UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi everyone

I have a friend who is in quite a situation, I will refer to him as James the landlord. Wont bore you with long details, just the main points.

James is 6 months into a 2 YEAR tenancy agreement with his tenants which was arranged by the letting agent.

James has not received rent for the past 6 months. He has asked the agent about this but the agent tells him there are a lot of repairs and this money goes towards these repairs, e.g water leaks, boiler repair, etc.

I have told James this letting agent is obviously taking advantage, as it is their duty to let the landlord know exactly what repairs are required, and this should not stop rent. Told him to get rid of the agent but he says the letting agent will charge him £30,000 to end the agreement early.

Now I do not know exactly what he has signed with the agent, but surely that cannot be a legitimate clause?

James is an accidental landlord and knows nothing about landlords/tenants rights, laws, etc, hence the situation is in.

Any advice how to get out of this situation would be greatly appreciated

Sorry I meant James is 12 months into agreement, not 6 months. That would mean he has never received rent lol

To me it sounds as if he's the victim of fraud and he should consult a solicitor immediately. Either a high street agent who's trying to bridge cash flow problems or a professional scam artist. He should also go round the property and seek to speak with the tenants to find out what they have been told. They might have been told a different story altogether and have issues which they need resolved.

Hello Mr X,

Hope you're not James!  I agree with Armin that this looks very suspicious.  I'm assuming James has signed up to a full maintenance agreement with the agent.

All the agreements I've seen say the agent will itemise the works in that month's accounting statement and they are willing to provide copy invoices.  If Jame's agent is legitimate they would be doing the same, too.  Has he asked to see proof as to why each month the running costs of the house = month's rent.  Far too co-incidental for my liking.

Has James ever lived in the property or know about it before this agent was involved.  Did the house "break down" as regularly than as it does now?

Agree with Armin to get down to a solicitor really promptly.  Could also involve Trading Standards (are they operating legally) and Office of Fair Trading (are contract terms fair, like the £30k which appears ridiculous) but these depts don't seem to know urgency.  Solicitor can advise and put in court actions which should scare agent into helping, e.g. winding up petition, where agent has to prove they are solvent; petition for specific contract performance, etc.

PS: If he takes Armin's advice to see the tenants he should check out what contractual-legal right he has to do this.  It might violate "quiet posesion" of the tenancy if he does not tell them he's calling in advance.  And the agent could use it against him.

Thanks for your comments guys, sorry bingomaxxbuzz didn't understand your post.

Don't worry Jeremy, thankfully I am not James lol. Yes he has signed up for full management. That is exactly what I was thinking with the costs, James has a right to know what is being spent and where.

Getting the solicitors involved could be a good idea, but what i am going to try and do first is try and obtain a copy of the agreement to see exactly what he has signed up for, and then try to get him to get invoices of the works carried out. If the agent objects, then that's where a solicitor may have to come in.

Hi X,

... and maybe the police.  The guy may be committing a fruad.  Depending on how long he's been set up, don't put the frightners on him too much, he may do a runner and James'll be left whistling for his money.