Home Rent Question.

[itsmefolks]

My son and his wife have been in a house they are renting for 2 years. They have been told by the landlady that she want them out in 2 weeks so she can move back in. They have 2 children, one is 8 weeks old!! Obviously this is very worrying and they are wondering what the law says about this! Thanks for any help with this.

[boxtops]

what does it say on their tenancy agreement? Unless they have somehow contravened the agreement, it's usual to allow a reasonable notice time. Mine was month.

[Prudie]

Yes check the tenancy agreement, it is usually a month. One of the stresses of private renting, been there so know it's a worry.

[itsmefolks]

Thanks for thos answers. Yes the obvious thing to do really!! Cheers.

[lcg]

if they have an assured shorthold tenancy.....the period of notice is 2 months at a minimum. if they renewed their tenancy within the last 6 months, they have until the 6 month period is up (again with a minimum of two months). that is the law......but you must check the type of tenancy and the clauses of notice (my hubby was a housing officer). your son should tell the landlord to get stuffed and inform her of the correct notice period and start looking for another property. my other bit of advice is checking the landlord used the tenancy deposit scheme for their deposit - if not, keep any monies back from the final rent payment, as landlords are notorious for screwing tenants out of deposits. i will subscribe to your thread and if you want any further info, let me know x

[Peter Pedant]

The law is clear
she cant get them out without a court order

she is also obliged to tell them that

so really they can negotiate
like get a reference, and time for alternative accommodation

Not only that they can and should hike down to Citizen's advice and also their local council's crisis housing team and say that the landlord is planning on makig a nursing mother homeless

the law is straighforward on this and they need [free] advice

first: go to their tenancy agreement
it is likely that the agreement ran out and was not renewed ( = run on lease ) and then a judge usually finds that it is a 'periodic tenancy' with the legal period is the rent time - usually monthly

and she needs to serve a s21 notice and it has to cover two rent dates

so if the rent is due on 12 Feb say - the soonest she can get them out is Mar 31st because that covers 12 Feb and the next month

Having got the advice I would negotiate actually

and good luck ! PP

[Peter Pedant]

please ! lets be nice to landlords !

lcg is almost right up to the bit he can''t resist slagging off people like me - a pensioner as well !.

Deposits are now held by the statutory bodies wh lcg seems to have forgotten.

if the naughty naughty landlord ISN'T - they can't apply to a court for eviction. You can see that anyone holding a deposit wh is not in a scheme is crazy.

[tonywiltshire]

There are bad landlords as there are bad tenants, I do not know which is worse. Your son’s landlord is wrong and PP is right they must be given 2 months’ notice on a properly prepared section 21 notice and even then the landlord must go to court if the tenant does not move on the date given, the landlord is unable to use a section 21 notice if the rent deposit scheme has not been properly used. Inform your son and his family not to move at this stage and until he receives a written and correctly prepared section 21 notice he need do nothing.
.
Peter thanks for asking your driver to give me a wide berth, I am usually on the Kingsway between 9.15 and 9.30 in the mornings I am at the office and subject to wearing a hat will raise it the next time you pass me.

[lcg]

first....i am a bird, not a bloke. second, in the 20 years i have rented, i have never had a decent landlord. third....my hubby was a homelessness officer, so you can see where i get my opinion of landlords from. pp, you are the exception to the rule and the op has already described shocking ineptitude by her son's landlord, which doesn't fill me with hope. finally, deposits should be held in the scheme, but it is down to the landlord to do that. i refer you to my earlier points.

[tonywiltshire]

Icg76, you are correct, I have had a tenant telephone me with the employees of the alleged landlord banging on the door shouting, loud enough for me to hear, that they had come to make him leave. I have also seen the devastation some tenants leave and have lost count of the number of tenants who have left with rent arrears who are difficult to find. In my experience you have been very unfortunate to have not found a good landlord; they do exist, as do good tenants.

[Buenchico]

The tenancy is almost certainly a 'periodic assured shorthold tenancy'. If so (and there has been no breach of the tenancy agreement by your son and his wife, such as failing to pay the rent) the minimum period of notice that a landlord must supply is 2 months. See here:
http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/renting_and_leasehold/private_tenancies/regulated_tenancies

NB: I've assumed that the couple live in England. For advice relating to other parts of the UK (or for other tenancy types), follow the appropriate links from here:
http://shelter.org.uk/