Section 21 housing act form is this form correct?

[KneeOnLite]

A bit of background I'm not a landlord and I rented my family home while I was working abroad. The house has been destroyed by the tenant. I want to apply for accelerated possession and as such submitted the enclosed section 21 form to the tenant, by first class post, with proof of posting dated 23/8/17.

The tenant went to the local council and has been told not to move out till she has a eviction order, she also informed me that the section 21 form I sent is incorrect and will be thrown out of court. I believe someone from the council told her that. All personal details names and addresses are correct as per the tenancy agreement.

I have enclosed the filled in form with personal details removed, could someone have a look and see if it is wrong. the tenancy agreement was signed on 1/11/16 for a 1 year period.

There was no deposit paid as i knew the family, There is a valid gas cert (renewed June) and she was given how to rent book and EPC cert.

[Kati]

Re: Section 21 housing act form is this form correct?

tagging [MENTION=15129]Crazy council[/MENTION] xx

[Diana M]

Re: Section 21 housing act form is this form correct?

Since 1st October 2015 Landlords must use a prescribed form for a Section 21 Notice if it is to be found valid by the court. Perhaps that's what your Tenant was told.

This is best described here > https://nearlylegal.co.uk/2015/09/1-...ection-21-day/

You may need to re-serve/replace your one (was it downloaded off the internet?).

Di

[KneeOnLite]

Re: Section 21 housing act form is this form correct?

Diana Thank you very much for your helpful reply,

Could I serve a section 8 I have the grounds such as arrears of rent, damage to the property, complaints from the neighbours. I understand that it requires 2 weeks notice and can be done online. Would I have to attend court, as I am currently abroad or could I nominate a family member in my place. It has already cost a fortune in rent, and the court fees are about £350. I don't want to have to pay another 1000 to travel back to UK.

[Diana M]

Re: Section 21 housing act form is this form correct?

Could I serve a section 8 I have the grounds such as arrears of rent, damage to the property, complaints from the neighbours.

You can serve both a Section 8 (Form 3) and a Section 21 Notice.

However before you do I think it would be wise to get all the evidence you need together since you say your Tenant has already enlisted the support of her local council. They will be guiding her on her legal rights and possibly how to throw a spanner in the works to frustrate your attempt to evict her.

There is something known as Revenge Eviction or Retaliatory Eviction. This is when you serve a Notice on a Tenant who has raised 'issues' (such as repairs) with Environmental Health and in return the court will not grant you possession if the council served an Improvement Notice on you (to fix the repairs etc).

I'm afraid it doesn't matter if the Tenant has caused the damage, it's the Landlord's legal duty to comply with the Housing Act.

Is your Tenant in receipt of Housing Benefit (Local Housing Allowance)? If so is the payment cycle the problem which has caused the arrears? Or is she 8 weeks or more in arrears so you can ask the Council to pay the HB direct to your bank account?

Or is she paying (or not paying) her own rent?

Removing a Tenant from a property can take up to six months if they resist, so if there's a chance you can get any rent (HB) due to you it could help your cash flow in the meantime.

Was there an inventory when she moved in so you can demonstrate the 'before and after' condition of the property? Were there photos?

Did you provide her with a formal Assured Shorthold Tenancy agreement (signed by both of you) at the start of the tenancy so you can demonstrate any breaches?

What is the 'rent due' date because that is relevant to the service of the Section 21 Notice?

Here's some more information on seeking possession which is written from the tenant's perspective (how to fight against possession) but at least it should give you some idea of what lies ahead if the Tenant doesn't want to leave > https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/ho...tion-8-notice/

Di

[KneeOnLite]

Re: Section 21 housing act form is this form correct?

Once again thanks for your invaluable help and advice.

The tenant is more than 2 moths in arrears, and they do receive HB, that is already paid into my account. The HB paid here in the north east for a three bed house is £349.80 and the rent is £440. The tenant agreed to pay the difference (they never did pay). I think ground 8 is covered. I also sent a letter that was hand delivered by the police when the house was raided, asking for payment of arrears and pointing out that the tenant had broken the AST agreement regarding damage to the house and nuisance. This was July 12 arrears was £726 at the time.

I have read about Revenge Eviction, I don't think that would apply in this case, there are no outstanding repairs and there has been no disagreements.

There was no Inventory but I have Photos of the interior and exterior of the house, the day I handed it over. I also have Photos and video of the tenants kids smashing the bedroom window with a hammer, they had climbed onto the porch roof to do this and were hanging from the guttering trying to get into the house. The mother had left them locked out. There are other photos of the damage to the exterior.

The rent due date is the same day as they signed the AST 1/11/16 and then payable monthly. I have a signed copy of the AST and I am able to demonstrate breaches to the AST. Although to keep things simple I am thinking I will go with section 8, ground 8, 10 and 11. Ground 8 is a mandatory ground I believe.

The AST ends on the 31 Oct 2017 if I issue another section 21 at the same time as a section 8 would I not be confirming the tenants right to be in the property. Does it make any difference if the AST (Assured Short-hold Tenancy) finishes on 31/10/2017?

When I send the Section 8 do I also include all attachments such as rent statement and a copy of the letter I gave them in July RE rent arrears and other tenancy breaches. Also do I send copies and keep the original form 3.