Hello, my and my partner are currently in a joint tenancy with a friend of mine, unfortunately things between us and my “ friend “ have turned sour and he has moved out, the tenancy ends in august so he has told the landlord he will pay his share of rent until then but he will be vacating the property early. My friend left the property on Saturday but has left some bits on his room and has kept his key. I want to know where I stand if I want to use his room instead as it’s bigger? Also would I need to put his left over belongings ( rubbish ) in another room or can I put it in the garage? Thank you
if he is paying his share ,it would be unfair and unkind to use his room and remove his belongings
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Thanks for your reply, this person has done many unfair and unkind things to us so I’m not too worried about that. Do you know where I would stand with this legally though?
If the room has been allocated to him in the agreement, you can’t use it. If you jointly agreed he could have that room, it would be polite to ask him if you can swap rooms and he should not object. If he knows his law, he has an implied right to keep the room even though he is not there, and as he is paying rent he has every right to use that room without giving you notice at any time should he need it.
You need to ask him if you can swap rooms, and as you must protect his stuff from environmental harm, you need to keep it indoors, preferably in his room.
When the lease ends, remember to have a new one without his name on it, otherwise he will continue to be liable for payments.
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The house is an HMO as there are three of you and he is not related to you.
You may have rented the space as rooms or as a house but as he has his own designated room that was not communal it would be implied it is his space.
He is in possession of a key and is paying rent. You have no legal right to use his room or touch his belongings until he abandons tenancy
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no matter what he has done Legally you need to be carefull as john 45 says
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Thank you for the clarification, it is rented as a house and not rooms. I did some research online and found something that states we all share the property and facilities and don’t have exclusive possession of any part, even though In practise you might agree to occupy particular bedroom?
He is also refusing to pay any bills which I understand if he’s not there, but as a tenant still isn’t he liable to still pay his share of council tax?
you can apply to council for single person reduction as long as only one adult there 25% reduction will help. If he not there that will be the best you can hope for
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I understand what you have read but in law if three unrelated people occupy a rented house it is an HMO.
It is not the contract that defines an HMO it is the occupants of the premises.
An HMO is a premise occupied by at least three unrelated people. Thus you are an HMO.
We run student tenancies. If a group of four rent a house it does not matter if I write their rooms on the agreement or not, or I rent the house as individual rooms in the house, the house is an HMO and thus HMO law applies. I would have to provide all the required building requirements for the local authority etc. I would not be able to argue the case ‘it is one contract’.
The law is implied.
He is liable for the bills if he is a tenant as he has not abandoned tenancy.
I would speak to the Landlord. He could use the deposit to pay his share of bills at the end of tenancy. If the Landlord speaks to the tenant in question and reminds him of his fiscal responsibility, and that he could lose his deposit, he may contribute.
Otherwise your only recourse will be legal action at the end of tenancy. He should pay his share of all utiliites but he may be able to argue the cost of electric etc but not council tax.
There will be two people resident in the house so the single person discount would not apply.
Also you want to have him named on the council tax so he can pay his share.
Thanks for your help everyone! I have just been reminded to clarify, we aren’t down as a HMO as my friend is my sons godfather, sorry I didn’t mention that in a previous post, would these same rules and responsibilities apply?
David Smith defines related as blood/DNA or marriage or link through marriage in an HMO.
When I heard his lecture he did not mention Godfather.
I would take legal clarification on Godfather as I am not sure and have never heard it used in a scenario.
David Smith works for JMW. You can call and get 20 minutes free advice.
Thank you, you’ve been a great help! It’s annoying as I mentioned to him the other day that we would still need to pay council tax as he is still a tenant which he refused, a part of me would like to take over the room and if he takes issue with it, to remind him that he hasn’t been paying his share of the bills as leverage
I have just looked up the legal definition of Godparent. Unless he is nominated as a legal guardian in your will I don’t think it will stand as he does not have automatic legal rights over your child
https://andersonstrathern.co.uk/news-insight/godparents-or-guardians/
Thank you, we have checked and our tenancy isn’t a HMO, do the same rules apply for a tenancy that isn’t a HMO in regards to using the room and bills? Thank you
If I were in your position I would take legal advice.
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Let us know what the legal advice was!
I will do thank you!
If you rent the property as a joint tenancy then there are a number of things to be aware of:
- As there are 3 of you in two households, it is an HMO, although may not be licensable. Either way its the landlords problem not yours.
- You all have joint possession of all rooms, so you can switch bedrooms if you wish, although you may upset the other tenant by doing so.
- The other tenant cannot just leave without any liability, not even at the end of the fixed term. This is because its a joint tenancy and any one of you remaining past the end of the fixed term means that a periodic tenancy arises for all of you. The other tenant is committed to at least two more months rent as the earliest he can serve a valid notice is the second day of the periodic tenancy. This he can do on his own and it will end the tenancy for all of you. You would then need to get a new tenancy with the landlord if you wish to stay. I realise this may not be convenient for any of you, but its the law and if the landlord knows the law he should insist on it.
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Excellent! Thank you so much for your advice it’s so appreciated! I thought he may have left some bits in the room as he was aware of some legal standpoint which would prevent me from ever using it whilst he was on the tenancy. I will be giving it a good clean and putting it to better use than just being a place for storage.