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Original poster

I want to evict a tenant who has been there for 40 years

267 replies

RattysPicnic · 04/10/2014 20:42

I would like a tenant who has lived in a cottage inherited by DH to leave. She has lived there for 40 years. She raised her family there, spent her marriage with her late DH, now looks after her DGC there. She pays very, very little rent and this has always been OK as she and her DH looked after the place. However, in the last 10yrs things have deteriorated, the house is now beginning to become quite a concern and the rent is approximately 1/4 to 1/5 of the market rent. The cost of repairs would run to ££££s - she couldn't afford it and I wouldn't expect her to pay it anyway. But we can't afford to do it either (as the rent would not cover it and we have no additional capital) and each week that goes by the place deteriorates further.

All and every suggestion welcome. I am braced for a flaming about putting an old lady out of her family home. I am also hoping for possible solutions! Thanks

OP posts:

Quivering · 04/10/2014 22:24

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

IamHelenaJustina · 04/10/2014 22:25

Well the OP has just dismissed her status as grieving because her bereavement was 18 years ago and she started off by saying her intention is to put 'an old lady out of her home' so those would be some of the references I'm basing my posts on.........it's a crap way to behave. It's a crap thing to do. I'm not interested in pretending otherwise.

vitabrits · 04/10/2014 22:26

If you take away the emotional aspect for the moment, the tenant is not keeping up her side of the agreement ie maintaining the house. It's not reasonable for the situation to continue as is. You need to fulfill your responsibilities as landlord such as making sure that the house is safe to live in, but you are not responsible for this lady apart from that.

Pipbin · 04/10/2014 22:26

Lets be frank here - the OP and her husband want the money this house represents.

No they don't. From what I understand they just want rid of the millstone round their necks.
They cannot afford to maintain it.

Why are people making out that they are evil landlords? They didn't want to own this property. They didn't set out to buy it and rub their hands in glee as they fleeced people for a stupidly high rent. It was forced onto them. Could any of us afford to maintain two houses?
Also, people are asking why they have allowed it to become so badly maintained, well you don't know when the op's DH inherited it, it could have been last week.

IamHelenaJustina · 04/10/2014 22:29

OP - the tenant has paid time and money in to this property. Your dh's family at some time paid in money. Your dh has done nothing and you have certainly done absolutely nothing towards it. So that's why they should benefit and you should not.

Quivering · 04/10/2014 22:30

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

LEMmingaround · 04/10/2014 22:33

Sell it with a sitting tenant on peppercorn rent. An investor will snap it up. Ok you wont get full market value but it wont continue to cost you. If you really can't afford to sit on the investment and need the money now. Or rather not have to shell out.

Original poster

RattysPicnic · 04/10/2014 22:34

IamHelena - she has benefited, benefited a lot. DH has not benefited. No idea why you're so dead set against DH. The tenant's family is benefiting entirely at DH's expense.

OP posts:

IamHelenaJustina · 04/10/2014 22:36

Much better OP that dh should benefit by making an elderly woman homeless?

HaroldLloyd · 04/10/2014 22:36

Oh for heavens sake. I rent but I am not expecting my landlady to hand the house over to my DC.

It's a shit situation either way either she moves, or the house gets worse and worse and she is living in a poorly maintained house with issues.

What's her expectation does she expect to have the tenancy for life?

Original poster

RattysPicnic · 04/10/2014 22:37

Quivering- is a regulated tenancy the same as an assured tenancy? There is no written tenancy that the lawyers can find (!).

OP posts:

flipflopsandcottonsocks · 04/10/2014 22:37

How do you know the tenant paid time and money into the property? Are you reading ANYTHING the OP has written? The tenant has been paying significantly less rent than they should have been, and the house is in a terrible state- doesn't strike me as sounding like much time and money has been spent on it. It sounds to me like the tenant has had a very good deal for the last 40 years!

Are you a landlord Helena? Can i 'rent' a house from you? I can only pay a quarter of the current rental value, but i'll live there for 40 years and let it fall into disrepair. Though it wont matter much to you as you will give it to me at the end of the tenancy anyway wont you?

BOFster · 04/10/2014 22:39

Did you look at that link from earlier? A Regulated Tenancy is explained there.

Quivering · 04/10/2014 22:39

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

kinkytoes · 04/10/2014 22:40

If the house was left to your dh, presumably there is no mortgage on it? So what has he/you been doing with the rent? Could this not have been set aside for repairs? Otherwise, your dh most likely has benefited from this in some way?

Plus, I thought it was the landlord's responsibility to maintain the house. When I rented, we notified the landlord of any issues and he sorted out the issues for us.

flipflopsandcottonsocks · 04/10/2014 22:41

Oh stop being dramatic!! Who said she'll be made homeless?! She has children for a start, so I assume they won't allow her to live on the streets. Besides, the OP didn't say she was chucking her out tomorrow did she, I am sure she will give her time to find an alternative solution.

IamHelenaJustina · 04/10/2014 22:41

The OP said the tenant has paid and is paying rent and had previously maintained the property.

I am really entertained by how easily so many of you will overlook the effects on the person at the centre of this situation. The tenant is of an age where she will not cope well with a forced move. That's a matter of fact. It will affect her mental and physical health.

Is it RIGHT to evict her? (let alone legal)

SoonToBeSix · 04/10/2014 22:44

Re the boiler it is highly likely that the tenant will be entitled to a new boiler. A simple "free boiler" google throws up lots of information.

FiveGoMadInDorset · 04/10/2014 22:44

If the tenancy dates from before 15 January 1989 then it is regulated and you need to get a court order to evict her, look at Shelters website and get legal advice

Stopmithering · 04/10/2014 22:45

Op, how do you know she couldn't afford the repairs?

ChrissieLatham · 04/10/2014 22:46

Yes it is right to evict her as she's not sticking to her contract of maintaining the house

BOFster · 04/10/2014 22:46

I think the suggestion from LEM (?) is probably the most practical: sell it cheaply to a developer with the sitting tenant. You will only get a few grand, but that's money you could use, by the sound of it, and you'll be ditching a millstone round your neck.

I know that your husband was supposed to benefit from the inheritance, but the original owner probably didn't pay much for it, so anything beyond that is a bonus.

flipflopsandcottonsocks · 04/10/2014 22:46

Do you know the tenant? If not then you have no way of knowing how it will affect them. My 97 year old grandmother got made homeless quite literally last year when her home flooded, and she was mentally, emotionally and physically fine. I'm not suggesting everyone would be like that, but you can hardly assume they wont be without knowing more about them, which you don't.

Beastofburden · 04/10/2014 22:48

Can you sell it, buy a modern convenient flat, and give her a new tenancy in that? Then she will be living in decent conditions, the roof won't fall in, and when she does eventually die you can realise the investment.

How does she feel bat the place falling down round her?

concernedaboutheboy · 04/10/2014 22:49

It doesn't matter if there's no paper tenancy. It could still be a regd tenancy.

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