Fixed Term Tenancy, Was I Obliged To Give Notice To Tenant ?

[CW1]

Hi,

Following on from
https://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Law/Question1698357.html#answer-12337653
obviously giving some notice is the "fair" thing to do but did I actually *need* to give the tenant notice or could I have waited until nearer the renewal date ? They're not being particularly co operative & I'd like to be able to say I'm trying to be "fair".

[AuntPollyGrey]

As Tenants they do not need to give you Notice to leave at the end of the Term. However, as a Landlord, you have to serve them a Section 21 two months from the date of the termination of the Fixed Term Tenancy. If you don't they are within their rights to stay on a Periodic Tenancy, and to remove them legally you will then have to serve them a section 21 and give them 2 months Notice.

[AuntPollyGrey]

* two months BEFORE the end of the Tenancy termination.*

[CW1]

Huh, really ? I'm not asking them to leave before the end of the fixed term, have given them 3 months notice that it's not going to be renewed.

[ummmm]

That's all you have to do is give them the agreed notice.

[CW1]

Thanks ummmm but I don't think I actually *needed* to give them notice, this is what I'm trying to confirm. They're being quite uncooperative now & I'm trying to demonstrate that I'm being "fair" by giving them notice.

[ummmm]

You do have to give them notice otherwise how will they know they have to leave?

[ummmm]

It's not being fair. It's the law.

[TonyV]

Do you have a tenancy agreement with them? If so what does that say?

[ladybirder]

You do have to give them notice. It's in the agreement. What Aunt Polly has told you here is correct.

[ladybirder]

Tony the answer to your question is in the heading;-))

[ummmm]

Have you read your own tenancy agreement?

[CW1]

Not "the law" as I understand it ummmm. The fixed term would need to be renewed, & I wouldn't have. There's nothing mentioned in the agreement (put together by a letting agency) about my giving them notice, only them giving it to me. The only mention of notice re a fixed term agreement that I've managed to find is on the part of the tenant if they want to surrender the tenancy, which they're doing now & querying how much rent they paid upfront they'll get back.

[ummmm]

How much notice do you think someone needs to find a new home? It is the law, you have to give them enough time to find somewhere else.

[ladybirder]

Go to the Shelter website. Everything you need to know is there.
//.Your landlord must give you formal notice in writing if you are an assured shorthold tenant and they want you to leave at the end of the fixed term.

If you don’t agree to leave when the notice expires, your landlord must follow eviction procedures for assured shorthold tenancies.\\

https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/private_renting

[CW1]

It's courtesy, obviously ummmm, not law.

I looked at that site ladybirder, it's more from the tenant's perspective so doesn't answer my query.

Anyway, I feel I've been more than fair giving the 3 months notice I wasn't going to renew, & I'll leave it at that. Thanks for the comments :)

[ummmm]

*sigh*

[ladybirder]

FGS it tells you what the landlord has to do.

I'm out.

[AuntPollyGrey]

CW1 You may think you are being 'Fair' but you do not have the choice. Regardless of your cavalier attitude, it IS the Law that the landlord MUST give the Tenant Written Notice that they will not be renewing their Tenancy, and this Notice MUST be given at least two months before the end date of the Tenancy. It is to cover both Tenant and Landlord. You cannot just rock up on the day the Tenancy ends and say 'pack your bags mate I'm not renewing your tenancy'.

I seriously think people should be made to pass a test before they become a Landlord.

[Peter Pedant]

// Not "the law" as I understand it ummmm. The fixed term would need to be renewed, & I wouldn't have. //

Not "the law" as I understand it ummmm. - - - then you dont understand the law. Current landlord and tenant acts do NOT allow possession after a contract has determined UNLESS there is a court order

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/housing/renting-a-home/renting-from-a-private-landlord/

"If your landlord wants to evict you at the end of your fixed term or you never had a fixed term, they need to give you written notice. You might get either a: s8 or s 21
If your landlord gives you a notice, they can’t force you to leave on the day your fixed term tenancy ends or on the day the notice ends. Your landlord will have to go to court to get a court order."

I dont know why I am doing this
this is the sort of thing a Landlord should know

[Buenchico]

If you were to do nothing to end the tenancy at the end of its designated fixed term period, and the tenant did nothing either, the tenancy would NOT come to an end. Instead it would AUTOMTICALLY lapse into a statutory periodic assured short term tenancy.

See here:
https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/information/ending-assured-shorthold-tenancy