URGENT: Does a tenant have to allow a survey?

[Pricklypear12]

I'm a tenant and my LL has sold the house. She had 20-25 viewings over a period of about 6 weeks which I agreed to and facilitated. I even helped the EA take photos for Rightmove etc.

She only told us she was selling the house straight after we had signed a contract for another 6 months at the property (ends 1st Sep). At the time we asked if we could leave the contract early if we find elsewhere to live and the answer was a "yes but I might change my mind". If she hadn't sold the house we would've stayed long term. We always got on fine with LL and paid on time and keep property clean and tidy etc.

Fast forward to now and LL is refusing to let us leave the contract early and insists on us paying full rent until the very end. I'm obviously annoyed by this as I've essentially facilitated her house sale and now I'm effectively being forced to stay or pay 2 lots of rent. I appreciate that we signed a contract so not much we can do.

Now her buyers are wanting to do a survey on the property. Am I allowed to say no? I've put up with so many viewings and I'm fed up by the LL unreasonable behaviour and wish to be left alone for the last couple of months of my tenancy. My contract states I must allow viewings in the last 2 months of my tenancy (that starts 1st July - 1st Sep) but doesn't mention surveys. I've been going around in circles trying to get legal advice about this. Please help!

@pricklypear12

She obviously doesn't have a clue about the legal situation!
That's why writing to her, her agent and the estate agent selling the property is so important. I'd ask them to also forward a copy to her solicitor as well, just to be absolutely clear that you will not be moving until you have a permanent home to move to. Be explicit and tell them that giving you some flexibility to move out early with two weeks notice and without financially penalising you, is as much in her best interests as yours! she just doesn't realise this yet

Not RTFT but you have a foolish landlord.
In order to force you to give access they would have to go to court and get the judge to give consent (which he probably wouldn't give as non urgent like e.g. gas safety check).
Also they are relying on your (very) good will to vacate when it suits them. However there are two parties involved here!
I would tell them it cuts both ways and you either want to be able to leave without penalty when you find a suitable place or that you want a rent free month for all the inconvenience you have been caused, and also for being so accommodating.
If necessary, remind them politely that you do not have to leave on any due date they give - you can await a court order and then bailiffs. This could take months and will totally scupper their sale.
Silly people indeed!

I would play it nice, but very unhelpful. Baby hasn't been sleeping well, you've got a cold, might be COVID, you're just off on holiday....and if pressed after a few weeks of messing around, say that you have a right to quiet enjoyment of your home which you are paying for and you don't see why, when she has not been accommodating to you, you should be accommodating to her.

What actual notice has she served you with?

You don't need to let anyone in, and she can't keep your deposit if you don't either.

Contact the deposit scheme where its held once you leave and they will access if you need to pay anything.

I'm a landlord and tours us really annoying me. Dont let anyone in to facilitate her needs. You don't have to legally.

Ignore her, don't communicate. Look at moving at the end of your tenancy. Stay until your new rental is sorted. If after the end of your fixed term, give one month notice to coincide with the end of the contract period. Pay tour rent in time, leave the place spotless, take plenty of your own pictures.

You're in control because the law says Tou are. You don't owe her anything.

Breach of contract, my arse. It doesn't matter what is in the lease, you legally do not have to let anyone into your home unless a judge orders it. Ex landlord speaking. This is the chance a landlord takes when selling a house with the tenant still in situ.

She sounds ungracious and ungrateful. She also doesn’t know the law. You actually have the upper hand here OP.

Hi everyone
Thanks so much for your comments and advice. On the lettings agent's advice, I gave a date for the valuation to go ahead from 25th august onwards. This was so that we wouldn't be seen as denying entry but also so that we would hopefully be gone or moving out by then (contract ends on 1st September). Landlady has come back to the lettings agent fuming and threatening legal action against us, wants to take it to court to get entry etc (we have not denied entry but just given a date in late August) and insisting we allow the valuation next week. I would imagine she doesn't have much of a leg to stand on but equally I don't want to find myself in a legal mess or paying legal fees of any sort. Does anyone have any advice or experience to share?

Some may think I should just give it up and let it be done but I feel the taking advantage and nastiness has gone too far. I really did everything I could to help the sale of her house and we've always been good tenants and paid on time etc and have even let go of the issue with wanting to leave early . It's become a matter of principle and I feel she thinks because she is "richer" she can do as she pleases.

Oh also so as to not drip feed, the lettings agent got advice from their solicitors who said we are within our rights to deny entry to anyone as we pay the rent. The LL can take it to court but if things ruled in her favour, we could be liable for her legal fees. I can't imagine anything being ruled in her favour as we haven't denied access, just given her a date later than she wants but regardless anyone's advice or experiences are appreciated here as I don't want to pay anyone's fees!

Please note the reasons I would give for delaying entry until late August is because we are busy packing our belongings (bags/boxes etc everywhere) and also I'm pregnant and currently unvaccinated and don't want people coming in and out the house with the covid risk. Is this reasonable? Do I even need a reason

(bump)

I’d honestly just ignore them but if you want advice go to citizens advice or shelter.

This is what citizens advice say:

‘If you don’t want your landlord or letting agent to organise viewings you can refuse and they may not enter without your permission

However, allowing access may be a part of your contract, and breaching the terms of your contract may allow your landlord to take steps to enforce it - through an injunction or serving notice and make a claim for possession

But to succeed the landlord needs to prove they are being reasonable, and a court may not consider it reasonable if the tenant is taking steps to protect themselves against a potential health risk’

Based on the fact that you are pregnant and unvaccinated you would be taking reasonable steps to protect yourself and baby from a health risk.

She sounds really nasty, OP.
I'm sorry, I've no clue and don't want to dish out useless 'advice', but I'd say the solicitors' advice sounds right.
Can you call Citizens Advice? (I know you've tried before and not had much luck).

If she wants earlier entry I’d propose to her that she release you from the tenancy on a date you specify and then you they can enter.

@IntermittentParps citizens advice (well whoever they eventually led me to) gave similar advice at the time based on if I completely denied entry (which I haven't) and that was that I can say no but would have to be able to justify it in court if it came to it.

Hi Prickly, landlord here. There is no way your landlord will be taking you to court what ever happens. There would be a 2 year or so delay as the back log in the courts is so long. It would be small claims court anyway, and therefore even if she did (which she won't) the court fees would be low (less than £500 I think). I doubt that she'd find a solicitor to represent her as her case would be weak. Honestly, court over this is just silly talk. This has all come about because she wasn't being flexible on your leaving date. More fool her. Now you are being less flexible too, and why on Earth not. You have right on your side. Anyway, it's all a little bit silly. She doesn't want to lose her buyer. I get that. You want a peaceful, Covid-free and hassle free home for as long as you are there. I get that. You also want flexibility as to when you leave - which is very valuable to you and improves your chances of finding the right new home for you. This is the only true point of contention. It is still better for you to be able to look at places as it suits you and to take a new tenancy out when it suits you, so you should still relentlessly pursue that option until the landlord sees sense. But if you've decided, for what ever reason, to stay put until the tenancy end date, you can of course legally and morally do so.
I needed to sell a property recently. I gave the tenants their proper 6 months notice. I helped the last one out (got my husband and a friend and a van to shift her things to her new place at our expense) and for each tenant, gave them back pro rata of their rent for what ever date they found a new place from. 2 days after it was empty, I got my first estate agent in to begin to talk about marketing and sale. This means I've had an empty property for a few months now with no rent coming in. That's my look out. It's the only sensible way to behave. Your landlord probably doesn't understand the law or just has a very obstinate character. Have another go at getting her to understand that you just want the flexibility to leave when you find a new place. One way or the other, she's still going to have an empty property in September, and it might be for a long time if her buyer pulls out. She just needs to be shown sense.

@21Bee I don't think she'd agree to that as she keeps saying she can't afford to pay her own mortgage (despite having at least 2 rental properties). Also as she refused contract release many weeks ago and it's now mid July, we probably do need the time to sort ourselves and get out.

Because payment is taken the 2nd of every month (ie final rent next due 2nd August) then we have very little time to sort ourselves and be out before the end of the tenancy anyway so leaving early is no longer to our advantage. Obviously she denied us this request a while ago when it would've been an advantage for us to have that option.

Once you've stopped laughing I'd tell her you look forward to seeing her in court (in several years....as PP pointed out!)

Stick to your guns, she's a twat. And if she can't afford her mortgage or even understand her basic obligations towards her tenants then she shouldn't be a landlord.

Good luck on the house hunt.

@daisyphase thanks for the reassurance. I was also thinking the same, I have no idea what she'd even be able to say in court as we haven't denied entry, it's just not as soon as she wants.

You’ll be fine on that OP, plus the courts Ashe so jammed up she won’t even get a hearing so there won’t be a judgement. I would write back to her saying, (1) you’ve taken advice and don’t need to allow access on the basis requested, (2) you have so far sought to be reasonable, allowed access, done viewings etc, (3) she has failed to be reasonable in return, so you no longer feel morally obliged to do so and will stick to be obligations in the lease (fair and clear to both of you), (4) you consider the constants interruptions, threats (especially as you are pregnant) etc to be harassment and if they don’t cease immediately you will have to consider taking further advice, going to the police and initiating your own claim.

Copy it to the selling agent, the letting agent and the company trying to co tact you on the survey, making the point that giving your phone number to the survey company was a breach of GDPR by the letting agent, and contacting you without consent (especially that number of times across that duration, which is bloody ridiculous anyway) is a breach by the survey company and that you are considering reporting them both to the Information Commissioners Office.

Then at the end say if she wants to be reasonable and is therefore willing to agree irrevocably in writing to release you from the lease early (say on one weeks notice) during the remaining term until the notice expires so you can organise to move elsewhere you are willing to tAlk, but otherwise not to contact you other than in strict accordance with the lease.

This will freak everyone out but also make it clear she is being the unreasonable one and so she can’t play the buyer off against you by saying you are being difficult- the buyer will then “encourage” her to cooperate as they won’t want to wast money proceeding with a sale if they don’t know you are going to leave.

She’s a bitch OP- so stay calm, reasonable and play her at her own game. Good luck.

@Keepingthingsinteresting thank you. Just to clarify, all the contact now is via the lettings agent thankfully as I told everyone to only contact me via them. This included the selling agents and the valuation company and the LL already knows this. I did mention the data breach and the selling agent tried to turn it around and say they asked for my permission which I promptly shot down and told them not to contact me again without the lettings agent involved.

Ah - the landlord left it until they were broke in order to sell a property. Oh dear. What a senseless woman. She's going to have to take a loan out or use her credit card until the sale goes through. Not your problem though!

I would say all of those are valid reasons not to allow access. I would also change the barrel on your door locks so she can't just do it anyway (cheap to do).

Had a discussion about this on the property board a couple of weeks ago. She can't quote that she's legally entitled to rent until the end of the tenancy, and then complain that you are also exercising your legal rights.

If you believe you can find somewhere quicker, then you can always go back and say you are allowing access for the last week of your tenancy, so if she wishes to let your tenancy end sooner then she will obviously have access sooner.

@daisyphase I don't think she is broke! I think she's making it up. Apparently she's always on holiday and today I found out she has a second property she rents out! Also without giving anything away, her monthly mortgage payments on this house will be significantly less than the rent we pay her, probably half or a quarter if that.

Oh... so she's just a self-entitled princess then!