*Urgent:* Is it illegal to stay in a 1st floor 1 bedroom flat (private tenancy) with a newborn baby? Please Help! New Mum!

[MumsofAnarchy24]

I have recently renewed my 1 year tenancy agreement in my 1 bedroom 1st floor flat, 3 weeks later I found out I'm 12 weeks pregnant.

I will clarify I wasn't trying to conceive as I've been on the pill successfully for well over 10 years and according to my midwife, while I was ill in October the anti-biotics I was on probably affected my contraceptive pill and that's how I conceived.

I am very happy to be pregnant but I am scared that it isn't legal for me to stay in this flat with my baby and I am unsure of how to leave my tenancy if this is the case. When I moved in it was advertised for couples/working professionals, no pets and no children but there is nothing in my contract that definitively states no children, it just says no pets.

As far as I am aware there is no break clause in my agreement, admittedly I am not sure how I could check to see if this is the case. I am currently dealing with a lot of stress and difficulty getting my life organised for the baby's arrival as relationships soured at my work once I told my work that I was pregnant (unfair treatment, being made to work 55+hrs and generally being strict and unreasonable with me all because I asked for my hrs to be lowered back to my contracted 45hrs, the work is manual and I'm on my feet most of the day, with my shifts being between 12-15hrs each day 5-6 days a week).

So with that going on, I am scared to speak to my landlord who is lovely and we get on very well (never missed payments nor have we ever had any issues), as I am frightened that as with my work's response to my pregnancy, my landlord may not take the news well either.

I am happy to stay in the flat until my tenancy agreement ends and I am also happy to leave before then if I am not allowed to stay because of the change in circumstances.

I am not unreasonable and would be willing to give my landlord 3-5months notice to look for another tenant, I also do not mind helping him find another tenant. The only thing is that I'm unsure if the baby is allowed to live in this flat legally.

I may be overthinking this but with how badly it has affected my job, and how toxic and aggressively unco-operative my work has been towards me since I revealed my pregnancy, I am scared to put a foot wrong.

The only thing I am scared of is being told if I do leave before the agreement is up that I have to pay all rent owed til the date the tenancy agreement ends in a lump sum because I have ended the tenancy early. I need some advice urgently.

babies not paying their way

So disingenuous. A baby may not count as a person but what about two teenagers?

Sorry just read your update. Can you take sick leave?

You should not be working til midnight while pregnant, your partner is right, and the work are not complying with their own risk assessment. Speak Citizens Advice Bureau and also consider asking your doctor for a sick note re stress / baby.

Put in a written

It's illegal for a landlord to discriminate against somebody with children e.g. ending an agreement early or not letting the flat to them.

Unfortunately many landlords do have preferences and it might be that they would not have chosen to rent to a tenant with children and might make up some excuse not to extend the agreement - so if you're prepared for that as a possibility that's fine. But certainly don't go asking them for permission.

If the contract says no children then it is not enforcable because that is not something they are allowed to put in a contract in the first place.

@Coronawireless It's ok if you find yourself backed into a corner because you said something stupid. You don't need to keep repeating yourself, you can just let it go. Even better to acknowledge you were wrong and then move on.

No rental pricing has ever been set on the cost of wear and tear caused by the number of tenants. They simply charge as high a price as possible, constrained by market rates (ie as much as they can while still attractive tenants), and influenced by the needs of their lender if they have a mortgage (some lenders will insist on say 130% of the monthly payment).

How do you even think it would work? For example, walls should be repainted every five years (standard taken from the deposit protection schemes) and let's say that costs £100 for ease. So you'd charge £20/yr for one person living there towards repainting walls, but £40/yr if there were two? It doesn't really make sense does it?

Sick leave is a great idea - stay off sick (pregnancy related - you can't be sacked for this - extreme morning sickeness is a bugger!!) and stay off til the union can help.

[quote nearlychristmas21]@Coronawireless It's ok if you find yourself backed into a corner because you said something stupid. You don't need to keep repeating yourself, you can just let it go. Even better to acknowledge you were wrong and then move on.

No rental pricing has ever been set on the cost of wear and tear caused by the number of tenants. They simply charge as high a price as possible, constrained by market rates (ie as much as they can while still attractive tenants), and influenced by the needs of their lender if they have a mortgage (some lenders will insist on say 130% of the monthly payment).

How do you even think it would work? For example, walls should be repainted every five years (standard taken from the deposit protection schemes) and let's say that costs £100 for ease. So you'd charge £20/yr for one person living there towards repainting walls, but £40/yr if there were two? It doesn't really make sense does it?

[/quote]
I don’t know where you get your information from but the attached is from citizensadvice.org.uk (though a quick google will show many other examples).
Landlords have a right to specify number of tenants.

You have nothing to lose by staying off sick - If you are going to resign anyway - you ARE too tired to work, and too ill. You can self-certify the first week. Go to the doctor the second week and then speak to the union in that week.

You may not like it but it’s a fact.

Feel liberated - just don't go in tomorrow.

@Coronawireless

babies not paying their way

So disingenuous. A baby may not count as a person but what about two teenagers?

Quite. What is the world coming to. Babies are ok, but from about 5 they should be out sweeping chimneys and what not and earning their keep. Kids today don't know they're born!

In the meantime, I best get my refund claim into my landlord. Next door has THREE tenants in. I must be due a 66% refund. Happy days!

OP - don't worry about your flat, it will be fine, you're not doing anything wrong or illegal. Get support with work - there's been some excellent advice here

You have two separate issues here - your home and your work.

Regarding your home - it’s not illegal to stay there as PPs have said.
With all the stress from work then I wouldn’t say anything to your landlord just yet.
(When you do tell them then just say you’ve just found out but they can’t evict you because of it).

Regarding your job - I wouldn’t change jobs as you may not be eligible for maternity leave else.
What is your job?
I would speak to someone higher up and tell them you can only do your contracted hours.

So don’t do anything about your flat right now and just focus on the job.
There’s only so much stress one person can deal with.

@Coronawireless

That doesnt include children of the tenant. You really need to stop now because you're embarrassing yourself.

The only time the number of tenants changes the income for the landlord is in an HMO.
If a landlord has a 5 bedroom property and rents each room individually (with shared use of communal areas) then the landlord would be involved in the number of tenants because they're renting it individually and they would obviously get more income of they rent all 5 rooms rather than only having say, 3 tenants.

If they just rent the whole property to a person then the dependents of that person really have nothing to do with them. The rent will be inline with the market standard for whatever property it is and it isnt being rented per room. Its just the cost for the property. That's it. The tenant can have children and it does not have any impact on rent. Having a baby or having teenagers makes no difference. You're paying the price for the whole property. Your children can live there.

@bantuknots

Why would it be illegal😂

Because the OP took a contract on as a single tenant where it was stated No Pets and No Children.

It's a perfectly legitimate question to ask when you're not sure of your rights.

So I don't understand why so many people on here can't see that and I don't see any reason for laughing.

OP - I actually am a landlord, and I wouldn't have an issue with your situation. As others have described, it would be illegal for me to do so. I've had tenants with children, tenants who were couples, and tenants who lived on their own. Some of them have been great, some of them have been a pain, but whether or not they had children was in no way correlated with being a good tenant.

Regarding wear and tear on the flat, I obviously expect a certain amount of this with every tenant. I know that if there's more than just wear and tear in terms of damage to the flat, I can ask for this to be deducted from the deposit, so I'm not biased against parents in this regard. Also, tiny babies tend not to wreck flats! The worst you might need to do is get the carpets cleaned before you check out to remove any dubious milk spit-up stains

OP it's not illegal, an extra person isn't going to break overcrowdin glaws..

OP, re work and possibly your rental contract, I suggest you contact Pregnant Then Screwed who may be able to help.

@Coronawireless Free?!?!?!?! Rent is for the ENTIRE PROPERTY!!!! If the rent is paid then NOBODY is living there for free. You are bang out of order to say that

@MumsofAnarchy24 The very best thing you can do right now for both yourself and your baby (and your job) is to get signed off. Don't go in to work tomorrow (you can self declare yourself as unfit to work for the first 7 days) and stay off until you get Union help or you manage to get in touch with ACAS.

They CANNOT legally fire you for being off sick whilst pregnant. They would then end up owing you tens of thousands in damages for unfair dismissal!

@MumsofAnarchy24 www.acas.org.uk

OP you really need to speak to ACAS re work as they are breaking the law not allowing you enough rest time between shifts. You are legally entitled to at least 11 hours between shifts amd this would probably increase during pregnancy. They are majorly taking the piss so please get advice before it harms you or your baby. Good luck 💐

Some people on here are ridiculous and are probably worrying the OP more. The only thing illegal would if she got evicted due to being pregnant/ having a baby.

@Coronawireless you need to stop derailing this thread and leave. Whatever point you think you are making you are not succeeding, you’re just adding noise to a thread where op clearly needs help and USEFUL advice.

@MumsofAnarchy24 I think the majority of us are worried for you and hope you can take time off, de-stress, and not let them work you into exhaustion

@Coronawireless

babies not paying their way

So disingenuous. A baby may not count as a person but what about two teenagers?

Doesn't matter. Owner still pays the same mortgage, pretty shitty to charge extra if the teens are under 18/lived there previously.