Notice to quit / eviction: can I rely on agents?

[aweewhilelonger]

DH and I live o/ seas and rent out our old flat in Scotland. We use an agent to manage the property, they are probably one of the largest in our city.

Our tenant has been breached his tenancy agreement by withholding rent over some costs he incurred when the washing machine broke down. It has culminated in him phoning the agent, shouting abuse and swearing down the phone, saying that he's not paying anything else and us going to the council to ´register as homeless'. the agent recommended serving a notice to quit, and have warned us that if he fails to leave we may have to proceed to evict him.

My main question is: can we leave this to the agent to pursue correctly? Is this what we are paying them for - advice, and to manage these situations for us? I've worked in property management in the past (not in the uk) and I know how important it is to follow the procedures to the letter when dealing with leases etc. So do I have to get busy on the internet and check everything that the agent does - or can i leave it to them, and follow their lead?

They should lead but you need to monitor and chase progress.

I don't know the Scottish system but in England this would be the start of a long and costly battle so I hope you have insurance. Also English councils should tell non payers to get lost ( intentionally homeless) so make sure the council is aware.

Has he paid his rent on time previously, was te washing machine your (your agents) responsibility to fix and now it's fixed will he pay rent again.

If yes to all the above and otherwise a good tennant do you really want to go through months of legal and possibly non payment of rent to evict him?

Agents can advise, but it's your call and might be worth getting tenants side of it ie does he normally have a hot temper or were the agents taking forever to fix the machine.

If you decide to let them go ahead then yes, they should know what they're doing, but check your contract and landlords insurance for any hidden costs.

I know this doesn't help now but in the future you should not include white goods.

If the tenant provides their own, it is their responsibility to repair them when they go wrong.