UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi There,
I am a first time Landlord with one property. I have a 27 year old Female in the property and her toddler son. She signed a AST agreement on 14 april 2008 initially for 6 months then continuing until present day. She is part funded by benefits and tops up herself £154 per month. She is a nightmare for many reasons however there is a new development.
Every single month she has a shiney new excuse and payment always late after i have exhausted myself chasing it up. To cut to the chase I received a letter at the beginning of May from benefits advising they stop at the end of the month for whatever reason. She also missed £154 payment on rent day (14th).
Having tried her guarantor wouldnt you know you can't find him (false details probably).
I have tried several nice letters to resolve but all failed.
On the 13th May I covered my back by issuing a section 21(a) notice requiring possession on 13th July (2 months)
She sent a text saying she is too ill.
I'm fairly sure this not truthfull (after all the lies i have had in the past)
My question is what if she digs her heels in with the "too ill" scenario or if indeed she is ill. If she doesnt go and I have to go to court to gain possession will the courts grant me possession (even if she hasn't paid) on the grounds of illness and a young child?
I thought about the section 8 route but to be honest i would be just pleased to get her out rather than persue the money. She also said on her text " take me to court and i will pay you £2 per week as thats all i can afford on benefits". Ironically she recently spent several thousand pounds on silicone implants in Prague.
To summarise I would like her out asap and not worried about lost rent. Any advise would be most gratefully accepted as I am very worried this could drag on for months whilst receiving no rent and having to pay court costs. My instincts tell me she has no intention of moving out. Thanks a lot

You need to join a Landlord association and use their legal expertise.

If she is 'too ill' ask her for a doctors letter stating exactly what the illness is. Technically - if you go down the route of small claims court etc - the court will eventually place a lien on her assets (pun intended) including her tits! Think of the bragging rights that you have part ownership of someone elses chest!

Seriously - I would join a landlord association - £70 for the guild of residential landlords and woth every penny (and it's tax deductable)!

Dont send letters ad lib cos you will find yourself in deep s*** if you do go to court and you have served the wrong papers/given incorrect notice etc!

Jools

Hang in there..

Thanks for the advice Jools. Its a steep learning curve for new landlords. Seems every i must be dotted and every t crossed otherwise the hapless landlord may fall foul of their own mistakes or omissions. Amazing how much Law DSS people actually know. Shame its usually used to exploit loopholes as opposed to actually abiding by it!! Thanks again for the advice.

Good result here. I have allowed her to stay on under certain proviso's. She has agreed to pay on time by direct debit as she should. Arrears are sorted. Also she has agreed to me issuing section 21 notices in ADVANCE to coincide with the day before any future payments are due. The deal is that if she pays on time she can put the section 21 in the bin. if payments not made she auto evicts at very very short notice. Also agreed to 2 new guarantors being her mum and Auntie. Bit radical I know but seems she is keen to stay and even volunteered multiple advance payments. She understands that I will be issuing a section 21 on a monthly basis to see how we get on. I'm assuming this is Legal? Can anyone confirm this please?

Blimey!

Not sue of legality here regarding the continuous section 21 notices. You really should take some proper legal advice as you don't want her coming back at you with a grievance under the bloody Human Rights Act ie I could not sleep, became ill due to the fact I knew I was going to get a section 21 notice etc. Could be seen as employing bullying tactics to get the money - Yeah I know - nuts isnt it!

I really would join a landlords assoc! No I am not on commission BUT they are really usefull when dealing with issues like this and once you have paid your membership the Guild dont charge for advice.


Let us know how you get on!

Jools

Hmmm...I'm amazed everything got flipped around so quickly. Seems a bit odd.

Harrier, i'd be careful that your tenant isn't just telling you what you want to hear, just so she has a roof over her head for a little longer.

Those conditions you have put in place conflict with your tenants statutory rights. Your tenant needs 2 months notice regardless, so verbally agreeing that she makes a quick exit if she doesn't keep to her end of the bargain won't be legally binding. I hope your tenant isn't unaware of that

Surprise surprise back to square one. rent overdue again. Those wiser than me saw it coming. I gave the benefit of doubt and made a wrong judgement. I have enforced the section 21 issued 13th June to give 2 months notice to be out 13th august. The neighbours say she hasn't been living there properly for some time and just comes back now and again to get stuff out of the house. Her stuff is still there. More shiney excuses.
Someone whispered to me that some tennants want to be evicted by the courts ( especially single mothers with children on benefits such as mine ) as they have to be automatically rehoused if a court evicts them. I guess that it is not cricket for a court to put a single mother and child on the street. Frustration Frustration Frustration. No rent. Not moving on willingly. Now I think I have to start filling in the forms N5b for possession through the courts and give her probably exactly what she has been working towards - new house curtesy of the taxpayer. I'm a first time Landlord with a portfolio of one property. Did I just get unlucky or what with this girl?

Well I think an end has come to this saga. Fingers crossed I am picking up the keys tomorrow.  Thanks for your posts and advice.