10:06 AM, 15th April 2020, About 5 years ago 78
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How can landlords deal with anti-social behaviour by tenants?
Private landlords have very limited power to take action against tenants in such matters, and our main form of deterrent (or eventual remedy) was the threat of eviction. Tenants know that this is can be a long process, so it is unlikely to change their behaviours, particularly if their behaviours are due to alcohol dependency and/or mental health issues.
Reality Check:
The Government (as part of it’s Covid 19 response) has now limited still further, the ability of the landlord to evict, by extending the Notice periods, and closing the courts and bailiff services, thus creating a situation where tenants are pretty much able to do whatever they like and landlords are completely powerless to do anything about it. This is well publicised across social media, so all tenants know this. The Notice periods are now 3 months. The courts will have a massive 3+ month backlog of cases to deal when they eventually re-open.
Likely timeline?:
In the unlikely event that the courts all re-open on 1st July (with a full complement of staff), they will have a 3+ month backlog of cases before they can start hearing new cases, so:
– if I serve 3 month eviction Notice this week (lets say 20/4/20 as the date of service),
– it would be 21st July 2020 before I could even apply to the court for a possession hearing,
– court (in my area) usually take 6 weeks for a hearing date, so add on the 3 month backlog, that means the hearing would be listed for early December,
– if court grants the possession on the first court hearing date (so no adjournments) the court gives the resident 14 – 28 days to move out, so that takes us into early January 2021,
– if the resident does not move out on the ordered date, I then have to apply to the court for bailiffs to physically evict them, this usually takes 6 – 8 weeks, so adding on the 3 month backlog this would give an actual eviction date of sometime in May 2021.
This 13 month eviction process appears to be the reality that all private landlords are facing, AND assuming the Covid restrictions are actually lifted on 1st July, and everything starts working at the same rate, and in the same way as previously.
If the restrictions continue beyond 1st July (as they may), and some processes will change (e.g. introduction of a pre-action protocol), and things will take longer to get back up and running at a pre-Covid rate, then the 13 month timescale mentioned above is perhaps over optimistic.
Based on the issues mentioned above, apart from us sending rent reminder/anti-social behaviour letters and 3 month eviction Notices to the residents, I don’t know of anything else we can legally do to resolve issues such as non-payment of rent or anti-social behaviour.
In the case of anti-social behaviour, it would be no good trying to explain to suffering neighbours the 13+ month likely time period before we could evict, as they may then decide to take action of their own to get the residents to move out by force, and I certainly don’t want any residents being threatened or attacked, or the property being targeted for damage.
In the case of tenants choosing to not pay the rent, while this would leave them in debt, if they have no assets, no employment, and no rent guarantor (with assets), then there is no realistic way to get the rent debt paid (unless it can be done via Universal Credit, but that generally requires tenant co-operation, and can only be done during the tenancy not after eviction or tenant moved elsewhere). This is likely to put many landlords out of business.
Am I missing something?
Are there any legal ways to deal with the anti-social behaviour and non-payment of rent issues mentioned above?
I am open to reasonable suggestions if you can think of any?
Robert
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Hit with a 9 month Rent Repayment Order from my Tenants?
Clint
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Sign Up10:20 AM, 15th May 2020, About 5 years ago
I had a call from a court official yesterday who asked me if I wanted my bailiff application form and cheque returned by recorded delivery. Whilst on the phone, I asked the official why they could not just keep the application and cheque until 26th June 2020 after which, a date could be set with respect to the received queuing position.
The official informed me, that it was the government guide lines that all applications should only be accepted from 26th June 2020, and any received before should not be accepted and this applied to all the courts and not only Croydon County Court.
Chris @ Possession Friend
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Sign Up12:08 PM, 15th May 2020, About 5 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Clint at 15/05/2020 - 10:20That's just another delaying tactic by the Government, who have absolutely No desire for a speedy eviction process. ( quite the opposite )
So much for the 'Daily communications ' some organisations have boasted as having with Govt - MHCLG !
Clint
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Sign Up13:19 PM, 15th May 2020, About 5 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Possession Friend at 15/05/2020 - 12:08
It is sickening that one is trapped and cannot get out of this business for whatever reason.
Carol
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Sign Up15:32 PM, 15th May 2020, About 5 years ago
The Government know we are trapped and are closing every avenue. If all the landlords that want to could get out of the rental market now it would cause major issues for local councils and the government. By putting this delay on bankrupting landlords, it's effect will take a year or more to materialise, by which time the focus will be off the government.
Katie
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Sign Up21:50 PM, 4th June 2020, About 5 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Antoni at 15/04/2020 - 11:01
Hi, for lodgers it's a different law.
If it's your residential house and you rent a room and you (landlord) live in this house, you need only give reasonable notice as per contract or payment period ( 1 week or 1 months ) and then you can just change the locks
Please read here
https://www.gov.uk/rent-room-in-your-home/ending-a-letting
Ron H-W
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Sign Up12:14 PM, 10th July 2020, About 5 years ago
This is an update regarding the comments by
Clint (21:45 PM, 19th April 2020 and 8:38 AM, 20th April 2020),
Luke P (22:54 PM, 19th April 2020), and
Possession Friend (23:01 PM, 19th April 2020 and 10:19 AM, 20th April 2020)
about the surprise new wording "...........I must pay my rent........" in section 3 of Form 3.
Newsflash: I asked the NRLA about this ‘I must pay my rent…….’; they've raised the matter with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), who confirmed that it was a drafting error, and have now replaced this with the correct version!
It's in the same place (via https://www.gov.uk/guidance/assured-tenancy-forms#form-3), but without any admission/indication of error/change.
Clint
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Sign Up15:16 PM, 10th July 2020, About 5 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Ron H-W at 10/07/2020 - 12:14
So does this mean that those of us that filled it in with the drafting error, will be penalised by the courts or will the courts be aware that there was a drafting error for a period of time? Does not sound to me, like the courts will be aware of the drafting error, and we will probably have to send a covering letter which may, or may not be accepted by the courts.
I would very much appreciate if you Ron-H could put the question to the NRLA or give us your point of contact at the NRLA as this should be highlighted to the courts.
We landlords are penalised for extremely trivial errors whilst filling in forms, and it seems ridiculous that an organisation responsible for publishing such documents for the whole country, can make such grave errors and get away with it.
Chris @ Possession Friend
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Sign Up22:00 PM, 10th July 2020, About 5 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Ron H-W at 10/07/2020 - 12:14
We've been ignoring it and endorsing the usual required text underneath it,
( Actually, I quite liked it 😉