Rent Arrears and New Landlord

Hi Hayley

Leaving aside that you are a single woman living alone and that your landlord is "aggressive and quite scary" you are indeed still in a vulnerable position.

You are not obliged to provide your new landlord with the requested information but the flip side to that is that your landlord will have the right to seek possession of the property and to either sell it, move in himself, rent it to somebody else or leave it empty.

If you feel threatened in any other way, particularly physically, then you should inform the Police.

Just remember, you landlord must give you at least two months notice to leave before he can apply to the Courts for possession. However, if it can be proven that you are in default of your tenancy then the notice period may be reduced to two weeks.

If you want to continue to live there it may well pay for you to establish a better working relationship with your new landlord.
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Tricky, you want to keep your new landlord happy but don't want him prying into your personal life which is none of his business. Perhaps a reference or a rent account statement from your old landlord would satisfy your new one. If that fails then try and establish exactly what it is your new landlord is really trying to accomplish. Good luck.

Hi Hayley

As a former female tenant who, like you, lived alone in the property (I didn't have a hostile landlord, but did have maintenance people who sometimes took liberties with access), I can sympathise with how you feel. I only visit my own tenants at a time that suits them with plenty of notice.

As a tenant under an AST agreement, you have the legal right to physically exclude your landlord from your home; you are not obliged to give him a key, and you are entitled to at least 24 hours notice if he wants to visit the property. Tessa Shepperson (a solicitor specialising in landlord and tenant matters) has written a blog about this, and has also addressed the position where a tenant might have a clause in their agreement giving the landlord the right to a key: http://www.landlordlawblog.co.uk/2010/07/13/locks-and-keys-%E2%80%93-what-are-tenants-rights/

If you were to change the locks and your landlord subsequently tried to let himself in without your permission, even if your tenancy agreement stipulates that the landlord should have a key, I reckon he'd be in much more trouble for unauthorised entry than you would be for changing the locks - you could just say you lost your keys and as it happened so quickly you didn't get the chance to tell him...

However, unless you've simply misjudged the new landlord, or he improves somewhat on better acquaintance, or you have little to do with him once this matter is cleared up, I personally wouldn't want such a dysfunctional relationship either as a landlord OR as a tenant. Unless you're really short of options for somewhere to live, I might consider giving notice once this is resolved.

If showing your new landlord bank statements proves that you are up to date with your rent.... what is the problem ? it may be an intrusion into your privacy but t least it will get an aggressive landlord off your back...... then find somewhere else to live......

Unfortunately, some businesses are so poor at record keeping, or with large businesses, the right hand often doesn't know what the left is doing, that showing bank statements is sometimes the only way a customer can prove they made a payment, at least quickly.

I've had three organisations ask me for bank statements within the last 18 months (two mobile phone providers and one of my freeholders) to prove payments that I'd made in good faith. I agree that it feels intrusive and it's certainly galling, but as others have said, probably the best and quickest way to put an end to this from your perspective.

When I sent the statements, I took paper copies, used a marker pen to redact everything but information the other parties needed, then scanned them and sent copies by email (if you don't have a scanner, high street printers, photography shops and public libraries will scan documents onto a USB stick for a small fee).

You could show him your statements having first blacked out all other payments and incomes except the rent payments that you have made.

On the basis of the info at the top of the page, the new LL has no reason query a payment that was due to the previous LL. Only the previous LL could do that.

The new LL needs to take a hike (please excuse the unprofessional term), unless there is some other fact yet to come to light.

If you are still a tenant via the AST of the previous landlord or periodic tenancy there after you need to seek advice as to if the new landlord is entitled to rent by reason of having informed you of his name and address etc. Good luck.

Hi Hayley

As a matter of interest, how did your new and old landlords deal with your deposit and is a letting agent involved?
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Reply to the comment left by "Jay Jay" at "30/08/2014 - 19:08":

That's a good question because upon the sale the tenancy was assigned to the buyer who became 'the landlord'.
Therefore, arguably, if rent was due under the tenancy it is now due to the 'new' landlord and no longer to the 'previous' landlord.