End of tenancy concerns

Tenant Discussion
1

I’ve lived in my address now since 2020. Originally through an estate agent however in 2023 the landlord went private with it. My deposit was released from DPS in full by estate agent and landlord requested a new higher deposit than the original based on the current rent amount of increases since and gave me bank details to send along with the AST.

Over the years I have never really needed a thing, I would raise concerns about the cream carpets and being in high walkway places and having a young child and the odd crack or markings on ceilings but told they were fine. I asked if I was able to replace the carpets for something more suitable as they were worn in places anyway and it meant they could be maintained better and I was happy to pay as I could use a friend for a better price. They said they agreed but that they would arrange this and pay at my inspection and then text to ask things like would laminate be okay etc and I said yes however of course it never appeared. I was constantly threatened about the garden and enforcing a gardener at my expense if it wasn’t to their standard despite them knowing I had been in hospital however I maintained it completely the best with mowing and strumming etc and others have said the garden looks brilliant and can’t see why there would be an issue, he would turn up an hour and 20 min early for the inspection time and tell me to remove my garden seating and again tell me if the garden wasn’t spotless they were getting a professional in and bill direct to me and all sorts yet the garden was great! It’s been hell and because I’m a lone person with a small child I would never stand up for myself. At the last inspection I did however and when he spoke to me so poorly I told him I would be leaving at the end of the contract and I would not renew. I sent a letter to the home address as per contract and kept a copy however had no contact. Fast forward to today I have 1 month left from Tuesday and they have finally reached out, however it’s asking if I’d “like” them getting a gardener in before winter sets in. I believe they have essentially completely ignored me. They only rent this house out and it was theirs before. I have never received any DPS information from them so I’m concerned it is not in one as when I have checked with the websites it says not found.

I only found out about the new tenants rights amendment on the news after it had been put in place as I never received anything from them for this either.

I’m now starting to think wether they have purposely done these things in order to make me pay from my deposit for new carpets etc knowing it’s not protected. I’m due to pay my final rent on Tuesday however I’m going to reply to their message tomorrow as I’m almost positive they are going to refuse me handing my notice in back in July and then remove all of my deposit unprotected, they have renewed the tenancy each year since 2023 and I have never received anything about my original deposit.

Some advice on where I stand would be great.

They are very self serving and unprofessional, I’ve had to send them photos of the garden before via text for them to decide if it’s being maintained well enough for them. They have always been obsessed with it and i believe it’s because she was a keen gardener when she lived here however a working full time single parent cannot maintain the same amount of gardening as her and the basic mowing and weeding only etc.

2

Are you sure you’ve really handed on your notice? A tenants notice to quit has to be valid. It must be unequivocal about ending the tenancy, (not “I’m thinking about leaving”). Unless the tenancy agreement allows otherwise, it must name a specific date on which the tenancy will end and that must be a minimum of 1 month, (2 months if served after 1 May) and ending on the first or last day of a tenancy period. If your notice doesn’t comply, they’re free to ignore it.

You do hold some cards. If they didn’t send you a renters rights act information sheet by 31 May, they have breached the legislation and are liable to a civil penalty of up to £7,000 if the Council find out. This sort of bargaining chip, if used constructively, might be enough to negotiate an agreement for a surrender on your terms. Unless youre confident about your notice, I would suggest contacting them to open a discussion about when you want to leave. You don’t say whether you’ve found somewhere else yet, but clearly that’s a critical component and may not be easy.

Good luck and let us know how you get on.

1 Like
3

@SarahR76

Just to check - are you in England? Different rules elsewhere

  1. Shelter and Citizens advice can help advise you
  2. make sure the notice given was valid [as @David122 says with a specific end date, referring to the latest tenancy agreement and the address, and ending on day before a rental period -eg if you rented from 1st of each month, then ending the day before the 1st] , and forward a copy of original letter again to the address [and copies via email, whatsapp and txt, use ‘read receipt’] specified in the tenancy agreement. If needed send via tracked/signed for or actually put through their letterbox and video yourself doing that. Get them to confirm they have received. If the latest tenancy agreement was ‘renewed’, look at the notice period specified, if it said 1months notice then 1 m notice will be ok, otherwise the max under RRA will be 2months [to end on the day before a rent period]. So if served properly in July you will be fine, only issue would be if they claim not to have received it.
  3. If the new deposit wasnt protected, you will be able to claim it back plus 1x -3x the deposit. Make a tenancy deposit compensation claim - Shelter England -this gives you some leverage
  4. For a carpet over 5 years old they can’t claim on the deposit if worn, it will count as wear n tear. Take detailed photos of the carpet [and everything else] when you move out. Deposit can only be used for rent arrears and actual damage, not wear n tear.
  5. If you werent served the RRA information sheet, again the LL is liable for a fine up to £7,000 if you report to the council, which also gives you some leverage
  6. “Landlords must not use ASTs for new tenancies from 1 May and will need to use a new agreement that is suitable for assured periodic tenancies. If a landlord or letting agent tries to get around these rules by, for instance, telling a tenant they are bound by a fixed term period, or serving a new section 21 notice on or after 1 May, the local authority may impose a civil penalty for up to £7,000 for a single breach.” 975-renters-rights.pdf Check latest tenancy agreement, if it was issued after 1 may and is still described as an AST and refers to a fixed term, then again you could potentially report to the council with a fine of up to £7,000 for the LL

Good luck