Being Evicted under accelerated procedure Because I Asked For Repairs - Section 21 - England Private Rental

[mystic_bertie]

I have obviously overdone it when it comes to asking for repairs to this house that im renting. I have been given a section 21 notice of 2 months to leave by the letting agency. Do i have to leave on that date? I have severe mental health issues and i really don't need this right now. Can i appeal against this? Evil landlord strikes again.

[theberengersniper]

Well, he can't physically evict you, so if you refuse to leave on the date on your Section 21 notice he'd need to take you to court, get a possession order and a warrant for eviction, none of which is a very quick process.

But I'd suggest your first port of call is to make sure the Section 21 notice you've received is actually valid in the first place. More information here:

If you get a section 21 notice

WWW.CITIZENSADVICE.ORG.UK

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Check your section 21 notice is valid, find out what to do if it's not valid and make sure you know what to do before you need to leave your home.

Have you been given a reason for the end of tenancy? It'd be worth asking if not, you might find he wants to refurbish the place and you might be able to come to an arrangement with him to move out temporarily, or even allow him to work around you.

 

[mystic_bertie]

many thanks for your reply, i had a quick look through the link you gave and it suggests contacting the CAB to get advice if it is an eviction because i asked for repairs. I will go through it tomorrow in more details to see if the section 21 is valid or not too.

The landlord is in America and i deal with a letting agent. I was not given a reason but i will send an email and ask the question. It seems obvious that it is because of repair requests. Ill let you know what they say. I moved in here in 5 months ago

If i refuse to leave as requested, if they go to court am i likely to incur any costs or fee's?

 

thanks

 

Edited May 25, 2023 by mystic_bertie

[stu007]

Hi

Have a wee read of this Shelter link:

How to check a section 21 notice is valid - Shelter England - Shelter England

ENGLAND.SHELTER.ORG.UK

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Find out how to check if the section 21 eviction notice served by your landlord is valid. You can challenge an invalid notice in court and stop the...

 

[mystic_bertie]

Hi Stu many thanks for that link. It is much appreciated. It looks like the section 21 is valid so ill read more on that article to see how to deal with the process.

[stu007]

Hi

 

If you are in England I do hope the Landlord has given you a copy of the How to Rent: the checklist for renting in England as that is a legal requirement that you are given a copy.

/assets/static/govuk-opengraph-image-dade2dad5775023b0568381c4c074b86318194edb36d3d68df721eea7deeac4b.png

How to rent - GOV.UK

WWW.GOV.UK

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This guide is for people who are looking for a house or flat to rent.

 

[mystic_bertie]

Stu - sorry for the late reply. It does look like they have done everything correctly. I cant seem to get through to the local CAB as by the time i get home the offices shut at 5pm. Ill try and call tomorrow before i drive home. 

[mystic_bertie]

Hey guys after reading those articles on the Shelter and C.A.B websites,  it looks like i will be charged for any court fee's, is this correct? It looks like i will need to move at some point so maybe i should start looking for another place, i'm in the Bristol/Gloucester area so it might take a while to find a place and for my application to be accepted. 

I cant get a hold of the Bristol CAB, the site says the opening times are to 5pm, i phoned at 4pm after work and its closed, i fear my half hour dinner break wont be enough.

[stu007]

Hi

 

Phone Shelter and speak to them they deal with this sort of situation a lot

[mystic_bertie]

Hi Stu many thanks for your reply. I managed to get a hold of Shelter as per your suggestion. 

It does seem like everything had been followed properly and the notice is valid. As mentioned i can stay beyond the notice date but it looks likes i will have to pay the court fees which can be up to £500. So that is  still an option if i have no choice but i do want to avoid those fee's.

I have found out that the landlord has decided to sell and that is why i am being evicted. At least it makes it more acceptable knowing its not being done out of revenge. So maybe i can ask for some more time to work around this situation and find a place to stay. It would have been better if it was handled better and given this information at the start.

[mystic_bertie]

Hey guys i am still in my house 1 month past the eviction date. I had a problem which prevented me getting another place, the new job i was in there had a 3 month probation period and this meant i could not get references. So that has probation period has passed and i can start looking again.

I was informed by the letting agent that the landlord had started legal proceedings, i was told the legal proceedings would stop if i moved out. They could not tell me if im responsible for any fees if i did move out before it went to court. Can anyone tell me if i am legally bound to pay any fees if i move out before it gets to court?

thanks all

[mystic_bertie]

can anyone please offer me some guidance or if they are unable to advise on this matter.

[stu007]

Hi

You need it in writing from the Letting Agent that if you move out before any Court Proceedings and handover the property properly to them with a Check Out Handover there will be no additional fees.

You want this in writing from them not over the phone.

[mystic_bertie]

Hi Stu

I shall send them an email requesting what you have suggested. She already told me she cant give me legal advice but ill ask anyways.  

[mystic_bertie]

Hey there does this give me any peace of mind.

 In terms of the legal proceeding there shouldn't be any costs from a tenants point of view. However if a judge awards a possession order with costs that means tenants must leave their landlord's property before a given deadline and pay off some/all of the court costs.

[stu007]

Hi

Difficult question to answer as it would all depend on the Landlord and as you are past the 1 month past the eviction date all this will be added cost to the Landlord and that Landlord then having to to take legal proceeding to action the eviction is also added cost to the Landlord which they will add to the Eviction Proceeding in Court.

This is the reason I asked you to get it in writing whether they agree and do that is another story but something tells me they won't put that in writing.

If you have a Protected Tenancy Deposit also have a close look at what the Landlord can claim as they may and I do say may be able to claim these via that deposit but you need to check that tenancy deposit scheme and read it closely.

 You also need to bear in mind if the Landlord has any extra cost due to this if they can't claim it back via tenancy deposit scheme they may and again I do say may take the option to make a small claim in court to claim any cost back due to the eviction. This is why I mention getting it in writing  which you have asked them for.

This is all in the Landlords Court as to how they proceed as you need to remember that the Estate Agency are Employed by the Landlord to Act on the Landlords Behalf.

If they do give you it in writing as I said you need to make sure you keep that letter in a very safe place for a few years to protect yourself

[mystic_bertie]

Hi Stu many thanks for your informative reply. I assumed getting them to agree by email was sufficient but i can see you want me to ask for  a letter. I will email them again and ask for a letter confirming what was agreed in writing. 

I will read the terms of the deposit protection scheme. To see if it can be claimed for any losses.

I finally got accepted for a house today, i need to pay the holding fee and do the application. Im hoping to move in 3 to 4 weeks all going well. 

thanks

[mystic_bertie]

Hi Stu

Its mind boggling looking through the terms and conditions also a lot of it is hard to understand. I found this Paragraph below.

24. Court Orders
a. If you obtain a court order against your Landlord or Tenant, we will only release
the Deposit if:
i. it refers to the Deposit and/or The DPS as the Scheme administrator; and
ii. it specifies how much of the Deposit should be paid to the successful Party.
b. If the court order does not comply with section a above, we will not be able to
release the Deposit. In this case, the order must be amended, or a third party debt
order must be obtained or the matter may be referred to our Dispute Resolution
Service in accordance with Section 20 of these terms and conditions for a Decision,
before we can release the Deposit.

[stu007]

Hi

Basically the Landlord would have to go through the Court Process for the Eviction but at the same time the Landlord may ask if there is Arrears for a Money Judgment/Money Order when applying to evict you or after you have left.

What is a possession order for eviction? - Shelter England

ENGLAND.SHELTER.ORG.UK

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Most landlords need a possession order from the court before they can evict a tenant. Find out about orders the court can make

 

[mystic_bertie]

Hi Stu thanks for your post and help, i have read through the article you posted the link to, i have no outstanding rent arrears anyway. Great info anyways to absorb if it does go to court.

The letting agent has told me she cant post the letter to me however she can print it off if i want to collect it from the office. That seems crazy to me. I will ask her to prepare a letter for collection then.

[mystic_bertie]

Hi guys, today i received the court claim form for the eviction process. It tells me i need to respond and to seek legal advice. I am leaving the property on this coming Monday the 9th October. WHat should i do guys?

 

[mystic_bertie]

Guys can you please advise me on this one regarding the same property and the claim the landlord is making from my deposit. Please note i have not seen any pictures supporting their claim.

Deduction 1 - The carpet was not freshly cleaned before i moved in and had a small oil stain showing. When i moved out the carpet had been vacuumed but there was a grubby area where the sofa was, nothing severe, in face localised cleaning would be fine. I just left it when i left as the whole house was not cleaned to a good standard when i moved in. Would i be right in thinking this just wear and tear? As i cant hand back a grubby house im left with no option other than to clean it as normal which is sickening.

Deduction 2 - I don't have any idea regarding the claim to a damaged sink, i have not seen any photos either. The only thing that i can think of is the enamel in the old worn out kitchen sink was wearing out and it was like that when i moved in, i had only been there 10 months.

Deduction 3 - There was a mix up with the stupid letting agency woman and my leaving date so i was undercharged for the final months rent.

 

Deduction 1 - Cleaning - Amount claimed £80.00

Description - Carpet clean to lounge as per recommendation in the check out report.

 

Deduction 2 - Damage to property contents - Amount claimed £50.00

Description - Contribution towards new sink costing £175.

 

Deduction 3 - Rent Arrears - Amount claimed £31.23

Description Outstanding rent payment.

 

[honeybee13]

Hi.

Do you have any photos of the state of the property when you moved in?

HB

[mystic_bertie]

@honeybee13 only the pictures in the move in inspection report, i get stressed out when i move and i cannot bring myself to take my own pictures. The kitchen sink looks ok in the pictures in they provided however it does not show the full inside of the sink.

the independent inspector is doing this on behalf of the landlord and not on behalf of the letting agent, the report went to the landlord and not the letting agent. 

the house was not in good clean condition when i moved in but its impossible to get picture of thick dust on white surfaces. Im not sure if its worth mentioning all the bad things i found once i moved in, i don't want to put the DPs person off what im saying but i can list a lot of bad things that was left for me. 

see pdf for pics

the report says - Sink - Good domestic clean (please note it does not show all 4 corners of the inside, the hidden corners are where the enamel wear is)

the report says - Professionally cleaned carpets showing wear with two small black marks (please note the carpets dont look professionally cleaned, see pdf, also if they were professionally cleaned why is there an oil stain? I thought this was down to wear and tear)

 

jpg2pdf.pdf

Edited October 22, 2023 by mystic_bertie

[mystic_bertie]

check out the few pics i did take, cobwebs in the hall ceiling missed by the inspection and the cooker was passed off as clean, it was filthy and thick with crumbs and dust and grime. 

move in pics.pdf