UK Landlord Forum / Life

In October the 1 st  gave my tenant a new  short hold tenancy agreement  I also  placed the deposit in  the DPS.  She had been a tenant for two years.    A few days later she told me that she would  be leaving in 2 weeks.
I sent her a letter    regarding the cleaning and painting and replacement of a  back door she had smashed down and replaced with a second hand   internal door which is damaged
I informed her that the rent was paid up until the 21st October.  owing  4 days rent  she then told me that she would be leaving on the  25th October.
We arranged to meet 26th. The house had not been cleaned or painted, children scribbles on the walls,  dirty nappies in the backgarden  and items left in the garden and the house.
She asked me for the rent, and I explained that i had put it in the DPS and that I would be claiming for a new door , cleaning and painting. She was not happy and said she was taking me to the small claims etc,  she left with the keys,
After a week she has collected her post  and left the keys.  The house remains the same.

Where do I stand legally? will I have to pay the tenant 3x the deposit
Is she liable for the 6 months rent?
What should I do

Always be wary of advice received from a blog (including my own)
Do your own research

Margaret,,,,
Not sure why this is in the tenant advice section but as you are a Landlord here are my thoughts...

Legally your tenant MAY have abandoned the property, but there’s only one guaranteed safe way to deal with this – get a court possession order before taking over the property.  This is especially true if the tenant’s possessions are still in the property (only look through the windows - do not go in).

I assume you cannot contact the tenant....no chance of getting them to sign anything?

Technically the tenant has breached the contract however, breach of contract is superseded by the protection afforded tenants under statutory rules – the Protection from Eviction Act 1977.  There is a famous case whereby a Landlord was ordered to pay damages for reletting a property even though the tenant was in jail (sounds unbelievable but Im sure you can google it).

Section 8 route I'm afraid (as you are within the fixed period of the new agreement no s21 possible) and for Ground 8 you'll need the tenant to be 2 months in rent arrears at the time of the hearing. You should also try Ground 10 and less effectivley even Ground 12 if the tenant has left the property vacant but thats tough to prove.

Although you could risk it the tenant might not come back but see health warning above.
Other things you could do:
A. You could leave a clear notice (Abandonment Notice) on the door informing the tenant that the lock has been changed and they must contact you to obtain a replacement key
B. Was this a council tenant? You could contact the local authority’s Tenant Relations Officer (if they have one)
C. Speak to the Rent Officer (Local Authority Housing Department) of your actions and confirm in writing so there is independent official verification of your actions.
...but none of the above is iron clad safe option and you basically risking it - the steps are only marginally better than doing nothing at all.

You signed a completely new tenancy agreement on October 1st(?).
Did you follow all the new rules e.g. did you give the tenant a copy of How to Rent etc?  Can you prove it? Might need to in court.

To answer your questions:
Am not sure why you think you have to pay 3 x deposit...you say you protected it?
Yes the tenant is on the hook for the rent for six months unless you agreed in writing for the tenant to leave early.
Seek possesion is the safest answer..

Best of luck

Hi thanks for the reply.  My tenant left  on the 24th October, she left no forward address.  The last weekend she was there the police were called as two of her male friends were fighting!  I spoke to the neighbours  there are  relived that she is leaving as there has been  anti social behaviour.  The was left in a mess, broken window glass, broken drains, scribbles on the doors and walls  a replacement door which is damaged  and an internal inside of an external door  No cleaning has been done.  dirty nappies left out side along with toys. Also left a settee with no  seating, and a cot.
The DPS money can be claimed on the 19th I have photographed the damaged etc.   So I am hoping to get the deposit back..