Tenant advice

[jackie0]

We had to change the locks of the property when the tenants (couple) we had who had never paid any rent said they'd left after asking them for ages to leave. We rang them endlessly, went round to the property and knocked several times with no replies just to confirm they'd left as promised. We eventually had to change the locks after about 2 mths.  They later broke into the property and claimed their dog was there, twice. The 2nd time, it was true the dog was there as we then called the body for abandoned dogs after a day of the dog still being left.  The dog trust came the next day but the tenant had gone in to the dog before then as the trust said. So they didn't take the dog away.  They have now left after 4 months of no rent, and claimed they have again just as they did last time.But we went there and changed the locks and this time it was true they'd left. 

My husband was not working when they were there and I was the one just going back to work after unpaid leave for 6 months, and they knew that and still didn't pay any rent.We were left paying their own mortgage and ours, borrowing money desperately from anywhere we could find. We're still in a lot of debt from it and I'm still teh only working.

I wrote a letter demanding the rent and they are now claiming that we changed locks when we 'knew a dog was there' and therefore they are not paying the rent owed and that they are going to use it against us in court if we do take them to court!  I was like 'what!'.

What do we do? any advice will be appreciated. thanks

[Didwot]

You forgot to tell us that they were drug dealers/addicts, and in receipt of benefits. The being the case one id reminded of trying to get blood out of a stone.
The position of changing the locks is an interesting one. The only way you can recover possession of a resicential property let to someone as thir home is by Court Order, so unless you were able to establish that htey had abandoned the property then you may find yourself in an akward postion.

[Emily Ball]

You supply no details of the tenancy such as whether the tenants were supplied with a rent book, whether a contract was drawn up or any advance rent or deposit was paid, and it appears that as your ex-tenants are intimidating you with threats of taking you to court you are in need of a little legal advice. Whether you might have to pay for this depends on your financial circumstances but I suggest you do it for your own peace of mind. If , as you say, the money situation is desperate, legal aid is a possibility.

[jackie0]

I work, but my other is unemployed. So I don't think we'll get legal aid. Yes, they had a 6 months tenancy agreement, and paid 3/4 of the deposit and one month's rent before moving to the property (this is compulsory before one can move into a property anyway!), but never paid anything else and were there for 5 months altogether.  They are not planning to go to court, we are the ones threatening court action if they do not pay the rent owed.The man is no where to be found, but we have the lady's work address.She has refused to give us her home address. How do landlords get tenant's new addresses if they run away without paying?

[Emily Ball]

If the woman was a co-signatory of the tenancy agreement then she is responsible for the rent arrears if the man's whereabouts are unknown. Knowing her work address, I would think, is a first step in being able to sue her for the unpaid rent. If you are determined to recover the money owed to you, whichever way you go about doing so, it will probably  involve your laying out money, so you must ask yourself "would  the (possibly) recovered sum be cancelled out by the cost of pursuing the claim?" You could try having the woman followed as she leaves work to ascertain where she is at present living (she may still be living with the man). Find out if you can claim in the Small Claims Court . Those are just a few options for you to think about. You can also access www.freelawyer.co.uk. There are some very good guidelines and links for private landlords on that site.

[Emily Ball]

Further to my last post there is all the info you need to make a small claim on the following website:-

www.compactlaw.co.uk 

Good luck.Please let us know if you make any progress.

[jackie0]

OK.. thanks a lot for teh suggestions. I will checkout the websites, and will certainly let you know how I get on. 

Cheers,

Jackie.