been given notice to quit

[oooeee]

Hi there,

can anyone confirm fo me what i believe? my landlord has just given me a months notice to quit my house although when he cam round i was in shock and asked for an extra couple of weeks because i had family visiting in July and he agreed. My contract was a 12 month one which does not expire until 30.09.2006. am i right in thinking that he cannot ask me to leave until that date for any reason? he's asking me to leave because he and his wife are getting divorced and they need to sell the property.
as he is asking me to leave before the end of the tenancy agreement is there a "contract breaking " compensation thingy? i'm only asking because property is so expensive round here i don't think i can afford the deposit and rent in advance on another place at the moment. the last house i went to look at wanted £3000 up front!!!! my rent here is £900 a month and although i realise i will get the deposit back on this place when i move out i still have to have the cold hard cash to move inot somewhere else first.
not sure if i'm making myself very clear, is there anyone who can help me know my rights for definate?

trying to find a 3/4 bedroomed house that takes kids, smokers, dogs and housing benefit in the busiest seaside resort in the country at the middle of summer is not going to be easy!!!

[woolfie]

Is it an SAT (short assured tennancy) agreement you have? If so I dont think they can terminate but I would have a word with the CAB to double check. When I rented my flat I had terrible trouble getting repoession even though the agreement had expired and i had given them a further 3 months notice and they hadnt paid me rent for 5 months.

As I recall the law is very much on your side. It might also be worth a free half hour solicitor appointment?

Hope this helps a little.

Woolfie

[oooeee]

Thanks Woolfie,

i didn't think it was that easy for them to get me out, i am looking for somewhere else urgently but i have to think of my family so i just wanted to know where i stood if i can't find anywhere.

[Butterbean]

I've had some landlord issues and have received some great advice here, so here's my fourpenceworth. As you have an Assured Shorthold Tenancy Rental Agreement the date for possession of the property has to be at least two months after the receipt of the notice. Your contract runs out at the end of September so he could serve notice now but you would not legally be expected to leave until the end of your contract. If the worst comes to the worst and you are still struggling to find alternative accommodation by the end of September, he cannot throw you out onto the street otherwise he would be committing a criminal offence under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977, and to gain possession if you refused to leave he would have to wait until the expiry of the notice to quit before he could apply for a possession order from the court.

I can understand what problems he may be having, as would anyone with any heart, but he has legal obligations as a landlord and he can't duck out of them. His private affairs are his private affairs. Sorry if I sound unsympathetic towards him but it's since joining this site that I've grown teeth and claws and am not going to be pushed around any more.

Hopefully someone with more in depth knowledge can advise you as to what remedies you have for challenging his intention to break the contract.

[installspark]

Notice by Landlord

To end a shorthold tenancy the landlord must give at least two months' notice under Section 21 of the 1988 Housing Act. For notices - see Agreements & Forms

The notice cannot take effect for at least six months or until the original agreed term has expired.

Where the tenancy has become a periodic one the notice given must expire on the last day of a rent period. For example, if a monthly periodic tenancy rent day is the 20th of the month, the two month notice period must end on the 19th of the month in question.

There is nothing to say you cannot give more than two months' notice. Therefore a landlord could service a two month Section 21 notice soon after the granting of a six month term to take effect at the end of that term.

The above quotes come from the landlord zone website here.

I would suggest that you speak to the CAB and your local council's Private Tenancy Officer in relation as to what action you can take. Also send your landlord a letter reminding him of his legal obligations under the Housing Act.

[watccoe75]

In addition to the above:

If you have a fixed term tenancy your landlord can only give you notice during the fixed term if:

• there is a reason (or 'ground') to evict you, or
• the notice does not expire until after the fixed term has ended, or
• there is a 'break clause' in your tenancy agreement.

from Shelter: Notice from the landlord

Needing to sell the house because he's getting divorced does not count as a reason (or 'ground').

[Nightmare4banks]

oooeee,in reply to your posting:

1.Your landlord needs to give you 2 months notice and serve you with the correct paperwork.

2.This means he should serve you a proper notice exactly 2 months before your "fixed term tenancy" expires.

3.You cannot be evicted without a court order.It is a criminal offence to evict
a tenant with force,violence or other measures i.e.changing the locks.

4.However,if you have not moved by 30-9-06 you landlord would probably apply for an"accelerated possession order".This means that your landlord wants his property back through a court order.As long as he has submitted the correct paperwork - he should get the property back due to the shorthold rule.However,if you could not find accomodation this may/could lead to you being given more time.
With this type of procedure NO reasons need to be given to why the landlord wants a possession order.Normally,a judge would grant it due to the shorthold rule.
A landlord cannot claim any rent arrears using this procedure.

5.My advice to you is try to find alternative housing.Equally,do not be too too worried at the moment because the notice you have been given is not worth the paper it is printed on!

Anyway,I hope you find this information useful.

If you have any more questions,just ask.

Keep us posted.

All the best!

[Jhawc24]

Hi oooeee!

Have you got yourself on the local housing lists? If you are threatened with homelessness then they may help rehouse you. Check the local housing associations too. You won't need a deposit and the rents are much cheaper. Also some local councils have deposit scheme's to help fund up front deposits. If worse comes you can ask a prospective landlord / agents if they would accept a deposit in instalments over the first few months - it's worth a try. Good luck!
Joan

[AllyG]

Hi Oooee
I "think" i'm in the same area as you and have a similar problem. (altho landlord isn't an actual person)

To give others a slight understanding (if you don't mind) the area of the country we are in has a major shortfall of local authority housing. My family have been on the local council list for about 5/6 years but due to being in "tied" housing and the fact the rules have recently changed we don't actually count as being on the list until the date we applied with our notice to quit.
Now our landlord messed up and we have only just received the notice to quit, the date being the beginning of august but we do know they have set a precedence with another tenant on the estate who should have moved over a year ago but they are still in their property.

Suggestions we have had from the local council have been worse than useless, buy a house, pay inflated rent of about £1000 a month, get a shared ownership house! (latest offer of shared ownership was a 1 bed flat for a family of 2 adults, a teenager and 2 kids plus a dog and 2 cats!!!) we've also been told to keep applying for the council properties but as we're not in the highest band we have absolutely no chance of actually getting one!!

OOEE sorry to rant LOL but i know how u feel and it does get to you sometimes. The advice we HAVE been given is this (from the council) , DO NOT MAKE YOURSELF VOLUNTARY HOMELESS your landlord can't throw you out on the streets, he MUST go through the proper legal channels.
You may be lucky and get the council to agree to put you on the emergency housing list altho even tho we took our notice to quit letter to them last week we were told they basically do not have the property available so it can take months to get a council house.

AllyG

[oooeee]

Hi all, thanks for your advice and support. i went to the local council last week and was told they could not help us as we did not have to leave until the end of september. we had actually managed to find another house but needed help with the deposit. as we were not being legally evicted the council could not help us with this. i think we are in the same part of the country AllyG (TR7 postcode) as i was told that the housing list is at least three years long and in the meantime i could be put into bed and breakfast (with two teenagers, one little one two dogs and a rabbit? i think not) the average rent where i live is £800 - £1000 a month so trying to raise the rent in advance and the same again as a deposit whilst still paying £900 a month rent is proving difficult to say the least. thanks for replying i at least know where i stand so will not put myself and my kids onto the street!!!! will keep you all posted.

[amartin1908]

I have had the same problem lately - he needs to serve you with an AT6 form, which is an official notice to quit - simply a handwritten letter or letter from a solicitor is no longer enough. If you are within 59 days of an official eviction date - the council are obligated to put you onto their housing list, and yes you may end up in b&b for a short period, but if your children are of a school age this period will be short lived, as you will automatically become one of the highest priorities and they will find you something soon. You may also want to see if there is a rent deposit guarantee scheme in your area - we have the cyrenians here! They are a charity group that will approach landlords on your behalf and they will guarantee the deposit if you dont have one available.

Good Luck