We moved in to our current property 1.5 years ago. We signed a tenancy agreement for one year with no break clause. Half way through the tenancy our landlord reached out to us to tell us that they have made a mistake with our deposit and have to return it to us temporarily and we have to send it to back to them again so they can deposit it to the right scheme. In the same discussion (by message) he asked us if we want to expend our contract for 3 years. We said we will agree to this but he has to introduce a break clause into the contract with two months notice period if any party decides to terminate the contract before the 3 year is over, which he agreed to (by message) We never received a new tenancy agreement with the new dates on or new terms. We signed the TDS which has the new end of tenancy date on but there is no physical contract exist between us with the new terms. One year late our circumstances have changed and we want to activate our break clause and leave the property, we have given 2 months notice but the landlord is refusing to accept our notice and says they never agreed to a break clause and that if we leave the property before the 3 years is over we will be liable to pay for the full term. Whatâs our rights here? Can they use the TDS as means of contract? Or the messages we have exchanged? Because the tenancy agreement we have between us has expired 4 months ago.
as far as i can see its the tennancy agreement that counts and it has expired?. How long ago did you give notice? If you have given 2 months you have acted correctly No written agreement but a deposit reference to a future date sounds funny. If you are liable for the rest of the rent I dont know . You may need a lawyer.
If you didnt sign a new contract your initial AST is valid. After the AST initial term finishes you are both liable to the terms of rolling contracts. If not stated the landlord has to give you 2 months notice, and you have 1 months notice; the time starts from the next rent due date. Did he give you the details of where the deposit is held? All you need to do if your landlord isnt playing fair is ise alternative arbitration⌠as a landlord I have found that when I have used this they tend to side with tenants⌠and I felt my case was valid. They have to provide details of the contract and write a statement.
Thank you for replying, we gave notice a few days ago in writing and said here is our notice and we will cover the rent for the next two months, but we will be existing the property in a few weeks. There is no true contract that exist between us for the period of 3 years. Only the very first one we signed when we initially moved into the property which is a fixed contract for a year and this has expired a few months ago.
2 months cover of rent and you will move in next few weeks . that is ok .I would expect no less. Hope you find a new place ok. Times are difficult.
Yes, Our deposit is safe and is submitted to the right scheme. On the TDS we have signed the end of the tenancy is in the next 2 years but the only true tenancy agreement we have between us has expired. We have exchanged a few messages by phone to discuss extending the contract to 3 years and what our terms would be if we decided to go with that but apart from that we have not signed a renewal or a new tenancy agreement with new dates. We have spoken to a lawyer and theyâve said we are in periodic contract but our landlord is still refusing to accept our notice and threatens us to take us to court.
Call his bluff. if you have had legal advice
When it goes through the alternative dispute mechanism, the landlord has to upload the full signed contract⌠the only full signed contract is your original AST, and the terms are set within this as you say âperiodicâ or rolling.
Although you have agreed to two further years, it is still a periodic tenancy.
Ive pasted this link below, but basically:
"To release the deposit at the end of the tenancy the lead tenant or the landlord/agent should submit a âRequest for repaymentâ by logging in to their TDS Custodial account.
Go to the deposit summary and click 'Request repayment of deposit.'Tell us how much of the deposit each party should receive.We will notify the other party of your request and invite them to respond.If the other party agrees with the request we will repay the deposit.
If the other party does not agree to the request they will be given the opportunity to raise a dispute and use the Dispute Resolution Mechanism to decide how the deposit should be divided.
For a screen-by-screen guide on the repayment process, please click on the button below."
Thank you so much, thatâs very helpful to know.
you donât have to pay for two months, youâre on rolling contract now and obliged to pay for ONE month starting from the day of your notice. anything else is just a bluff and bs