UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi all.

My sister decided to rent her house out this year.

She went to a letting agency and basically went in blinds, letting them do it all for her, asking hardly any questions and reading no paperwork along the way. (where is the facepalm icon?)

However, one of the questions she did ask was "can I leave you when the contract is up after 6 months?". He told her "yes, of course".

She's coming to the end of the contract now and has been less than impressed with their service, attitude and overall performance (one for another post!). So, she's told them she doesn't want to renew and to part ways.

They have come back and said okay, no problem. £700 please.

As you can imagine... she's outraged that this wasn't explained to her when she asked. He told her she could, which she can. He didn't mention anything about cost! Now, this is the same guy who failed to tell her about the £200 initial fee when she signed with them too. Plus about 7 other things which to me are immoral, sly, sneaky and not very nice.

Now I fully understand that she should have read every single letter on the contract and re read it several times. I myself am a stickler for contracts and an eye for detail with anything legal.

She unfortunately isn't (though I am hoping after this she learns..). Anyway my question is; would she have a leg to stand on if she tried to argue this case, on the grounds that she wasn't told about it when she asked?

Or is it a case of, "you read, agreed to and signed the contract... tough".

I am assuming its the latter but, he lied (or omitted the full facts) when signing her up, on more than one occasion.

Its worth noting that I'm yet to see what she agreed to in her contract so I am going to read it for her to make sure its actually stated in there. Wouldn't surprise me if they didn't put it in...

I look forward to your thoughts.

If its in the contract, its a no, unless she has contemporaneous notes witnessed by a Judge.

You can always tell when an Agent is lying, there lips are moving.

However they are lazy, and if told to do one, will normally capitulate.


By the way, good luck to your "sister" I have a "friend" who had the same issue! Lol!

Quote from: kevano22 on June 02, 2015, 10:52:24 PMHowever, one of the questions she did ask was "can I leave you when the contract is up after 6 months?". He told her "yes, of course".

Even when you read your own thread back, it seems like the Letting Agent has not gone against anything they committed to your sister.

She asked if she could leave and the answer is "yes, she can"... they've come back and said "OK, no problem".

It must be hard for such a lackadaisical person to be outraged, I'm sure... that's quite a visceral thing... she was obviously laid-back about letting it out, she should be just as laid-back about paying-up. I reckon she could ask for a family favour and you look after the contracts for her in future... just as you suggest.

Next time maybe she'll bother to actually read what she's signing and maybe even ask some challenging questions.

Now... can they get away with it? Well, if they don't hold any of her money right now, it's going to be quite difficult. If rent is now going direct to her and the Agent has nothing incoming... then how can they get the money from her? They can ask for it nicely - no. They can demand it - no. They can threaten Court - still no. They can take you to Court - possibly - and win - yes, or lose - no.

There's only 1 outcome where I'd hand over £700... that is where they take me to Court and win the case. But I'd never sign up to that agreement in the first place. Phew!

If they already hold some of your sister's money... then it'll be a tougher thing.

Do let us know if you do see the 'exit fee' detailed in what she signed.

Thanks for the replies both.

Not sure why you quoted my sister, but good luck to your friend?

She had reasons why she rented it out quickly, hence she didn't pay enough (or ANY) attention to detail. Like I said, she went about it the wrong way, but there's no point making comments about why/what she did when it's obvious it was the wrong way to approach it.

She's in this position now and has to deal with it, which is why I was interested to hear your thoughts.

After I've checked the contract, I'll see what route to take and I'll let you know how she gets on.

She can either

A) Comply with the contract

or

B) Ignore it, breach it and see what further action, if any the LA takes