Unfortunately I have split from my partner and I will need to move back into my rental property and serve a section 21 to my tenants. They only moved in June and will need to use the break clause.
I’ve looked through the Open Rent tool and it states
‘I have served the tenant(s) with a How To Rent booklet at the start of the tenancy’
I haven’t done this and didn’t know this was a thing. I used the Open Rent contract, does this invalidate my section 21 notice? All other requirements were met and EPC rating and Certificates were uploaded etc.
Also, I wanted to give them advance warning that I was going to serve the notice so they can start looking, is this allowed / advised?
I feel bad about it but will need to move back into the property.
Firstly, sorry to hear of your breakup. That’s never easy.
Secondly, you need to be aware that serving a S21 does not end the tenancy and your tenants may stay on and require eviction by bailiffs which could take a year. I say this because you should have some contingency in place in case this happens. Rental market right now is worse than it was in June with the RRB about to become law and many LLs are either issuing S21s so that they can sell up or being very strict about who they let to. This means your tenants may find it quite difficult to find a place to go. A lot of people are in their same (not so small) boat.
Yes, your S21 will fail if you haven’t served ALL paperwork required. You didn’t mention deposit but I hope you did the right thing with paperwork there too. You can find S21 checklists online to make sure you have everything in place. Common wisdom is to reserve all paperwork with S21 to ensure that you’ve done all you need to.
However, if they’ve only been in since June, are you sure you can serve an S21 now and activate the break clause. Typically the break clause on what I assume is a 12 month AST does not come into effect for the first 6 months. What does your exact wording say?
If you used Openrent contract, they would have served the tenants the right rent guide by email on the say you signed the contract. You would have received a copy of that email, and copies are available in the ‘manage tenancy documents’ section of the tenancy if you log into Openrent online.
You can check with Openrent what their system has served on the tenant and whether there are any gaps. For s21 purposes, all errors of omission can be corrected now, provided a gas cert was in place if required, before they moved in.
Thanks for this and the time taken to respond. I have realised I have served all paperwork as thankfully the ‘right to rent’ information was issued by Open Rent.
The deposit is in a secure deposit account too.
This is the wording from my contract.
Am i correct in thinking at 6 months i can issue the section 21?
the way that’s worded seems to indicate that you can serve an S21 after 4 months that will expire just after six months of the contract has elapsed. I’ve never served S21 so you’re best waiting for someone here to advise.
I think the next clause is badly worded. The tenancy does not end when the notice period expires.
Tread carefully or you could be a long time getting back into your flat. Get your section 21 checked, ensure all docs were provided and dates correspond to wording of contract. Eviction is expensive and stressful so keep it nice with tenant, you might consider letting them off some rent
If they go to council the council may appear to help but are often wanting tenants to stay in place pointing out illegal evictions if an “i” isnt dotted. Dont give the council anything. I am issuing several sect 21’s now before the RRB comes in and the various councils are asking for deposit documentation which is none of their business.
Regarding pat tests avoid providing electrical kit where possible. If there is a cooker or fridge maybe get them done with the eicr they dont need annual rechecks if they stay in place. New appliances are good for a year. Kettles get more movement so annually.
