so i get this phone call from the letting agent handling my tenants...

[grahamC]

...that goes something like this "Hi graham, so as you know one of the tenants is moving out and i just wanted to discuss a few things with you.."

This instantly puts my guard up because this is the first I have heard of a tenant moving out or any potential changes of tenants!!

Basically I rent (or rented) my house to 2 sisters. It seems one has moved out and the other wants to stay but cant afford the place on her own. Her boyfriend has been "staying there" (once again i was not told this). HE is out of work but has applied for a job and should hear back tomorrow ( ) also he has applied to joing the Navy but his application has been deferred to the next bunch of acceptances (or something like that.. basically if he gets in it'll be later than he thought).

So the tenant thats staying wants to get housing benefit to top up her rent. She is in work but cant make the full payment and the bills etc... She cant get housing benefit until her sister is removed from the tenancy.

My main concern is that i get my rent in full and on time as i have a mortgage to pay. Leaders work for me on a rent collection basis as i couldnt be doing with chasing tenants who wont pay up (these are only the second tenants i had and this is the first time ive used a letting agent. My previous tenant was a mate i could trust but i dont know these tenants at all).

It seems to me though that the letting agent was setting things up in such a way to prepare me for not getting full rent. He even said "fortunately for us, but not for you, you have chosen not to take advantage of our fully managed service so you are not covered for the rent". But i was told that the sisters parents would be guaranteeing their rent!! The agent also mentioned having to do another tenancy agreement (at the tenants expense) to finalise all this.

Has anyone got any similar experiences? Something just doesnt feel right about all this and I dont want to get shafted on rent.

Any thoughts/advice from anyone please?

[propertyfag]

Oh, that's a tricky position to be in.
Have you got a guarantor form, with the sisters' parents details?

I wouldn't feel comfortable at all, for all the reasons you mentioned.

I have a few questions though:

1) How long is left on the tenancy?
2) Did each sister have a seperate contract, or one between them?
3) Did the sister break her contract by leaving early?

Cheers

[propertyfag]

Oh, and regardless of what anyone says, getting Housing Benefit is neither easy or quick! It can take months to start getting payments through. DO NOT believe the tenant or the letting agent when they say, "yeah, it's all being arranged...should be sorted by next week"

[caerhays]

If both tennants signd the AST then they should be jointly and severably liable. ie. one has to pay up if the other can't.  If you have a guarantor agreement as well then the guarantor has to pay up.
If either of the tennants is not paying the rent, ie. you are not getting the full rent, then the last thing you should do is let the managing agency give them another AST !.  Your starting point should be formal letters to the tennants giving them opportunity to pay outstanding rents. If no luck then contact the guarantor and tell them they have a legal responsibility now.  It might be that the guarantor(s) can tide the remaining tenant over by making up the rent until she gets housing benefits sorted out.  Don't hold your breath !. If this is to no avail then you need to start serving notices to quit and this is a whole new ball game which you should read up about or take legal advice.  This is an excellent site for giving such advice which I can recommend - http://www.residentiallandlord.co.uk.
Best of luck.

[grahamC]

hey guys,

thanks for the replies. The plot has thickened slightly as i spoke to the remaining tenant the other night. She has just had a baby as well! This means she MUST have been pregnant when she moved in (mid-june 09) as that was only 8 months ago.  I accept she may not have found out until later, but even so she MUST have known long before i was told.

She was very apologetic about not enlightening me as to the situation and understands my position that if i dont get the rent then she has to go. I also spoke to her mum who assures me that the tenant will be covered by her and is not going to default any rent payments (so far all rent is up to date so this whole post is more a pre-emptive strike rather than a "help im not getting my rent")

Leaders have not phoned me back to check back about the AST situation. Both tenants did sign the lease agreeement but my understanding is the sister who moved out isnt paying up her share. I dont intend to get involved in this so long as i am getting my rent in full each month but I will be monitoring the situation closely.

I am also going to phone leaders today to get some clarifications on EXACTLY what they are doing about a new AST. In all honesty i kinda want to bin them off so I am not paying the shifty blighters any money at all, but not sure if this puts me in a weaker position re: getting my rent on time! (as at the moment they run the rent collection for me!)

Will keep you informed.

[caerhays]

Hi grahamC,
I'd be careful about not paying your managing agents.  If you signed a contract with them you'll be breaking it.  I use an agent for one of my flats and they get their money from the rent before they pay me mine !. You're still getting the rent now but there are questions about the longer term situation. If the remaining tenant has been in the property for 8 months of a 12 month AST you can't get her out before the end of the contract unless she breaks the contract, and I don't think she has yet. I would wait 'till the 10 month point and give her her 2 month's notice to quit and look to get another more reliable tennant(s).  The intricacies of her life aren't your problem unless you like acting like a branch of the Social Services :-) .

[grahamC]

Hi caerhays,

no what I meant was that I would like stop the rent-collection arrangement when it is possible to do so and continue on my own collecting the rent from the tenants myself when it is possible to do so. My experience of using a letting agent hasnt been a great one. Sure i've been paid on time every month but had to pay £60 each month for the privilege!!

I wasnt intending to just refuse to pay them, in fact i couldnt becuase the rent goes to them first, then they take their share and give me the rest

[caerhays]

Hi GrahamC,
Funny how its easy to get into a contract with a Letting Agent but tortuous getting out of it.  My contract says I can't terminate until the end of any existing tenancy and then I have to give them at least two months notice. If I don't I end up paying them lots of £££££.

[simhar]

How much is ££££ ?

[caerhays]

Read the small print in your contract .....it has to be there.