Landlord wants to sell

[ShiningforLeeBertie]

My landlord told me a couple of months ago he wants to sell and if I am interested in buying. I may have been at the start however he wants too much money and the house has several issues.

My partner and I found somewhere else and have an offer accepted so are just going through the mortgage application process now.

My LL has now been messaging to say he wants to market the house asap but needs vacant possession, and if we can agree a date to end the tenancy. He put the end of July. I have told him I cannot agree a date as I dont know how long the buying process will take, but of course will keep him updated.

I have been here since Sep 2009 so from research a notice to quit has to be a minimum of 12 weeks.

If he issues a S21, I believe it would fail as the house is not compliant. He had a elec safety check done in 2021 and the house failed, with some faults listed as "dangerous". He has not done the work needed to make it compliant. There are also other issues but none where he has failed to meet his legal obligations. I believe the GSC from 2024 has also expired and he has made no attempt to have that checked at all.

I don't want to be an arse about it, but I'm also not prepared to make myself homeless just so he can sell. He said he doesnt want to miss out on another property but tbh thats not my concern, he shouldnt have looked at others until he had vacant possession of this place.

There is no agent involved, no deposit as he didnt take one (hes my ex-wifes ex boss, she moved out in 2017 and I stayed here).

I have said I will give him dates as soon as I have them, I dont want to be here any longer than I have to be, but I can tell that he will keep trying to pressure me into leaving earlier than I need to.

I just want to know my rights as a tenant, and also him not fulfilling his legal obligations (which I have reminded him of constantly and have evidence of him saying he knows he needs to sort it etc). My tenancy is just something he downloaded from the internet and makes no mention of notice periods etc.

Thank you

Op I’ve had a look at both shelter and gov.uk and whilst the ll needs to provide an electric certificate I can’t see that lack of one invalidates a s21

Thank you, I may have to make a call to the Council as well to report. There is so much conflicting information out there, it's hard to know what is right and what isnt.

As according to this lawyer, no EICR DOES invalidate the S21, so not sure what to believe.

Ok
Thats not my experience

My relative had theirs thrown out ( they were the landlord ) because of a date inaccuracy only
They had no EICR and didn’t the second time it went to court and the s21 was accepted. [ yes they were a really crap landlord ] This was last October 24

If you read the wording of your first doc it states
Gas cert and EPC and booklet

There needs to be a EICR. But the EICR wasn’t within the same wording as the list of things you need

The reason for this is The judge will not make a landlord ( who is looking to sell) upgrade his electrics to comply I order to get a s21 in order to sell That’s not reasonable. If you were taking him to court on non compliance then a judge would. But as part of the s21 he can’t as the point of the s21 is to get a tenant out.

OP
I wouldn’t waste money on legal advice anyway
By the time he jumps through hoops and waits for the s21 to run through to court you’ll be gone.
Even if you’re not
You don’t have to leave by the date it states anyway
Then he has to go back to court to get permission for bayliffs
Then he has to wait for a bailiff slot

Honestly
Youve got loads of time

Thanks, although I think this may all be moot as I am pretty certain the GSC has expired. I am hunting my paperwork but also contacted the engineer for when his records show it needs renewing. I have previous ones that were done in Feb of each year and I have been with my partner since Apr 2024 and I have not had an inspection in that time, so I am very confident the house has no GSC as well, and we all know that DEFINITELY invalidates the S21. I always used to get letters saying the check is due and it was down to me to get it organised and the engineer would just invoice the LL, but the paperwork is eluding me at the moment.

I will keep that info under my hat for now.

Most engineers write in the gas meter box or on the meter itself the date of inspection.
( ours always have )

Last date on there is Due March 23, I really can't remember the last time I saw him, but he was very thorough and would be surprised if he failed to write it down.

Last cert I have is dated 2021 (he must have been here in 22 but cant find the cert at the mo) so that would make sense as he has written down every single year since 2017 on that particular sticker which is when the boiler was changed.

So
No gas cert
No check either !

Doesn't sound like your LL will be issuing that s21 👍

He has definitely not been here in the last year so there is definitely not a current GSC. I will call him tomorrow to find out when he was last here, and also resist the temptation to inform LL of this discovery.

As I said, I dont want to be an arse, but its just galling that the LL is trying to rely on the law yet doesnt follow it himself. He took advice about the EICR yet didnt think to think about the GSC which is far more important. I do want to leave, but not making myself homeless or singing to his song, I will leave when the time is right.

That is incorrect. The electrical safety has no bearing on the validity of a s21.

Don't call in case he alerts the LL to the issue

Very good point, I know it's not done and that's good enough for me.

I second this
Id lie low OP

The only issue might be if your sale falls through as is fairly common unfortunately. He may be further down the eviction route by then and may not give you a good reference and it may state he had to evict. It could make it harder for you to rent if this happens. Hopefully it won’t come to this but it’s just something to be mindful of.

Give shelter a call. They should be able to tell you exactly what the LL needs to provide. Your tenancy is a long one but I don’t think that exempts the LL from current requirements.

@ShiningforLeeBertie You have been there since 2009? When was the last tenancy agreement signed?

This is really important because if your tenancy started before Oct 1 2015 then there are no requirements for the landlord to provide a GSC EPC or HTR guide for a s21 to be valid
Not having an EIRC does not invalidate a s21

If you have renewed it after then the rules will apply.

Stop engaging with it all, he ll need to organise the s21 and it ll either succeed through the court or it won't. There's no point checking about certs etc especially if you are confusing yourself relying on wrong info and if it's correct information you are mad imo to have been warning him what he needs in order to issue and succeed with the s21. If he arrives in court without the correct documentation that's good for you as the process has to start again, if he gets it all organised you may have to leave the house before having somewhere to go

Tell him he will have to give you a section 21. And go the eviction route. Keep quite about gas certificate and all the other bits. That way court will chuck it out and it will buy you more time as he will have to start again.

Eviction can take a long time.

Like you say you can't become homless . I assume he has a place to stay . Unlike you would have if you left.

So, timeline is like this...
2009 - moved in with my ex wife, AST signed
2017 - ex wife moved out, LL agreed for me to continue in property, no new TA issued.
March 2025 - LL issues amendment granting tenancy to me and my current partner, not sure if this counts as a renewal.

Think what muddies the waters is the change of the law in 2015, and I'm struggling to find definitive info whether a S21 will be valid at the moment or not.

Help me understand.
So landlord wants to sell the property.
Why can't he?

Why is there so much talk of eviction...aren't tenancies ended amicably?

If a landlord gives 6 months notice would this be seen as agreeable to most tenants?...not in this case but a general question.

He wants me out ASAP so he can market with vacant possession.

I want to go, but not at the expense of making myself homeless. I am in the process of purchasing a house (mortgage application made and waiting for a decision) so I cant give him a date as I dont think we will complete before the time he wants me out, which he has given me as 2 august

Thank you.

An amendment is just that
An amendment to the existing tenancy ie adding your new partners name to the existing one, for example
It is Not a new Tenancy agreement

In my experience of a tenancy starting 2009 those things were required when the s21 was issued.

In fact it was all brought up in court by the Judge