Landlord selling home after renewing tenancy

[connemaraalex]

I have lived in my current property for 3 years, been happy here and was not looking to move. 3 weeks ago I signed a new tenancy agreement for 12 months. 1 week ago my letting agent informed me that the house is being put on the market and it's now on sale with people waiting to view it.
I want to move out as I don't want to go through the potential hassle of the house sale- viewings, uncertainty of having to vacate etc.

My predicament is that I have just signed a new tenancy agreement but BEFORE knowing he was putting it up for sale. Now I am stuck. Or am I?

The new tenancy does not start until 30th July technically. I essentially have till the end of July in my former tenancy so I'm arguing that I should be able to opt out of renewal based on the fact that I would not have signed it if I'd have known it was going on the market.

I'm feeling very anxious about the whole ordeal. I have found somewhere to live but waiting to hear if I pass the checks and am accepted as others have also applied.

Does anyone have any advice or experience to share?

If you have a regular AST type of contract you are technically allowed to refuse access to anyone who wants to enter the property, even the landlord.

If you really want to leave I would tell them now that that's what you'll do if any buyers come to the view the place - they'll pretty quickly allow you to pull out I expect.

How immoral of the landlord!

What notice do you have to give under the current tenancy agreement? Is the letting agency pushing back on this and saying the new tenancy agreement overrides it?

In any case, you can surely refuse the house viewings so that gives you some leverage - if they want to sell they need your cooperation.

Please call Shelter for advice as they will know the legal position. Fingers crossed for the new property you have applied for.

You don't have to move. You can just refuse access for viewings and continue till the end of your new 12 month tenancy.

What a bizarre thing to do. You have just signed a new 12 month AST? Are you sure the landlord has signed it too? Has it been left undated? Maybe the landlord is hedging their bets and testing the waters for a sale before signing/dating the contract. If it hasn't been signed and dated by both parties yet, you can withdraw.

If the AST has been signed and dated, the landlord can't give you notice before the end of the new 12 month fixed term. That will make it hard for him to sell unless the buyers are BTL landlords too. Is that how it is being marketed?

Either way, you don't have to agree to viewings as you have a right to quiet enjoyment.

To be more clear, have you got a copy of the new AST that is signed and dated by both the landlord and you?

If not, I would assume the landlord hasn't signed it yet and is trying their luck. They may well only sign the new AST if there is no interest for a price they want by 29 July. If they think they can sell, they probably won't sign and will let the tenancy become a statutory periodic tenancy so they can give you 2 months notice.

If your AST doesn't start until 30/7 then I would say you can give notice prior to 30/6 and move out by 30/7. I really don't think they can enforce you staying for a tenancy that hasn't started yet.
however I think you've overreacted and could have remained there for the year you've signed for. Any buyer would need to be a BTL and it would probably have taken 6 months or more to go through. You wouldn't have been moving out before July 24.

You cannot normally cancel a tenancy agreement once it is signed, even before the start date. However, if you are keen to move out then I'd be tempted to 'offer' the landlord two options:

1. you stick with the agreement and get 1 year's quiet enjoyment of the property, which means no viewings in that time.

2. They let you end the agreement as soon as it suits you to.

What is not an option is for you to spend x months being disrupted by regular proeprty viewings because your LL hopes to sell but also not lose out on any rent, so wants to keep you in situ right up to the sale date.

Assert that the new contract is void because the landlord with held pertinent information. Give notice in line with the terms of your existing contract.

See advice from shelter / a solicitor if they insist.

I had this years ago.
it was a horrible year . It didn’t feel like it was our home .

I hope you find a solution for you

What is the likelihood that you will find another rental quickly?

The landlord might have thought it was fine to rent to you for another year then the mortgage shot up. Mine has gone from £488 to £1287! This is because i no longer meet the criteria for a new buy to let mortgage as its been changed so i have to go onto the variable rate with the mortgage provider im already with which is 9%! A lot of landlords with mortgages will be in this position. That would explain the sudden need to sell. I get £900 in rent. Mortgage payments are not counted as an expense so ill be taxed as if im making £900 profit a month when im making a loss.

It is a pretty material event and in my opinion, affects the basis on which the contract was entered into. If she / he implemented such a drastic change between signing the contract and now, she / he should be able to see that it has serious repercussions for the tenant. She / he could have opted for a rolling tenancy instead of a fixed term...

Talk to your landlord, letting agents can be awful. My friend was just told she had 6 weeks to vacate as the property had been sold thankfully both old and new landlord contacted her to confirm it was an error. I would assume your landlord is selling as tenanted not with vacant possession and the letting agent has made an error