This will not end well, it never does! Evict her ASAP.
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Hi Dimitar,
I have been in this situation a couple of times. Overwhelmingly please remember that this is not your problem and you are almost being blackmailed to becoming a Benefits Landlord.
Broadly, John45 has it right. y experience clearly shows that the Universal Benefit and other Benefits system is has BIG problem. It averages 12 weeks to come through; yes, 5 weeks is a lie. Also this government has made the system extremely toxic, placed huge requirements, frequently loses paperwork. Your tenant will be cut off benefits willy nilly. No excuse will be given. Then they have to re-apply all over again.
Make sure the other partner does not walk away Scot free, pin him down to his responsibilities.
Lastly, soon as tenant goes 2 months into arrears, send a letter of arrears, give them 7 days and issue an Notice to both of them to Leave. Get them out ASAP.
Local Government of Social Services will house them; with 2 little children, the Law is very strict in the LAs and SS on housing them.
Good luck Buddy,
John
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Hi Dimitar, lots of replies here but worth mentioning that UC claimants can ask for their rent to be paid directly to the landlord.
More info on UC here.
Sam
Hi John,
Thank you for the advice given.
I spoke with NRLA advice helpline today.
Because I have another 10 months on the tenancy left, one of the options I have here is perhaps to grant a new 6 months tenancy agreement on her name only and after 4 months I can probably serve section 21, which apparently works better than section 8.
They said that it has to be a new tenancy and I can’t just change the old one.
On the new tenancy I can possibly ask for a bit higher rent, so that can act as a deterrent and they might choose the option to leave and find somewhere cheaper.
I’ve made a list with 5 options for them and I will today contact them to discuss.
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Sue, I thought exactly the same as you when I read the original post…cynical or intutive?..that’s me too!
Us women may think differently, Mercedes, ha ha! Rgds, Sue
Dimitar,
I would say again that your tenancy agreement is constrcuctively ended already - by the tenants themselves - BOTH tenants! The new entity is the female solely - you’re under no obligation to allow her to stay or create a new tenancy with her. Good Luck! I do hope, for your sake, it goes well!
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I may be mistaken and if so I apologise
She said she needs a new tenancy agreement to apply for Universal Credit
You are being used with no guarantee she will actually get Universal Credit
The male tenant is liable for rent so my advice is don’t change a tenancy agreement so early on
Contact the male tenant
He may still be in the picture
He may come back into the picture
This may be an elaborate scam to get Credit
Be very careful
If you decide to change tenancy agreements take legal advice
Get a deed of surrender drawn up and get both him and her to sign or you could be illegally evicting the husband which is it’s own pandora’s box
Do not do this without good legal advice and a signed deed of surrender in place by both tenants
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Hi Sue,
I just spoke with both tenants.
The husband doesn’t live there and doesn’t want to go back and also he can’t because he has a restraining order.
To my huge surprise, when I called her and started listing the options, she said that we should leave the things as they are.
So, I am not changing anything for now and I hope, the things will go well.
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DON’T CHANGE TENANCY AGREEMENTS AD HOC.
TAKE LEGAL ADVICE.
As it stands the husband would be illegally evicted at two months
The legal ramifications for yourself will be untold
GET A SOLICITOR and act responsibly
You are not here to facilitate someone’s illegal access to the benefits system
At four months if rent is not paid serve a section 8 and evict them on the grounds of rent arrears
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I’ve got everything crossed for you, Dimitar (:). Let’s hope they keep their payments up and look after your place. Just don’t be a pushover; good on you for staying firm!
Otherwise, give tenants an inch …
I’m sorry to hear the wife has possibly suffered genuine harassment or abuse.
Best wishes, Sue
sam i am not sure but is it only paid direct after 2 months of arrears and not backdated?
I’m not 100% sure how it works now, as there have been so many DWP ministers since I researched the above guide, and each have tinkered with how it works. I do know that it’s possible to ask for part of the regular UC payment to go to the landlord directly.
Sam
Hi Dimitar,
If she changes her mind again, I’d suggest drafting and issuing a new contract. The new contract will nulify the old contract. In the new contract make it a 6 month AST, not 12. After that make sure each new contract (extension) is only for 6 months at a time. Then if things go wrong you can exit fairly painlessly. Also, that’s likely to ensure that she remains a good tenant (pays rent on time) and if she, her ex or UC becomes a headache you have a less painful exit.
Just a thought
Hi Godwin,
This is what NRLA advised me as well.
Issuing a 6 months contract on her name and section 21 - 4 monts down the line, so they leave when the tenancy is over.
As she told me today to leave the things as they are, I hope for a good outcome and relationship.
Otherwise I’ll have to use section 8, or work something else out. As from today though I heard that for 3 months we can’t evict tenants because of coronavirus.
The only thing for now I think is to stay firm ( as Sue6 pointed), and work the best possible solutions for both parties.
Thank you everyone for the great advices given.
Just to point out some things about my experience with a tenant on benefits. I have had one tenant on DSS for over two years (single mother with two kids) and she has always paid on time and without fuss. Furthermore, in this time of COVID-19, benefits are the one thing that might actually be reliable income…
A quick side note too: You can insure against rental loss from tenants on benefits, I use https://www.landlordnationwide.com/rent-guarantee-insurance/
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I would just like to say that MOST people are not unreasonable or scam artists, and these things can happen (although I can well understand a different opinion from those that have had their fingers burned.)
It would probably be difficult to find a new tenant quickly in this time of uncertainty, give it some time to see if the current tenant can make the payments.
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Don’t evict the poor women for god sake. she has just lost her partner and is on her own. I was in this situation many years ago and my landlord always stood by me 16 years later on we still had a good working relationship. I know live in another landlords property and I am working with my son at home who is disabled and on benefits. I have just been told I may have no income for a while because of this virus. The landlord will be guaranteed my sons rent but I will struggle.
We are not all bad just because we have to claim some help. You can request that the rent goes straight to you although the housing don’t like to do this. See if you can work together before you see this family homeless.
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Dimtar not a very good judgement call from you.
Remember the covid 19 situation that is unfolding will put a lot more landlords in some situation as tenants will be moving onto UC in droves… so have a bit of Empathy for these people instead of an unscrupulous landlord attitude.
it will be hard for all people. the goverment will try to help but it all has to be paid for. Dont forget what the Cyprus goverment did at the global crisis a few years ago .they took huge chunks out . of peoples bank accounts overnight. TAX. I think it was 40%. If this does not blow over, who can tell, we will all be in deep trouble House prices will fall , jobs lost, unemployment higher, It could be a very big test for ALL of us