UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi, our tenants have been great with no problems and have been in the property 10 plus years. We live abroad but have decided we want to sell the property now. Can we issue a section 21 with just a verbal agreement?
We want to have the house vacant ASAP (within reason) so we can show prospective purchasers without having the tenants sabotage any potential sales as the tenants love our house and want to stay! They have had a very good rental deal off us but we have a feeling they might just dig their heels in if we intend to sell soon. Thanks

How do you issue a section 21 with a verbal agreement?

Possibly the OP means there is no written tenancy agreement, just a 'verbal' one? And may be wondering whether that stops a Section 21 being issued?

Yes, Hippogriff - you are correct - can we issue a section 21 if we have no written agreement but solely a verbal?
Any suggestions welcome - wasn't sure if section 21 would stand with a verbal agreement?
The estate agents were not sure.

It's not necessary to have a written tenancy agreement in order to serve a valid Section21. What may trip you up is if you haven't fulfilled various legal obligations in respect of EPC, How to Rent, deposit protection, gas safety certificate etc.

Try working your way through a flowchart like this one https://nearlylegal.co.uk/section-21-flowchart/ and see whether there are things that need to be remedied before you can serve a valid notice.

Quote from: kpd on June 14, 2022, 07:39:40 PMWe want to have the house vacant ASAP (within reason) so we can show prospective purchasers without having the tenants sabotage any potential sales as the tenants love our house and want to stay!

Hopefully you are aware that serving a Section 21 notice does not force the tenants to to leave by the date you specify. If your tenants choose not to leave, you will have to go to court to obtain possession. At that point, the correctness of the associated paperwork (as per Simon's post) will be checked to determine whether the Section 21 notice is valid.

"10 plus years", was that the last time there was any agreement? If so, many of those requirements such as EPC, How to Rent, GSC wouldn't apply (for the purpose of serving s21). The exception is deposit. I hope you can evidence when the tenancy started if required to go to court.

No written tenancy agreement mean you can't go accelerated possession claims route. Other than that, all the same with s21.

If you are eager for your tenants to leave ASAP, what about offering them compensation if they move out by such-and-such date? Knowing that you're selling up and that you will be able to get them out eventually whether they like it or not, the prospect of having some cash in hand might motivate them to go sooner. If you make it worth their while to leave quickly, that might save you a lot of hassle and delay.

You've implied that their current rent is lower than the going rate, so they won't be in a hurry to move to a more expensive property. You'd need to work out what compensation to offer them accordingly. For example, if their rent is likely to go up by £200 when they move, you won't entice them to leave quickly by offering them a few hundred pounds, but a few thousand might do the trick.