Tenant Rights

[Nemesis4909]

Hi guys,

So the worst has happened and my letting agency has told me that they are selling the property out from under me. It really sucks but there's nothing I can do about it.

I have a question about my rights as a tenant though. Basically the letting agent has offered a reduction in rent of £50 per month so that myself and my flatmate can keep the place clean enough to accommodate viewings. I'm personally not comfortable with the thought of people coming in and out of what is still my home of an evening when I'm trying to work or whatever. It will be a disruption to my life and will make me feel really anxious.

My question is this: as a tenant do I have a legal right to refuse this or at least make some kind of reasonable demand - i.e. viewings can only happen on certain days at certain times or do I have absolutely no rights whatsoever now that I'm being turfed out?

I have another question. Me and my flatmate operate on a joint tenancy. We live in Scotland which will become important. What are the rules around us leaving? We've been given notice to quit on the 1st June but what if I find somewhere to move in around April or May and he doesn't then what are the rules around early leaving? Do we both have to stay here until the bitter end as long as one person isn't able to leave at that point? Or at least keep paying rent until then or can one person legally go and leave the other in the lurch?

This is a really stressful time so if anyone knows what my options are under Scottish law then I'd appreciate the assist. I can't call Citizens Advice because they're currently closed which doesn't help.

Thanks in advance.

[Diana M]

Re: Tenant Rights

Hello

I think the first thing to establish is whether your Landlord has the legal right to give you a Notice to Quit and whether the Notice which has been served on you is valid.

A lot will depend on what kind of tenancy you are on so look at the Shelter website for a good explanation of the procedure for ending private tenancies > http://scotland.shelter.org.uk/get_a...rivate_tenants

I expect the agent is keen to move things along because they'll be getting a whopping commission for selling the property.

From what you say you have a tenancy agreement so read the Terms carefully. A Landlord can only do what is written into that contract.

Some will say that you must provide reasonable access to prospective buyers in the last 8 weeks of the fixed term. Some will be more specific and say the agent only has to give you 24 hours.

Does the agent have a key?

At the moment you have possession of the property so they can't enter it on a whim.

To answer your second question (about leaving before 1st June) you need to establish how much notice you (as Tenants) have to give if you want to quit. That can sometimes be less notice than a Landlord has to give.

If you are in a Joint Tenancy then you are both jointly and severally liable for the rent (and everything else in the contract) so if one leaves early leaving the other behind that won't release the 'leaver' from their legal obligations.

I'm saying all this without knowing anything about your tenancy agreement so call the Shelter (Scotland) free helpline to check everything before you plan your next step.

Di

[Diana M]

Re: Tenant Rights

the letting agent has offered a reduction in rent of £50 per month so that myself and my flatmate can keep the place clean enough to accommodate viewings. .

I'm curious about the inducement of a £50 per week rent reduction to cover the cost of keeping the flat clean. Are you and your flatmate very messy (I can be!)?

Looking at it from a manipulative point of view, if the place is a tip then maybe the agent won't want to show buyers round until after you've gone. That way you may get early release

Di

[Nemesis4909]

Re: Tenant Rights

He's really messy but I'm not. I know everyone would say that lol.

The £50 per month is to cover the inconvenience caused by having to do more cleaning/keep the place tidier than normal. I just don't think it's worth being made to feel like a stranger in my own home until it's no longer mine in June

[Nemesis4909]

Re: Tenant Rights

For some reason I only saw the below reply and not the top one.

I've had the same thing happen to me before so I know that the notice to quit is all legal and above board, no help there unfortunately.

I will need to dig out the tenancy agreement and pour over it to see what's going on. They do have a key yeah that has been used for contractor access to fix things and such.

That's a relief that my flatmate can't bail on me without ponying up his half of the rent but it'll be a similar problem if I can't leave early too. That means I'm stuck on moving in May/1st June.

I must admit I'm feeling really anxious about this. I've been on Spare Room messaging people and haven't had a single response which reminds me of the time I was on a dating site...

I actually don't have anywhere else to go and because I'm a millennial I can't afford to actually buy my own place. I'm essentially trapped.