Hi, I have a query regarding whether my landlord has followed proper procedure in relation to a tenancy transfer. I moved in to a 3-bedroom shared flat with two others on 13th March '15. Prior to this, one of the flat mates with whom I am now sharing with had lived at the property with three of her friends. For various reasons, the three friends moved on however my current flatmate wanted to remain in the property. As I understand it, the original contract for her and her three friends started on 26th April 2014 and was due to finish on 26th April 2015. The landlord allowed for her to advertise the two spare rooms to find new tenants. This lead to myself and the other new flatmate moving in. My move in to the flat was called a 'tenancy transfer'. I took over the room previously occupied by two (a couple) of the former tenants. As part of this arrangement, I paid the former tenants their deposit back and the deposit certificate was amended to my name. The landlord provided me with an assured tenancy agreement for a term of three years, starting on 13th March. There was no formal check-out procedure for the previous tenants and no inspection of the flat. Fortunately, the flat was in good condition so I was ok about paying them their deposit back. Unfortunately, the dynamic between myself and my two new flatmates is poor. I now intend to use the same tenancy transfer arrangement to get someone to take my place. I noted that the landlords own guidance on this process states that transfers can't take place in the first and last three months of the tenancy. This made me think about the process for when I transferred in. It appears I transferred in to the property in the last three months of the previous tenants' contract. At the time, the landlord said that they were treating my entry in to the property as 'effectively' a transfer. I was a bit confused at the time because they also provided a new tenancy agreement for the three-year period. I'm pretty sure the original contact for the original tenants was for one year, which would mean that a transfer in March would not be possible, due to it being in the last three months. If their original contract had a tenancy period of longer than one year, surely the contract they provided to me should have been for the remaining time of their original contract. The landlord added a statement to the contract that I signed (perhaps stupidly) that the contract was a renewal of the contract originally signed by the previous tenants on 26th April 2014. There's something that doesn't seem quite right about all of this. I'm concerned that it might take me a while to find someone to take my place in the flat and as it's not a great place to be at this time, it would be good if I had a get out. I would be grateful if someone can advise on whether my transfer in to the property was by the proper means and if not, does this make the contract void. Thanks for reading.

Hi everybody, Recently I have faced quite a troublesome situation and looking for advice. I'm waiting for visa in UK and naturally, started to look for an accommodation beforehand. I have found reasonably good offer on one of the websites (from the private person). She gave me her phone number and friend of mine, who lives in London, called her and came to check the room. Then we have negotiated contract terms and starting date of the lease. Then she asked me to pay "holding fee" of $180. I have agreed with it and payed via PayPal. Recently she asked me to pay another ~$420 and later wrote that she is starting to look for somebody else to rent the room. Also, she wrote: "I reserve the right to take this to court". I feel really uncomfortable because of this, but I haven't signed the contract with her and have never issued the standing order to her bank account as it should by done by the contract draft. During negotiation of the terms I have sent only .pdf with my name in it, but with sign field left blank. I should also notice that I have never received a signed contract from her in any form (electronic or physical). I would really appreciate an advice what should I do in this situation. Kindest regards.

First of all, apologies to anyone who might feel we're being unethical or otherwise trying to get out of a contract unfairly. My son's best friend recently took on a tenancy in a house share after a long period of sporadic homelessness. Since then, she has had a complete mental breakdown and is living with her boyfriend's family and with us while undergoing intensive therapy (4 times a week). She has attempted suicide on multiple occasions and can't be left alone at all, even in the bath (which is why the two families are dividing her care between us). There is no question but that she is very seriously ill and the professionals dealing with her case agree that it will be some months before she makes any major improvements. Now she is on SSP and is getting some housing benefit, but it is not enough to pay the full rent. This is partly because it's been extremely difficult to get the HB people all the paperwork they need and so they are basing her award on her previous pay right now. I'm hoping we can get that sorted out this week and that they will accept her reasons and award backdated payments. It will still be more than £100 a month short though, based on our LHA rates. She still has about 8 months on the contract for a flat she can't live in and now can't afford. Her boyfriend's parents agreed verbally with the landlady to be guarantors, but did not sign anything at all. Is there any chance of her being able to end the contract early, bearing in mind that she was already becoming ill when she signed and does have a long history of mental illness? I realise this may seem unfair on the landlady, but the alternative is spiralling rent arrears and court, which would also be a lot of hassle for her! Obviously, no one would expect the deposit (1 months rent) to be returned.

Background: I was out of work for a few years. I have now a temporary work contract with no ending date but I was told informally that it would end in November. I really need to move away from my current accommodation and I like a nice single room at a very affordable place let by an agency. One of the condition of the tenancy is: no Housing Benefit (I haven't read the contract, that was on the leaflet). I can understand the agency or landlord not wanting certain kind of tenants, but what happens if I rent the room and then I lose my job and claim Housing Benefit? Can they legally put a clause in the contract that if I claim HB then my contract is terminated, or otherwise the fixed term tenancy becomes periodic tenancy? Would I have to inform the LL/agency of my change in circumstances? Any other pitfalls I should take care of? Thanks

Good Afternoon, Thanks for reading, and hopefully I can get some much needed answers to calm me down.. Before I write all this, I'm aware of the mistakes I've made and will learn from it as I've been heavily held to ransom by my tenants, and by not doing a tenancy agreement... I rented out my 2 bedroomed house to start a new life away from the village I was in. This was a rush letting, so I didn't check the tenants etc, didn't even draw up a tenancy agreement, but stated no DSS / Benefits. Long story short on this, I barely received rent, but found out they were on benefits, so I'm now in receipt of their Housing Benefit thank god. They moved in on the 26th January 2013. They quickly changed the locks, their numbers etc - I'd been done. I didn't even take a deposit (I'm an idiot I know). Amongst the zoo of animals in there, and my now tarnished property, I issued a Section 21. I had this checked numerous of times by different Solicitors, and it was deemed correct, and the date for the end of Tenancy of 25th of July. I have an email also from their housing advisor stating an Assured Shorthold Tenancy had been created when they moved in on the 26th of January, and they did indeed move in on the 26th of January. They refused the signed for Section 21 through the post, so hand delivered it on the 8th of April, and under video evidence and witness. My questions are, do I go ahead with court proceedings on the 26th of July, the day after the end of the tenancy on the 25th of July? Do i give a couple of days grace? As there is no tenancy agreement, we had a verbal agreement they would pay rent from the 26th for each month. Should I wait until the 1st of August just in case? Also, is there any way the Judge could throw it out? These are council tenants, renting off a private landlord, so the council won't rehouse them until I get them out through the court. I just want the judge to throw them out!!!! I'm sweating more the judge won't give me possession as these tenants seem to be professional in what they do, plus neighbours have informed me bailiffs have been round to my property taking furniture in their name... Because my Section 21 seems in order, paperwork wise, is this all going to be ok? Again, there is no tenancy agreement, so nothing stating when rent is due, just that they moved in on the 26th of January... Obviously I'm a first (and last) time landlord!!!! Many thanks, Art.

Hello, we all have a separate contract with the landlord. The council tax says that he is liable to pay however, one of the clauses in the contract is : "You must pay for all electricity, gas and phone bills, water charges and Council Tax relating to the property that apply during the period of the tenancy." I would like to know if this clause overrides what the Council said. Initially, my landlord kinda tried to get me to pay the tax for the next year as well (I am only living there as a non-student for 12 months). I am not a student. I live with two students. One of them stopped being a student and moved out messing up with the discount one receives from the Council since he stopped being a student. I do not want to pay the council tax and if I have to pay, I don't want to pay an extra 200 pounds.

Hi everyone, i'll try to keep this fairly brief. I am in a tenancy agreement with my fiancee. She has been here for about 2 1/2 years. The original contract in 2011 was for 6 months and at the end she was offered a further 6 month extension. She requested a clause for her to be able to give notice of 1 month to move out. This was accepted and put into the extension. We have been offered 6 month extensions since. Our current one ends in August. We are wanting to move out to a friend's house that he will be privately renting (bigger house, lower rent, no letting fees etc etc). We gave our 1 month notice a couple of weeks ago but had a phone call from the letting agent to say the clause was not present in the current tenancy agreement. They went on to say it only existed in the first 6 month extension (after original contract) and was taken out in further renewels. Double checking this, to our dismay we have found they are right. We have signed them and there is no sign of this clause. First question, are they allowed to take this clause out without discussing with us first? We had no idea it had been removed although yes we should have noticed before we signed. We then requested an early surrender to the landlord via our letting agent. He came back and said we could move out in mid July and pay him £225 compensation. This is no good to us as we were expecting to be moved in by mid June and don't want our friend to be out of pocket. We are getting married in September so can't really afford 2 x rent for a month. I counter offered £100 and let us move out in June. I also said that if he refused then I would like him to repair several things in the house which have been waiting to be repaired since the first inspection my fiancee had back in 2011!! He came back and said he wasn't happy letting us leave in June, and he would "look into" (same as he's always said) the repairs but if he had to spend out then he would make us stay until August when our tenancy is up. The repairs needed are as follows: Exterior of the house - window ledges are rotten and the yard is in a poor state. Cooker - leaking heat which causes the far end of the kitchen to become very warm, there is a cupboard over the cooker, the heat makes a lot of the food go off quicker but nowhere else to store food. Bathroom needs a complete replacement. Pipes behind bath/shower tiles are leaking and after early inspection, the engineer recommended a complete replacement of the shower/bath. We have a small victorian style bath, but he recommended taking it out and putting a shower tray in. Toilet pipes also leak. Our only repair that has taken place is the boiler. We were without hot water from Sept 2012 - Dec 2012. 3 months in my mind is completely unreasonable. Would this constitute a breach of the landlords responsibilities? We were contacting the letting agency pretty much every 3 days to find out the status of the boiler repair and getting nowhere. Shortly after the boiler was replaced, the letting agent had a quote done on the bathroom. This was in January and nothing has been done since despite several attempts to chase up. Landlord lives in Australia and letting agency are very difficult to communicate with. They put blame on the fact he lives on the other side of the world and is hard to reach, yet he hides behind the agency and lets them deal with us. I've requested a conference call at the agency with the landlord to which i've not had a response. They never phone us, it is always us chasing them up. I'd appreciate any advice on this as we really want to move out in June. We are annoyed because its not fair on our friend and we feel because of the fact the clause was put into an extension the landlord must obviously have agreed to it in the first place. We are going to try and seek some advice from citizens advice but if anyone on here has some advice i'd really appreciate it. Thanks, Tom

Hi everyone, Found the forum on google when doing some searching on my current situation/problem. Seems like its a very helpful forum so was hoping someone will be able to advise me or shed some light on what i can do. Here is a quick(ish) summary: Me and the other half were set to start renting a house in July in Newcastle. Shes at university over there and my plan is to relocate once i have found a job. The agency emailed us saying the current tenants would like to stay until September, fair enough its saves us a few months rent as my other half wouldn't be moving in until September anyway. So dates were arranged, house would be ready and keys collected on 3rd of September. So the 3rd of September came, the day we also start paying rent and we go to collect the keys. We sit around for 30-40 minutes waiting to be dealt with yet different people keep coming and asking which house we are here for etc. Finally a guy comes out and asks when we would be moving in, i just said not today. His face lit up as if to say thank god for that. Doesn't say anything else on the matter, basically hands us the keys and says i will email you over the inventory list as i have not had chance to get it ready. So me and my girlfriend go off to the house to check it all over. Once we get there its pretty clear that the previous tenants have only just moved out. The house is an utter mess. A quick list of the things i can remember off the top of my head - Wooden laminate flooring coming apart Skirting boards been kicked off etc 90% of the walls throughout the house are all grubby/ripped wallpaper Kitchen cupboards dont shut at all Part of kitchen worktops damaged/burnt Alarm sensor on back door hanging off Holes in various ceilings around light fittings Shower hanging off the wall Sink basin loose Tiles smashed Toilet seat broken Roof mouldy/damp. The list could go on. So by the time we had took pictures of everything/documented all the damage the agency was shut. So we set off back home. Next day i phone up the agency to express my views and question what the hell is going on. I wanted to know why the house was not ready for us and why they wasted my time collecting keys when we clearly could not move into a house that is not habitable, why we are paying on rent now on a house that is not ready and what are they going to do to sort it all out. He told me he didn't want to sound political but it depends what you class as not habitable! As for damage/repairs he told me it depends on the landlords current money situation and what he can afford (so if he says he cant afford it does the house stay as it is?) Rent starts from the tenancy start date whether the house is ready or not I cant look for another house until they find someone else to take over this current agreement. What the hell should i/can i do ? I have had some basic legal advice. Do i give them the opportunity to rectify the house/redecorate or do i tell them to shove it and I'm going to find another house and cancel the payments but so far they over £1k of our money including deposits. I have already found 3 other places that we would be happy with and the companies seem much more professional. It needs sorted asap as i currently live/work nearly 100 mile away so i will be relocating there eventually but every journey is going to be nearly 200 miles at the moment, so Monday was a complete waste of my time and a day wasted off work. 1 legal company told me to write to them explain they have 7 days to sort the whole house out and otherwise its a breach of the agreement and i will opting out of it and going for a house elsewhere. They also said i could just opt out of it now but there is a good chance they will chase me and try to sue me? But i would have evidence to fight them. All this needs sorted very quickly either way, my girlfriend is due back at uni on the 24th. They are just lucky i am yet to find a job over there otherwise i would of been f**ked not having anywhere to live! What should i do? My worry is if i give them a chance to sort it all and they have proved to be this useless already, what would they be like say 3 month down the line and the roof started leaking in? Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated right now, so stressed! If you would like any more information to help me out then please ask, i have probably missed something out. My head is battered at the moment. Thanks Ben Edit: The more I sit and think about it, the more I really don't even want to give them the chance to put it all right, I think I would prefer to just go elsewhere with a much more professional company.

Firstly, Im a full-time Master student who currently in a dissertation period. The whole thing is about the tenancy I singed with a letting agent is coming to an end by 25th August 2012. I intended to have a rolling contract after the Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement with a 12 month fixed term. But I havent receive any information from the agency or the landlord so I emailed them first on 6th July, and the agency reply me on 9th July that I can't stay after the contract ends because the landlord decided to rent it to someone else. I was asking them why I'm the last person to know and they even didnt contact me before they re-marketing the flat on Rightmove.com on 5th July 2012. I emailed them about my difficult situation that I'm doing the dissertation and its almost impossible for me to find a new 5month contract flat and arrange a move before the dissertation deadline next month. I dont know if they actually inform that to the landlord. And My visa is running out on the end of Jan 2013 which means If I move out on 25th August 2012 I might not be able to find a new flat which allow 5 month contract. And as I feel intense about the short notice to move out and I emailed them to have a explanation and possibly arrange something to sort out the situation. They explained that they did attempt to call me but cannot contact me at the beginning of July. Firstly, I usually use email to contact them with same email address which written in the information form. Secondly, I checked my phone record, there isn't any missed call or voice mail from the number they said they were calling from. I asked them to provide a phone record but they ignored my request. I started to thinking aren't they gunna say nothing to me if I didnt email them first. Because normally the landlord or agent will contact me about the rolling contract or any change as my previous experience. Then I found the information about the landlord should provide the Section 21 Notice of Housing Act 1988 with a minimum 2 month time. Clearly I didnt not get any Notice around 25th June that 2month prior to the contract ends. Therefore I emailed them again and ask why they didnt sent me the Notice in writing, they said they gaven the Notice to me at the beginning of the tenancy as a separate documents already and send me the scan copy of the Notice, but I never ever seen the Notice till now. There is no serve date of the Notice on that Notice, and I can prove that I didnt get that Notice at the beginning or at any time but now with prove. I found out there is a mistake on the contract after i signed the contract. The post code of the property address was wrong on the contract and I took it back to the agency, they just change the postcode on the contract by pen without any other action. I remember I was double asking them if it is alright for a valid contract with a wrong post code and change it like that, they said it is fine. But clearly the the scan copy of the Notice they sent me is with the wrong post code, which proved that if I get that Notice with the contract or at any time I would go and let them change it because as a law student myself I feel it is not right to have a wrong post code on a legally binding document. They insist that they serve me the Notice as a separate documents, so I checked again the contract, there isn't a mention of the Notice will be served at the beginning of the tenancy. And it also said there is a inventory list attached to the contract but I didnt receive any but the tenancy agreement itself. I'm scared they are going to lie about that as well then I wont get my 900 pound deposit back. Regardless all these, when I am trying to contact them about the issues about the Notice and how difficult my situation is, I also require a repair of the toilet as soon as possible , because the toilet with in-wall water tank stopping flashing which is a major problem for normal people. I mentioned at least 3 times to ask them send someone to fix the toilet in the email today but they didnt even say a word about it and just keep repeat i have to move out by the end of the contract date and that is the end of the issue. So I proposed that I move out this month (one month earlier) and they should refund me one month rent which is 600 pound that i've already paid. Then I got chance to rent a 6month contract flat. But like every email they replied is all about I have to move out and I cant have any right as tenant. I'm desparte to seek some legal help and I dont want to lost 600 pound rent + deposit 900 for being rip off by the liar agency and they didnt even admit their fault. :mad2:

Hi all, i am new to this forum Can anyone help. I wish to find out if my tenancy agreement is legally binding if it has not been signed by my LL. Thanx

Hi there if anyone could help me I would be very gratefull. Basically me and my fiancee rented out a property in September last year for a period of 12 months, when we wieved the property it was lovelly and it was smelling nice. After we got the keys problems had started. I have bad chest problems and there is a loads of mould and damp in the flat which is 22sq meters studio flat and anywhere you move you get mould and damp. I've contacted the agency via e-mail with photos of mouldy clothes (which we got after month of living there) walls (behind massive tv unit, fridge, washing mashine, cooker) and many other places ( total of round 8 e-mails from Sept till Dec 2011). In mean time our bed was soaking wet and matress started getting mouldy as well. In a property there is a dehumifyer which we use nearly every day and it produces pint of water a day, we dry our clothes in tumbledryer, I open windows for at least 30 minutes a day, I do "general" cleaning of everything including matress bed frame inside cuboards and undernethe bath every single week as it kind of helps my breathing for a day or two. The humidity in the house is way above average ( 70 - 80 % and suppose to be 30 to 50 %) and the story could go on and on and on ... We wanted to terminate contract at start of December but we have been told that we would have to pay the re-advertising fees and that our landrod knew about the mould before ... nobody said nothing to us ... We decided to stay and live with the mould We've made an application for a council flat back in June (before we moved in to the studio) and now last week we've got a council flat offer (based on my health issues) that we've accepted. We suppose to move to the new property mid of February and I do not know what to say to agency people. On top of that loads of people that we spoke to about ending agreement before set date said that we will be lucky if we could go through cancellation without any BIG problems. PLEASE HELP ME AS I NEED TO CALL AGENCY ON MONDAY !! Thank you very much for reading and replying.

Hi, I moved into a property around five months ago, we viewed the property and originally agreed to a 12 months fixed term contract, we then changed our minds. I contacted my landlord before we moved in and they said we could move in as soon as the contract had been finalised - so I asked, since it has not been finalised; is there any chance you could update the term to six months? They said this wasn't a problem and they would do it, the guy who did the viewing also said this was fine, he would sort it when he got back to the office. We have now been here five months and have seen another property in the same building for £495 with underground parking, white goods 1 bed (we currently pay £475 for a bedsit and my girlfriends grandparents got a parking ticket for £30 for parking in the car park outside our apartment), we thought this was a great opportunity, since our landlord charges around £550 for the 1 bedroom apartments. Today, my landlord rang me about the contractors coming to fix the washing machine (which they have already replaced with a broken one just before Christmas), so I asked them to confirm our agreement was for a six month fixed term, the said it wasn't, it was for a 12 month fixed term, I informed them that I had asked them to update it, but didn't mention that it was before it was finalised, they said that there's nothing we can do, if we decide to move out before July 2012, we will be liable to pay monthly rent of 475 until that date. I feel they have done wrong by me as: 1. I asked them to change the contract to a 6 month contract before it was finalised 2. The have failed to repair the seal around the window to this date (they informed us about it before we moved in and said they would fix it) 3. They have failed to repair the extractor fan in the bathroom (we informed them of this about a month into our term) 4. They replaced our washing machine with a broken one, then the contractors took a week to fix it (well, they're supposed to be coming on Tuesday) 5. I know(think) that they own the land on which my gf's grandparents got a parking ticket and contract the parking attendant's to give out tickets there (they got the ticket on Christmas Eve) 6. The rent is extortion for a bedsit when we can get a one bedroom apartment w/ parking space for £495, and, if I was 21, we could get a 3 bedroom house with two reception rooms for £495. This is from the tenancy agreement: 4. Ending this Agreement 4.1 The Tennant cannot end this Agreement before the end of the Term 4.2 If the Tenant stays on after the end of the Term, the Tenancy will continue but will run from month to month (a 'periodic tenancy'). This periodic tenancy can be ended by the Tenant giving at least one month's written notice to the Landlord, the notice to expire at the end of a rental period. 4.3 The Landlord has the right to recover possession of the Property if the Tenancy has come to an end and the Landlord has given 2 months' notice to the Tenant of the Landlord's intention to recover possession of the Property and at least 6 months have passed since the date of this Agreement. 4.4 If at any time 4.4.1 any part of the Rent is outstanding for 21 days after becoming due (weather formally demanded or not) and/or 4.4.2 there is any breach, non-observance or non-performance by the Tenant of any covenant or other term of this Agreement and/or 4.4.3 any of the grounds set out as Grounds 2,8 or Grounds 10-15 (inclusive) and 17 contained in the Housing Act 1998 Schedule 2 apply and/or 4.4.4 the Tenant is declared bankrupt under the Insolvency Act 1986] the Landlord may recover possession of the Property and this Agreement shall come to an end. The Landlord retains all his other rights in respect of the Tenant's obligations under this Agreement. This clause does not affect the Tenant's rights under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977. 3. The Landlord's obligations: 3.2 To insure the Property and the Contents and use all reasonable efforts to arrange for any damage caused by an insured risk to be remedied as soon as possible and to provide a copy of the insurance policy to the Tenant. 6.7 Where the context so admits: 6.7.1 The 'Landlord' includes the persons from time to time entitled to receive the Rent. 6.7.2 The 'Tenant' includes any persons deriving title under the Tenant. 6.7.3 The 'Property' includes any part or parts of the Property and all of the Landlord's fixtures and fittings at or upon the Property. 6.7.4 All reference to the singular shall include the plural and vice versa and any obligations or liabilities of more than one person shall be joint and several (this means that they will each be liable for all sums due under this Agreement, not just liable for a proportionate part) and an obligation on the part of a party shall include an obligation to allow or permit the breach of that obligation. 6.7.5 All references to 'he', 'him' and 'his' shall be taken to include 'she', 'her' and 'hers' 6.7.6 The Tenant may use the Car Park Bay[s] (if any) for parking one private motor car in each bay. All copied word for word (capitals and all) from my tenancy agreement. Is there anything I can do?

HI This is the first time ive posted but really need to help or understanding my rights. Last December 2010, I had an issue with the boiler in my house breaking, resulting in no hot water or central heating. This was reported to the Letting Agents who in turn reported it to the landlord. After a week of calling every day, and having to heat an old terrace house with electric heaters with extra cost in electricity the landlord authorised the letting agents to send out a plumber who fitted the boiler with a new circuit board. After a while we noticed that we were unable to alter the temperature of the heating as the display flashed constantly at 73 regardless what temp we set it to. We reported this to the letting agents who then sent the plumbers back to check. They advised us that they were meant to take a `Link` off the old circuit board and put it on the new one they installed. They asked us what we had done with the old board, and we told them that it was discarded on the advice of them. They then left and we heard nothing else. Two weeks later we were unable to switch the heating off at all using the control panel, so we are now resorting to switching the boiler off at the mains. Again I called the letting agents to ask when the plumber was returning and about the new problem. They advised me that no plumber was due to come out as they had been advised that the boiler was working! I explained that it wasn’t working and a plumber was sent back out. When the plumber arrived he begin to aggressively tell me that the boiler was working and that there was nothing wrong with the temperature controls and that the problem was the clock on the boiler. When I told him we couldn’t change the temp of the boiler he said that it was working, and that all it needed was a new clock. (Mainly I feel his animosity towards me reflected in the fact that me and my partner are Gay) He said that he would be back either Tuesday or Wednesday to install it. Tuesday and Wednesday passed and we heard nothing. 3 weeks later we called the letting agents complaining that nothing had been done. They advised that they would pass the matter onto their manager, 2 days later we get a call from the plumber to say that he will order the part today and call us when he can fix it. We asked him about the issue with the temperature controls and he said his manager was on holiday so he wasn’t sure. We are worried about the condition of the boiler by constantly having to switch it on and off at the mains when we need hot water for showing, washing up and using the washing machine. It’s also adding more cost to our gas bill as we are running the heating on full while we wash clothes on a weekend, which isn’t good when the weather is warm. We would really like to know where we stand with the way we are being treated as the tenancy agreement states that they are responsible for maintaining a working central heating system which includes the boiler, and that isn’t being done as we have had problems since last November. We are good tenants, never have any problems and the rent is paid in full on time every month, but I feel that the only way to get a satisfactory response would be to hold the rent payments until it is fixed, but know that this then is in breach of our agreement. This situation has caused us additional costs which we cannot afford and various degrees of stress trying to rectify it. I’m not sure on what help you can give us, but I’m at a loss as to where to turn to for advice as I feel we are being treated like fools.

Hi all, this is quite similar to the thread 298034-Letter-to-Landlord-Periodic-Tenancy but differs in that the agency wants to commence viewings for other prospective tenants if I don't sign a new fixed term contract, rather than raise the rent. My Assured Shorthold Tenancy was signed on the 28th of November last year and will therefore automatically become a Periodic Tenancy on the 28th of May, as according to the law. The agency first called me to ask if I was staying and will sign a new contract on the 14th of March, which is a little early. My feelings about this is that they were asking me to essentially give 2.5 months notice if indeed I was planning to leave; which isn't right. Also, as agencies typically do; they want to charge a fee for the contract renewal (which is obviously their entire motivation). They called again today to say that the property will now be 'put back on the market' unless I commit to staying. Essentially I am undecided as to how long I will be staying and do not want to sign a new fixed term contract. I don't like being pressured into making decisions when I'm at liberty not to. It is my understanding that once the contract becomes Periodic then it is fairly easy for the landlord to give 2 month's notice; which I am perfectly fine with. I don't know what the LL's stance on this is. They live in Hong Kong and for all I know are quite happy to continue with a Periodic Tenancy. The agency represents them in absolutely everything; including repairs and inspections; so I'm guessing the LL would prefer them to take care of everything and they just pay and forget about it. If I were to write to the LL directly, it would be airmail around the world; I don't expect it to be a speedy process. My biggest objection at this point is having prospective tenants doing viewings of the property without me having received notice. I work from home, and if the worst came to the worst I would simply tell any viewer that as far as I'm concerned, the property is not available as advertised and they are therefore wasting their time. Isn't it a bit presumptuous to put it 'back on the market' without anyone stating that the contract is ending? My contract contains the following clause: (Emphasis mine) I have done some confirmation research and only ever find that a tenant must give reasonable access to perform maintenance; or to provide viewings for prospective purchasers; but not for prospective tenants. Considering that performing viewings is obviously an expression of intent, I would expect that they can only do such a thing if notice to quit had been served. Aside from all this, we have been good tenants; pay rent on time; with no other grievances. My questions are: Do we have the right to refuse entry for viewings for prospective tenants? How best should I refuse to sign a new fixed term contract without aggravating the LL or agency? Note: I would much rather communicate my denial of entry rather than physically obstruct it. As permission is required, is stating my objection enough? As a side note, I also noticed this in my contract: Isn't the statutory requirement 1 month for the tenant and 2 months for the landlord? Thanks in advance, Darren

Hello I was wondering if anyone could give me any advice regarding my issue below I apologise if this is long winded or written in the wrong area/website. Just a bit of background I live in a intermediate rent property with the proviso that I will purchase this property within 5 yrs. I had to jump through hoops to get on this government scheme for this property such as I had to have a qualifying job, credit check, earn a stpulated minimum wage, have no pets CCJs etc. The property came with two allocated parking spaces , clearly named in my tenancy agreement, and I was told that a parking enforcement company would be employed so if someone was parked in either space we could call them to issue penalties etc. Now since moving in I’ve found the property is a mix of intermediate rent and social housing, not that I believe there is a difference in social class, but we do pay a completely different price PCM(increased) and we are bound to buy this property. I’ve been unable to use my car space since moving in as cars are constantly occupying my spaces in fact one car has been parked in my space for over 3 months and has yet to move! I’ve contacted the housing association and they have not resolved the matter and in fact have made it worse by stating the car parking enforcement company were not guaranteed as all tenants had to agree on this matter. My question is; is my tenancy agreement a arguing point in being able to force the HA to do something in order to use either of my parking spaces, as I thought this was a legal binding document. Also as these parking spaces are what we are paying for am I able to demand a price change due to the fact im not able to use them? Thank you very much for any information or advice you can forward

Hi All, I had a break clause for 6 months on an AST rental contract of one year duration. I had to vacate 3 months earlier than the 6 months. As described in the break clause, I have given notice of 2 months at the end of first month as required and also agreed to pay the remaining 3 months rent, if they do not find any other tenant and administrative costs incurred by the landlord. After 2 months notice period is over, I was told they found a tenant and took the admin costs from me. I was given a section 21 notice and I have done the checkout process and handed the property on Feb 16 as agreed. But the next day the agent tells me the new tenant has slipped away and I have to keep paying the rent for the remaining 3 months.Also landlord's agent has put the house on the market at 13% higher rent now. (Even in my AST agreement the maximum he can raise was only 7.5% per year, if I were to continue there). The break clause in the AST renewal agreement does not mention anything about the rent the landlord can ask for from the new tenants. The agent insists he can put the house on market at any rate. I think he is taking advantage of the fact that I agreed to pay the remaining rent for 3 months and being greedy to get more rent. (He probably will reduce the rent he is asking for in the last month, if he cannot find any tenants till then). Isn't this a breach of contract or unfair ? Can he withhold my deposit ? Thank you.

Hi, we have recently signed a renewal to our 1 year tenancy agreement. In our original tenancy agreement we have the following break clause: "Mutual Break Clause It is hereby agreed that after Six months the Landlord or Tenant may be released from this Tenancy Agreement without prejudice to the rights and remedies of either party against the other in respect of any antecedent claims or breach of obligation set out herein subject to 2 (Two) calendar months clear written notice from the Landlord and 1 (one) calendar month clear written notice from the Tenant." When our initial 12 months was up, we signed a renewal of the original agreement stating the following: "The landlord and the Tenant takes a renewal of the original term within the agreement to commence on 08/09/2010 to end on 07/09/2011 at a rental of £X monthly and except as to the term and rent all other terms and conditions within the Agreement shall apply to this renewal. It is further agreed that the Tenant may at their option end and terminate the Tenancy by notifying the Landlord or the Landlords Agent in writing in which event the agreement shall cease and terminate one clear calnedar months after the date of delivery of such notice. Such notice may not be given until after 8 February 2011 The termination of the tenancy may not therefore take place before 7 March 2011 resulting in a minimum tenancy period of six calendar months This termination shall not affect any rights or liabilities which may have accrued under any other clause in this agreement." When I signed the renewal, I was nervous about the above terms, so asked via email whether we would still be able to terminate with one months notice under the break clause, and was in reply told that the notice period would still be one month. We have since given one months notice, to be told that we are bound until 7 March 2011 (which may or may not result in ongoing costs for us depending on when a new tenant is found). Because of the wording 'This termination shall not affect any rights or liabilities which may have accrued under any other clause in this agreement.' and the landlords email reassurance I was comfortable that the break clause still applied, but now am unsure. Does the renewal mean that the break clause is also reset (i.e require another 6 months)? Please help!

A quick question: Naively, and probably a little desperately - I've placed a holding deposit down on a flat that I like (with a month remaining until my move date). At the agency, while upset about it, they said this landlord only does 6 month contacts initially. Along with this, the agency fee was £120 per person (£240 for us as a couple) + 1 weeks went to put a hold down. I agreed, and in my offer put down £190 and asked for a new couch as the one in there was the current tenants. Naturally, the landlord has agreed to this and I received the contract via email yesterday for me to sign and bring in. My error: I hadn't seen it until now and I've already put the hold down. The contract states: (12.4) In the event of the Tenancy being renewed for a further period there will be a charge payable by the tenant(s) to X X XLtd of £120.00 inc V.A.T. per property as a contribution towards the costs of the preparation of all necessary paperwork. (12.5) The Landlord states that there will be a rent increase of 5% pa when either a new or periodic tenancy is created. My question: now that I have a holding deposit down, do I have any room to change this clause? I really don't want these two provisions in a contract - much more importantly I don't want to have to increase my rent by £10 a week in six months without any room to negotiate! Can I ask that this be taken out before I sign? If they say no, as i've put a hold down and the holding paper says if I back out for any reason I lose the £430 I put down. If I sign as is, in six months am I still able to negotiate to change the lease to 12 months + no rent in crease? Or am I screwed and will experience a rental increase automatically and another six month contract or be forced to move? Any help would be appreciated - I need to call the agent this afternoon.