Buying a flat where the deposit has not been protected?

Buying a flat where the deposit has not been protected?

by Readers Question

Guest Author

11:21 AM, 24th June 2024, About 6 days ago 5

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Hi all. I’ve been offered a flat where the tenants have been renting for more than 3 years on a rolling periodic agreement.

However, the existing owner/manager has not protected the deposit. Is this the current landlord’s problem?

Do I set up a new AST agreement with my solicitor or take over the existing agreement and protect the deposit as it should be?

Or do I walk away?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Mike


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Comments

Paul Essex

12:51 PM, 24th June 2024, About 6 days ago

It is generally accepted that you cannot undo a previous landlords error.
The current landlord needs to address the issue before you could confidently buy such a property. The tenants are under no obligation to sign a new contract with you.

Julie Ford

13:37 PM, 24th June 2024, About 6 days ago

Hi Mike, under deposit protection regulations, you are only legally responsible for protecting the deposit when you Receive it.
So the non-protection is the current LL/agents problem.
When you purchase the property you inherit the existing AST with all its terms and conditions, there is no legal obligation to issue a new one, nor does the tenant have to sign it.

You or your solicitor do have to issue S3 &s48 notices on your new tenants to show you are the new landlord and that rent is now due to you etc..

Your legal obligation for the deposit starts when it is transferred to you (you receive it) you then have the 30days to protect and issue the tenant with the certificate and prescribed information

Mike Workman

11:12 AM, 25th June 2024, About 5 days ago

Reply to the comment left by Julie Ford at 24/06/2024 - 13:37
Thanks for the very useful information, much appreciated

Dennis Forrest

12:57 PM, 25th June 2024, About 5 days ago

Or you could insist the purchase goes ahead only on the condition that firstly the seller refunds the deposit in full to the tenant. You would then take over the tenancy without any tenant's deposit. If the discount to market price, because you are buying a property with a tenant in situ is substantial then do you really need to keep back 5 weeks rent as a deposit?

DPT

16:16 PM, 26th June 2024, About 4 days ago

You will probably find that this is just one of several potentially costly mistakes the landlord made. NEVER buy a tenanted property without doing full due diligence on both the property and the tenancy. Start with a read of this thread: https://www.propertytribes.com/26-questions-to-ask-when-buying-a-property-with-tenants-in-situ-t-12038.html

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