My tenant gave me just 8 days notice – help please

My tenant gave me just 8 days notice – help please

11:13 AM, 22nd February 2015, About 9 years ago 32

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I am a relatively new landlord and have a tenant who wants to leave : she emailed me on the 19th Feb and wants to leave by the end of the month, 28th Feb. My tenant gave me just 8 days notice - help please

The notice period is not explicit in the AST agreement but it does clearly state that the rent is payable monthly, 17th of each calendar month (which is the AST start date).

She paid cash for the first months rent but asked if she could pay weekly thereafter as that would suit her working position better than monthly payments. I agreed, though no changes to the AST were made. She has been in the property just on 9 months.

She has been told by a letting agency, presumably while looking for a bigger house, that she only needs to give one weeks notice as she pays weekly. I think she should give me one months notice as the original AST states monthly rent payable.

When her 6 month AST tenancy ended I have assumed that her contract is monthly and this is what the AST states, regardless of when she actually pays the rent.

The tenant and I have not discussed this at all.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated, as it is now she has effectively given me 8 days notice!

Many thanks

Denise Dee


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Comments

Denise Dee

13:25 PM, 24th February 2015, About 9 years ago

Reply to the comment left by "Steve From Leicester" at "24/02/2015 - 12:04":

Thanks Steve, we live and learn 🙂

Fed Up Landlord

15:46 PM, 24th February 2015, About 9 years ago

Reply to the comment left by "Steve From Leicester" at "24/02/2015 - 12:04":

Steve - you will note that I did not say the AST was "wrong"-just that contractually it is more complicated if a notice period is not specified in the tenancy agreement. If you are trying to claim rent in lieu of notice from a deposit protection scheme the adjudicator will want to see what notice period was specified in the lease. In addition he may go further (in favour of the tenant) and ask when the property was or is being re-let so he can calculate the loss the landlord has suffered as a result of insufficient notice.

Annie Golightly

16:08 PM, 24th February 2015, About 9 years ago

Reply to the comment left by "Denise Dee" at "23/02/2015 - 20:57":

Become a member of National Landlord Association (NLA) an 'associate membership' is free and all the forms you could need are there. If you go for full membership (recommended to ALL landlords, you have access to their helpline etc too. Really worthwhile 🙂

Michael Barnes

17:21 PM, 24th February 2015, About 9 years ago

Reply to the comment left by "Gary Nock" at "24/02/2015 - 15:46":

I believe that the Housing Act 1988 states that when a tenancy goes periodic, then the notice period for a tenat is at lease one month ending on the last day of a rent period, overriding anything that is stated in the tenancy agreement.

As suich, it should not matter what the tenancy agreement says: statute wins.

Michael Barnes

17:23 PM, 24th February 2015, About 9 years ago

One thing concerns me about the situation of taking rent weekly: does that mean that by law a rent book should be provided?

Fed Up Landlord

18:10 PM, 24th February 2015, About 9 years ago

Reply to the comment left by "Michael Barnes" at "24/02/2015 - 17:21":

Michael I can not see anything definitive in the Housing Act 1988 on minimum notice period for statutory periodic tenants. I agree that statute law over rides a tenancy agreement but in the absence of clear direction in statute then the tenancy agreement would be used in County Court.

Michael Barnes

22:39 PM, 24th February 2015, About 9 years ago

Reply to the comment left by "Gary Nock" at "24/02/2015 - 18:10":

yes, you are right.
My apopogies.

Romain Garcin

8:16 AM, 25th February 2015, About 9 years ago

The most common scenario is a fixed term AST that is replaced by a statutory periodic AST.
In that scenario the original tenancy agreement will never contain anything regarding the notice period in the statutory periodic AST.

The minimum notice period for a notice to quit to be valid is 4 weeks, so that what will apply if the tenancy is weekly periodic.

Fed Up Landlord

9:00 AM, 25th February 2015, About 9 years ago

Romain many standard AST agreements including the one used by the NLA have a clause covering notice periods when a tenancy goes Statutory Periodic. This then avoids any confusion or disagreement between landlord and tenant.

Romain Garcin

9:10 AM, 25th February 2015, About 9 years ago

Reply to the comment left by "Gary Nock" at "25/02/2015 - 09:00":

Hi Gary,

The issue is that the Housing Act 1988 clearly states that any clauses regarding termination will have no effect during the statutory periodic AST.
I think most of the clauses you refer to are reminders (hopefully accurate) of what the position will be in a statutory periodic AST and not actual binding clauses.

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