Hello all so I’ve been scouring for a long time to see if I could find a similar situation to mine but alas I haven’t.
So here it is.
I was a tenant at a flat where I signed a new fixed term contract with two other people. We are all students from other places so we had to pay 6months up front and deposit. Turns out living with those people were a nightmare. So I contacted the letting agents to say I wanted out cause I truly was not in a safe space and gave notice nearly 3 months before move out and the next 6 months were due. They granted me an out as long as I found someone to replace me.
So I found someone the referencing went through and they all just needed to sign the papers. Well the person I found backed out last minute. And at this point I had also already moved out and into my new flat where I paid 6 months up front there.
The people that live there now refuse to pay “my portion” even though I’m on a joint contract and I literally can’t afford to pay the old places rent and won’t pay it. I want to request a surrender but I’m sure the other people won’t agree to it.
What should I do if I can’t pay and they refuse to help look for someone else to replace me?
I’m sorry to say that you are legally obligated to pay the rent for the remainder of the contract. Entering into such an arrangement is binding on all parties. If you don’t pay and can’t negotiate your way out of the contract then the landlord may sue you to recover the money. This would result in a county court judgement which would cause you great problems renting anywhere else. Its a tough world for students, although in case anyone thinks its all one sided, its tough for student landlords too.
Just curious as to what made it an unsafe space?
Its multiple reasons, not only was the house filled with black mould, and promised to fix it promptly but its been 6 months and its still growing. But the biggest thing to me is that the people I lived with were mentally and verbally abusive towards me on the daily.
Sorry to hear that. Sounds like a difficult and unpleasant situation. Does your contract have a break clause? If you’re paying in 6 monthly instalments in advance, is it possible that the fixed period is 6 months only? The black mould may be covered under the uninhabitability clause if there is one on your contract? If you paste the paragraph in your contract relating to ending the tenancy, we might be able to give more specific advice.