hadn’t gone wrong. It would be awful if you to screw him over. Even if he didn’t adhere to all the regulations it sounds like he was a good LL.

Does your husband compromise on anything? At all? He seems to have no problem whatsoever making your life difficult; first living in the arse end of nowhere in a house that was too small and now possibly making things difficult in the future between you and your family.

Your relative was in the wrong breaking the law but like you, I wouldn’t want to cause a fallout.

Your DH is a really ungrateful piece of work.

He is in serious trouble and will get very significant fines as a consequence if discovered.
If you want to be evicted and get social housing this will cost him thousands and possibly jail time.
This is a choice he has made and you are not responsible for it.
That said in real life if you did this to a family member you had given you cheap accommodation for several years when you needed it I would struggle to talk to you again.
Even though I would understand rationally that this was his fault and not yours.

You probably know this but the waiting lists for social housing are extremely long and you would have to put a good case forward for need to have any real chance. Even if evicted you may end up in temporary accommodation for quite some time.

If your landlord goes down the eviction process, the council will also become aware of anything else that's been overlooked, such as protecting your deposit properly, carrying out Right to Rent checks, giving you the How To Rent booklet etc. And that's going to go well beyond tax fraud for him.

It's possible if unlicensed etc he may not even be able to correctly serve eviction? But not sure how that's changed with the new law.

So your husband was quite happy with this set up while he financially benefitted from it. And now wants to fuck that person over when they are in need themselves. I don't like the sound of your husband.

DH doesn’t care and says he has no empathy for him as essentially he committed tax fraud.

You really have won a watch with that one.

What does ‘unlecensed’ mean? There’s no lamdlord license. Does he mean he’s not declaring the earrings with HMRC?
He shoukd be able to get insurance; there isn’t a box saying ‘do you have a licence?’ Which questions on the insurance application are causing issues?

Appreciate these are just things I’m nosey sbout. Just do the right thing by your relative snd move out.

I agree with all the replies! Yes our LL broke the law but he’s been decent to us. He’s only in his twenties, he’s a hard worker and worked long hours to buy this house at a decent rate (tradie). He got with my relative and moved into her house and was at a loss over what to do with this place so she suggested we move in knowing our situation.

He didn’t bank on the relationship breaking down and he didn’t do anything awful like cheat, etc. I do feel for him and he has tried to get insurance since. Speaking to him he seemed out of his depths and admitted he made a big mistake by not registering it as a rental.

Our credit is poor but I can provide evidence to private landlords that we’ve never missed a rent payment. There’s a private 2 bed house in the next town from us but DH isn’t willing to even look at it as it might mean DS changing schools and living in the same town as his dad (who he fell out with years ago). I share his frustration at not being able to bid for a council house (as he can’t legally evict us) but I don’t want to stay in this house anymore.

Yes there is such a thing as a landlord license. It depends on your local council.

What a mess OP. How big is the house? Could he move back in with you guys still living there as his lodger/staying with family for a bit and then if you have no luck finding another rental he gives you notice leave? Meaning you can present as homeless to the council but he can avoid the part where he’s been an illegal landlord.

This!! No good deed goes unpunished eh???

Disgraceful attitude from your husband

Did he pay tax on the rental income? He can rent to family under market rate but would need proper insurance and permission from his mortgage provider, which I assume he doesn't have. Hopefully he did declare the income and he may have been able to offset some repairs, etc. He might want to talk to a lawyer to find out how much trouble he might be in and if he didn't already declare the income minus any allowable expenses retrospectively. Get legal advice! As a young man he probably didn't realise that it's not as simple as just helping out family. I don't think you can just stay there you will not be insured if anything happens and now you know you won't be able to just blame it all on him, your DH is really blackmailing him.

It comes under no good deed goes unpunished really.

you leave and take the kids. DH can do as he likes. Suspect he may not want to take that chance if he values his teeth.

Where is she leaving to go ? If she leaves the property and applies for assistance with the council it’s likely she could be found to have made herself internationally homeless. It sounds like the landlord/ relative will struggle to evict them legally.

She can’t do the council thing can she ? It’s immoral given the help she’s had. She’ll have to go to her mother and find a private rental from there.

To deliberately get him into trouble to manipulate your way into a council home would be wildly unethical in my opinion.
Do your best to sort it out yourselves, but if push comes to shove do what you must.

You can’t leave and apply as homeless with the council. If you do it’s quite likely the council will find you internationally homeless. You also can’t ask the landlord to evict you. It also sounds like the landlord will struggle to legally evict you. I would look for another private rental.

It’s not that simple I’m afraid. I’m on universal credit and want to start retraining or an apprenticeship. I don’t know any private landlords who’ll take a single mum on UC and DLA as there’s stigma attached 😭

if DH stays and applies for a council house first they’ll check if the notice is valid (it’s not if you’re unregistered) and he’ll be told to stay put until the LL registers or remortgages the house giving him a stable abode over me. Then he can’t apply for a council property without me. I’ve thought it through and that’s why I’m so annoyed with DH for making things so difficult.

LL is paying for caravan parks or travel lodges every weekend to have his kids.