Can anyone assist? I have a small flat - 39 Sqm - which I rented to a professional single female recently in January . On the application she declared single use no dependants.
I have found out recently - by chance she did not inform me- that she had two children she says they are hers, and she moved them in March. The children share a sofa bed in tte open plan living room kitchen she sleeps apparently in the bedroom.
I am concerned regarding over crowding issues unsuitability for the property for an adult and two children and safety concerns
I am unsure how I move forward on this would appreciate any advice
What does tenancy agreement say re number of occupants? Check it. Normally it specifies the number.
Openrent APT says
"9.38. Not to assign sublet or part with or share possession of the Premises or any part of it nor allow the Premises to be occupied by anyone other than the Tenant and no more than the maximum number of permitted persons (the Occupancy), without the prior written consent of the Landlord.
9.39. Not to grant any licensees, take in any lodger, paying guest or person staying on either a permanent or semi-permanent basis without the prior written consent of the Landlord."
so the tenant is in breach if your tenancy agreement says similar stuff.
You could discuss with tenant saying they are in breach and explain your safety & overcrowding concerns. You can take account of likely additional wear n tear when next increasing rent. Nrla and others have advice on how to make properties child safe. Ultimately if you don’t give permission and tenancy agreement says its needed, then you can try to evict tenant but the s8 grounds for breach of tenancy are discretionary not mandatory so a court is not required to order possession.
Its unlikely to be statutorily overcrowded unless it breaches the rules on children above a certain age and different gender sharing a bedroom. The layout would also need to be considered from a health and safety perspective, but that may not be an issue either If its a fairly modern conversion. You’d need to check that with a building safety expert though.
If neither of the above apply, you may have very few options but to accept the situation as it would be next to impossible for you to get possession based solely on breach of contract.
I don’t think you have any way of preventing this. But Jan 2027 the rent goes up to allow for the higher wear and tear. This means you serve the S13 notice in November prior to the rent due date.
Do you let the tenant know that there has been a breach of contract/trust here and that this has a material impact on your relationship with her? Personally, I would not want such a tenant. If they are not communicating honestly and in a timely manner regards their tenancy now, what else might she not tell you about later?
I would organize an inspection visit soon - either it will be evident children are living there in which case it can be raised or it won’t in which case tenant may be being deliberately deceitful. You can then decide whether to raise that tenant should have informed her. It may be better to give tenant opportunity to fess up and/or apologise for the future relationship - tenant may guess the neighbours would have told you anyway.
Tenant might rightly know they are in breach of contract and have been worried about eviction (s21 was still available back in march tho not at start of fixed terms) or the initial moving in of children might have originally been a temporary thing.
It is also a material change to tenant’s circumstances (may affect their ability to pay rent as higher outgoings) and also the insurance co need to be informed about extra occupants- so best not to ignore. I would express disappointment the tenant hadn’t informed sooner and encourage them to be more forthcoming in future because you want a good relationship. I’d take notes of the conversation and send an email summary of key points afterwards so you have a contemporaneous record shared with tenant, in case further items in future and you did need to try to evict for breaches of tenancy agreement
Thanks for your responses I have already contacted the tenant as outlined below. She states they are 11 and 8 respectively both boys I have only her word on this. I have inspected the property it is overcrowded with possessions and at 39sqm does not suit three people -it is effectively three rooms
the insurance is part of the man company and we are covered to rent the properties accordingly within the building
Thanks all I shall perhaps take some legal advise on this
I have already advised @Tracey-Anne saying check the tenancy agreement and said if it has clauses similar to the Openrent one then they are in breach.
Ie what I said before
"What does tenancy agreement say re number of occupants? Check it. Normally it specifies the number.
Openrent APT says
"9.38. Not to assign sublet or part with or share possession of the Premises or any part of it nor allow the Premises to be occupied by anyone other than the Tenant and no more than the maximum number of permitted persons (the Occupancy), without the prior written consent of the Landlord.
9.39. Not to grant any licensees, take in any lodger, paying guest or person staying on either a permanent or semi-permanent basis without the prior written consent of the Landlord."
so the tenant is in breach if your tenancy agreement says similar stuff."
It’s totally normal for a tenancy agreement to say who the tenants are plus any other permitted occupiers (and if there are pets how many (cats, dogs etc)
Equally I have been told she has a right to allow her children to move in and that is not deemed as subletting - irrespective the f the fact she presented as being a single professional with no dependents in application and referencing
In her words it slipped her mind to notify me her children had moved in two months on to tenancy - no explanation where they were prior to this date. I have no evidence these children are even hers or anything that substantiates their ages other than her email.
So I feel I do need legal advice here but I’m Very grateful for your comments
yup… I know… I can read what you wrote for myself. You stated
But in the complete absence of any evidence of a breach in the contract that you seem to have assumed, my question still stands to the OP: What clause specifically is the tenant in breach of?
Because in the absence of a breach of a clause in the agreement, I don’t think she has a leg to stand on.
Well yes we dont disagree. Which is why I advised checking. The OR version specifies number of permitted tenants and any other permitted occupiers. So does the nrla one. It’s not unlikely but does still need checking/confirming. Wasn’t clear you were asking OP.
She may have breached the contract on the permitted number of residents, but a judge would be very unlikely to give possession based on that, so taking the tenant to court would likely be a hiding to nothing.