Tenancy agreement

[shiznit]

We have given notice on a property we have been renting for the past 3 years. We gave notice 7 days after the rent is paid and informed the agency that we were giving them a months notice as required. They have accepted this but informed us that we have to stay till the end of September not this month. I assume they are working on the fact they are enforcing a full months notice. We are quite prepared to pay for the extra week that that leaving the end of this month would involve as the rent due date falls on the 28th of each month and we gave notice on the 7th of this month with the intention of moving out on the 7th of September. For the past 18months we have not signed a renewal of the agreement as the landlord has not made repairs and modifications as agreed to the property, and I refused to do so until these promises were made good. Do we have a right to insist on our original moving out date as the agreement has not been upheld or signed?. We have already found new premises that we would like to move to as soon as possible and this will set us back greatly.

Thank you for any answers

Shiz

[jb190281]

From the Shelter website

"Can I give the landlord notice and if so, how much?
If your agreement is periodic (ie rolling from week to week or month to month), you normally have to give at least four weeks' notice to end it, or a calendar month if you have a monthly tenancy. The only exceptions to this are:

If your landlord agrees to accept a shorter notice period (see above) or agrees that someone else can take your place (see below).
If you are an excluded occupier, in which case the amount of notice you have to give will depend on whether you have a tenancy or license agreement. Working out whether you have a tenancy or license can be quite complicated, especially if you don't have a written agreement. Get in touch with an adviser to check your rights if you can't agree a date that both you and your landlord are happy with. Use our directory to find a local advice centre.
If you pay rent less frequently than monthly (every three months, for example) - if this is the case, you have to give notice equivalent to a rental period.
It is always best to give notice in writing and ensure that the notice ends on the first or last day of the period of a tenancy. For example, if your tenancy is monthly and started on the fifth day of the month, the notice you give the landlord should end on the fourth or the fifth. Check with an adviser if you have any doubts about the dates. Use our directory to find one in your area."

[themas]

The quote from Shelter is a bit ambiguous. The first para. implies you can give a calendar month's notice at any time. This is not so. The last para. is nearer where it says the 1 month's notice "should" end on the 4th or 5th. It is not a matter of "should". The legal provision is that this is what has to happen. So I assume the agent is saying your tenancy will end on 28 Sept. & you are to pay until then.

I don't think there is anything you can do about this unless you can agree an earlier date with the agent if they have a replacement tenant who will move in before that date.

[shiznit]

Thanks jb, I have rung the Landlord and they have said it's no problem to move on our original date, spoke to agency and they said that's fine, they just need it in writing, so happy days.

Thanks again

Shiz