Landlord Selling House

[China Doll]

Morning All,

Please bear with me as this is likely to be long and rambling but I don't really know what information you need so I'm just going to give you everything.

My Landlord is currently selling our house. He recently did some building work that went on for much longer and caused more inconviniance than was first thought.

Last Friday, myself and my three other housemates wrote to him to tell him that the work that had been carried out had not been done in line with anything he said and had taken much longer than expected. It was after these emails that he decided to sell the house as he was too 'stressed' with it all. (I might add they weren't threatening, swearing emails, just expressions of our general annoyance).

I was hoping that he would knock �100 off the rent as then while not being happy with the situation I would not have to pay the whole months rent for the pleasure of living in a building site.

He is selling the house to another Landlord (as yet unknown) via an agency and I've been assured that a new landlord will likely want to keep us on. Although two members of the house no longer have an up to date contract and myself and another house mates contract is up in October, I've also been assured that another Landlord can not just come and raise the rent within the first six months.

My current Landlord has now just contacted us to say he's arranged a viewing on Saturday despite asking us our preferred days and us clearly stating that weekends would not be suitable.

Do I have any rights to withold my rent for a month? Or to not pay the whole amount? Also, I do still feel very vulnerable with the contracts being in the situation they're in and a new Landlord taking on the tennancy, should I be worried?

Any help or assurances would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers
China.

[bednobs]

to be honest, you should be worried. No matter what he has said or promised, he can in effect ask you to leave when your contract is up and that's that. he could tomorrow decide he wants to live int he house himself and give you notice. If a new contract is being done in october he wont have sold by then, but a new landlord could put yur rent up at the commencement of a new contract and you would have the choice to pay it or find somewhere else

You could negotiate a rent reduction, but you cant just withold rent without being on very dodgy ground Perhaps you didnt make yourself specific enough in the emails you sent him ... no point fishing around, when he might not even be on the same page re: rent reduction, just come out and ask him.

[Twenty20]

Oh dear.

No, he can't visit or have viewings whenever he wants to, it has to be with your approval (even if it says otherwise in your AST). You have the right to 'peaceful enjoyment' of the property, which means he cant come round bothering you.

You can only have one rent increase in a 12 month period, so it would depend on what rent you agreed at the start of any new AST.

No, you can't legally withold rent unless you come to an agreement with the landlord first.

Just as an aside, is he holding your deposit within one of the tenancy deposit schemes? You must have signed up around the changeover time to that scheme?

Personally, I'd start looking for a new place to rent, one where there's no building work going on and the landlord knows what he or she is doing!

[Twenty20]

Try posting on this site for help and advice. Its for landlords but they'll help tenants too

http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/forums/forumdisp lay.php?f=3

[China Doll]

Thank you.

He's transferring the money to a deposit scheme.

But I think he might use that site so I'd better not post there.

But thank you both once again.