UK Landlord Forum / Life

Evening folks,

Hope you all had a stress free Christmas and New Year.

I received a letter from the agency that is managing the property I'm renting currently on an Assured Shorthold Tenancy . It contained 3 pages:

1: Cover letter stating a Section 21 was enclosed and they wished to know my intentions at the end of the term.
2: A form to complete stating my intentions. Option A is to vacate the property, B is to continue the tenancy offering different periods of time.
3: Section 21 Notice signed by a member of staff at the Agency.

I am relatively comfortable where I am and it was always my intention to stay longer. Probably another 6-12 months. However, the agency is attempting to charge me £100 for either a new Fixed Term or Periodic tenancy when my current one ends.

It seems like this agency is using Section 21s to try and get people to cough up renewal fees. I will contact the landlord later tonight to discuss with him as to what has happened on his side of things. It's likely they've sent him a letter asking for fees as well.

It probably goes without saying that I've paid rent on time and kept the place in a very good condition! The landlord is based in London and has a low opinion of the agency when last I spoke to him as he had to travel up to Manchester to do some repair work in the shower. He chose to do this rather than have the agency charge him for the repairs.

I am thinking my options are:
to discuss with the landlord and if he is infact not seeking possession, to ignore the letter and let my AST go to a SPT. I would then inform the agency their letter is not valid due to the landlord not requiring possession.
to discuss with letting agent and refuse to pay most of the fee. I realise that admin fees are the norm these days but the process is not that costly, I'm sure.

Any further suggestions would be welcome!

Ignore the request for an admin. fee and let the tenancy go periodic, only if you are sure the Landlord is happy with that and they are not the source of the Section 21... otherwise you could be looking for somewhere else to live. You would not find yourself having to leave at the end of the fixed term anyway. I'd also check the Section 21 is entirely correct, deposit protected, PI served etc..

If I had, written, assurance from the Landlord saying what I wanted, then I'd ignore the Agent's letter completely, probably.

The Agent is just doing what Agents do... trying to get money for nothing.

Thanks Hippogriff,

Ideally, I would like to reply to the agency asking for the landlord to sign the Section 21 notice.

Are agencies able to insist on a Section 21 notice with just their own signature on it, rather than that of the landlord?

The agency would have to have written authority from the landlord. What is on your original agreement?

This is a shocking thing to do I think.

Don't ignore it, do write to them saying you wish for the notice to be withdrawn and the tenancy to become periodic. If you can explain that to the landlord, and get him to agree, that will help.

Make sure you get confirmation that the notice has been withdrawn.

Good luck.

Agents can insist on what they want... whether you take any notice is entirely another matter. An Agent is just that... an Agent of the Landlord. Whatever they do should be done in the name of the Landlord and with the Landlord's agreement / approval / direction. If an Agent is acting without those things then that does not bode well. If you suspect that, then I would try to call it out with the Landlord directly 'cos a discussion (assuming you have the contact details) shouldn't harm anyone. If the Landlord tells you "yes, I asked the Agent to issue the Section 21 and what they've done I'm in agreement with ('cos it's what I asked them to do)" then you have choices to make.

One would assume the Landlord would not really care if the tenancy moves to a SPT... the Landlord won't be seeing any of this admin. fee. If the Landlord is also being charged a similar admin. fee (for nothing) then the Landlord might be quite pleased to just let it transition, as it is automatically bound to do.

Thank you for the replies above.

I have spoken to the landlord today at some length. Summary of points are:

1) He never instructed them to do this. He has had no contact with them.
2) He does not require possession of the property and is happy to let the tenancy continue for as long as I like.
3) He asked me to copy him into the reply letter as well as provide of copy of the Section 21 notice.

He was utterly shocked they've done this and apologised on their behalf, stating this isn't what he wanted.

Any tips as to the content of the letter? Any obvious points I might miss?

Just keep it simple and avoid the temptation for any glee.

"Dear Agent, I have spoken directly to the Landlord and I can confirm that we are both happy to allow the tenancy to move to a SPT without any fees being due. I have copied the Landlord in on this letter / email so that everyone is on the same page."

Seems like a good resolution with the only party being damaged (in a way) is the one intending to act dishonourably in the first place.

Bon chance.