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Legal matters

Mumsnet has not checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you have any legal concerns we suggest you consult a solicitor.

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Original poster

Landlord changed the locks

106 replies

LolaLolaLolas · 22/03/2022 19:00

I posted a thread back in October about my ex partner, he was the named tenant on the rental house and I was a permitted occupier.

Here is the original thread if you're interested

Urgent help needed, Permitted Occupier http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am iibeingunreasonable/4391032-Urgent-help-needed-Permitted-Occupier

Since then I am still in the house, I have been looking for properties but also trying to convince the landlord to let me stay temporarily. I was told my ex had paid the rent up until the end of March, but also told that he had ended the tenancy. The landlord declined my offer and said he wanted to move back into the house on the 1st April.

On Friday 11th March I received an email from my ex's solicitor offering 50k to me if I moved out of the house by the 18th March. I explained that 7 days was unreasonable, and was there any movement on that date.

I never received a reply from her, I sent 2 subsequent emails during w/c 14th March. Again, no reply.

Yesterday morning I was at work and my ex turned up with a locksmith and they changed all the locks, the tenancy was over. I was not allowed any access to the house, not even to collect my cats and medication I need to take daily. . I called the police and they persuaded the landlord to to let me get some things.

All of my things are in that house. Everything I own. I have found an Airbnb locally which I would not have had to do if they had been open with me. No one said at any point that the locks would be changed. I had communicated that I had found a house.

I have been told to contact his solicitor to gain access through a third party and that removals would be arranged. But she is awful and won't discuss anything with me. No one will talk to me.

I really don't know what to do. My things are being held from me. I received nothing informing me about any date to move out other than the 31st March. I didn't decline the financial offer, they never responded. I am living in an Airbnb. My dog was tied up outside the house. My son's girlfriend was in the house when the men turned up. She was traumatised by it.

I don't know why my ex was there, if he had given up the tenancy. But the landlords dodgy mate was there locked in the house. They were all in on it together.

I don't know where I stand.

OP posts:

Viviennemary · 22/03/2022 22:03

£50k to move out and you dragged your feet. Just why. Or would the money not have been forthcoming.

BlueSummerBaby · 22/03/2022 22:04

I did not decline the 50k.

The offer was not
"do you want £50k?"

It was
"we'll give you £50k if you leave within 7 days".

Your reply stated that this was unreasonable (the additional asks for a time extension are irrelevant). Therefore you turned down their offer.

grapewines · 22/03/2022 22:04

I cannot believe you wanted more than a week to move when they handed you 50k to get you out. Bloody hell, OP. They didn't have to.

Hard to be sympathetic to be honest. It's not your house, and the lease is up.

Original poster

LolaLolaLolas · 22/03/2022 22:05

@Viviennemary

£50k to move out and you dragged your feet. Just why.

Or would the money not have been forthcoming.

Exactly!! I had no evidence that it would have been. I doubt it would have materialised hence the lack of communication from his solicitor and the now saying I've missed the boat.

OP posts:

SantaHat · 22/03/2022 22:06

But seriously OP, personalities and relationships aside, you’ve been in a house you have NO RIGHTS TO for 5 months longer than you should have been. How did you think this would end?

Butterfly44 · 22/03/2022 22:08

If you're not named on the tenancy then you have no rights to be there. It sounds like you were given lots of warning and time, generous considering you've no legal recourse.

BlueSummerBaby · 22/03/2022 22:08

Gosh OP you really need to understand other people don't owe you anything. If you were in an abusive relationship that's not the landlords fault or their problem. They don't have to cut you any slack for it.

Being in an abusive relationship isn't your fault but it isn't the landlords fault either. Although it wasn't your fault, it was your problem to deal with.

BlueSummerBaby · 22/03/2022 22:11

Exactly!! I had no evidence that it would have been. I doubt it would have materialised hence the lack of communication from his solicitor and the now saying I've missed the boat.

Your evidence was the solicitors letter offering it! Your acceptance creates some sort of contract/expectation (sorry I'm not a lawyer) which you could have used to take him to court if he didn't pay up.

Pompom2367 · 22/03/2022 22:12

You have no rights op you have been there rent free for 5 months and should have saved

BeHappy91818 · 22/03/2022 22:13

Sounds like you got what you deserved.

Sweetchocolatecandy · 22/03/2022 22:13

@LolaLolaLolas you have no idea of the stress you’re most certainly putting your poor landlord through who has clearly stated that he needs his property back, but you don’t seem to care about that.

Butitsnotfunnyisititsserious · 22/03/2022 22:16

Well at least the landlord has the property back. You've been there for months, they must have just seen the opportunity and taken it. For 50k I'd have been straight out! Did you post in legal matters hoping someone would say the landlords acted illegally?

mummymayhem18 · 22/03/2022 22:20

🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️poor landlord.

PansyParkinson57 · 22/03/2022 22:25

Talk to the private lettings team at your local council, they can investigate whether this was an illegal eviction. they could also help you to arrange to get your belongings.

BlueSummerBaby · 22/03/2022 22:29

Why should I have no rights?

Because the law says you dont in these circumstances. The few rights you did have, have been complied with by the landlord.

As a human being?

Those aren't the rights under discussion. Your issue was tenancy, not human rights.

Regardless of what the law says I have been treated appallingly.

Regardless of what the law says?! So you think it doesn't apply to you?

By breaking the tenancy agreement, you have behaved appallingly, the landlord has not behaved appallingly at all, they've done what they legally needed to do.

Why do I not deserve someone to treat me fairly and communicate with me?

They have treated you fairly, very much so. Your ex paid rent for you after he'd ended the tenancy and left, he didn't have to do this. He also offered you £50k to not dick the landlord around and leave quietly, he didn't have to do that either.

The landlord has done nothing wrong so if you're claiming landlord is unfair, you're out of line. You've had ample opportunity to remove your belongings at any time whilst you were squatting/your ex paying the rent. You most recently were warned again that they wanted you to leave within 7 days, so you had an additional 7 days notice to remove your stuff, it was your choice not to heed this warning. They communicated with you plenty, including by solicitor letter.

If you fail to understand that you are being/have been unreasonable all through this situation, you'll never learn from your mistakes. This is an opportunity for you to reflect on your own behaviour so you can learn what you did wrong and not repeat those mistakes in future.

Or you can just keep arguing with people about how you think you should be right. Which will get you nowhere. And you'll learn nothing.

titchy · 22/03/2022 22:29

Well the £50k's gone for a burton now hasn't it?

Verity226 · 22/03/2022 22:33

I find it very hard to believe that the offer of 50k was genuine. Who in their right mind would offer fifty grand to somebody who doesn't even have a tenancy.

Even with a tenancy, that's ludicrous.

LL could have ordered in high court bailiffs for a fraction of that money.

BlueSummerBaby · 22/03/2022 22:35

[quote Sweetchocolatecandy]@LolaLolaLolas you have no idea of the stress you’re most certainly putting your poor landlord through who has clearly stated that he needs his property back, but you don’t seem to care about that.[/quote]
This.

If he wants to move back into it by the 1st April, he needs to remove OPs things and get the place cleaned/repaired within a week. Not much time. He's probably stressed about being homeless himself if OP was still living in his property this close to him needing to move in. If OPs ex is friends with landlord, which it seems likely, then it will have put a strain on their friendship too. And all OP can say to this is "nope, he's a dick". Major attitude problem there.

Gazelda · 22/03/2022 22:38

Where do you stand?

You need to accept that you no longer live at that property.

Find somewhere else quickly and lick your wounds.

Your relationship with your ex is over and I guess that you're happy about that.

You've managed to stay there for several months without paying rent which will have presumably enabled you to save some £.

Just concentrate on liaising with the solicitor to get your property returned to you and then moving forward.

BlueSummerBaby · 22/03/2022 22:40

@Verity226

I find it very hard to believe that the offer of 50k was genuine. Who in their right mind would offer fifty grand to somebody who doesn't even have a tenancy.

Even with a tenancy, that's ludicrous.

LL could have ordered in high court bailiffs for a fraction of that money.

Depends what the ex's financial circumstances are and how much his (probable) friendship with the landlord means to him. Someone mentioned £4k/mth rent earlier in the thread. OPs ex has paid 5 months rent for OP after he moved out himself, while she was squatting. Presumably this was because he didn't want his friend out of pocket. So another £50k to preserve his friendship by getting his ex girlfriend out and shut her up about how unfair everyone is by effectively buying her a flat/deposit on something bigger, might have been worth it to him.

Pennox · 22/03/2022 22:42

Why on earth didnt you take the money, book removals to a storage facility for 10 days and put your pets in a cattery or kennel and then just chill in a nice hotel for 10 days on someone else's money? You'd still have had money left over to help make to new place nice! Or even still use it on a deposit for a flat of your own?

I know you dont want to hear it but you make strange choices if all is as you have described.

LemonViolets · 22/03/2022 22:42

Out of interest OP have you been paying the 4k rent every month to the landlord for the 5 months since you were asked to lease and told you legally had no right to stay?

WordleGirdle · 22/03/2022 22:46

Setting aside the legal aspect of your squatter's rights....

According to your previous thread (which you linked yourself, this isn't an Advanced Search witch hunt), you met your now ex in May 2021. You moved in to this house together in October 2021 - because you were evicted from your previous rental, and left the one before that because of harrassment - then three weeks later, he moved back in with his wife/partner/whoever he claimed he was separated from when you met him.

You have been living rent free in this very expensive house for longer than you were even with him. Isn't that enough time to get your act together, save a small fortune in rent, and make plans for the eviction you must have known was coming? You've potentially saved enough for a deposit on a house, let alone another flat.

Yes, he's messed you around, but things sounded pretty chaotic even before he came on the scene.

elbea · 22/03/2022 22:57

I’d be careful, the landlord is now storing your possessions at cost and is able to charge you reasonable costs for storage.

Legalconundrums · 22/03/2022 22:57

Such self-absorbed enittlement.
You think the world owes you the moon on a bloody stick... I just hope the poor animals are OK

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