Oct

Tackling problem tenants – act quickly to secure the right outcome

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Evictions:

2019 has been a
testing year for landlords, with consultation on the abolition of
Section 21 legislation, the “rogue landlords” database and
extensive media attention on assured tenancy. The focus has very much
remained on tenant rights, while, conversely, landlord rights appear
to be taking a back seat. Add to the mix Labour’s unhelpful and
inflammatory proposals around the sale of rental properties to
tenants at sub-market rents and the result is an unpleasant
environment for landlords.

When it comes to
dealing with problem tenants, we regularly handle cases whereby
landlords have failed to act quickly enough. In recent months, this
has worsened – thanks to media demonisation of landlords, some are
wary of evicting tenants that cause damage, fail to pay rent or break
their tenancy agreement for fear of being criticised.

Instead, they
attempt to salvage the situation, at best kicking the can down the
road and at worst exacerbating tensions.

Rent arrears are
usually the first visible warning sign, yet we are finding that
landlords continue to delay before taking action. We recently helped
a landlord whose tenant racked up arrears of circa £29,000 – along
with very significant damage.

The faster action is
taken, the sooner you will regain control of your property.

Issuing a Section 8
notice is the most effective route to secure the eviction of a
problem tenant, although it’s important to be clear on the
situations that do and don’t warrant eviction. The most common
issues are rent arrears, damage and nuisance behaviour, however
circumstances do vary. On occasion, we see cases where several issues
coexist, creating a major headache for the landlord and making speedy
action even more vital to avoid repair costs racking up.

This month alone,
we’ve seen a variety of Section 8 cases, with tenants arrested for
anti-social behaviour, GBH and domestic violence, through to rent
arrears and more unusual cases, such as large sports equipment being
erected on public right of way outside the property.

There are many
scenarios that warrant the lawful eviction of a tenant, including
repeated failure to pay rent on time, neglect or damage of the
property, nuisance behaviour, use of the property for illegal or
immoral purposes, receipt of a criminal conviction, or unauthorised
pets living within the property.

Once landlords make
the decision to seek the legal eviction of a tenant, it’s vital to
avoid mistakes – some of which could have significant repercussions
and could derail the case. Communicating with a tenant is a good
example – while for some, particularly younger landlords, it will
seem natural to use social media to contact a tenant, Facebook,
Instagram and Twitter should always be off limits. A letter should be
the first port of call, followed by an email if that should fail. It
isn’t unheard of for a landlord to be accused of harassment where
care hasn’t been taken to limit communication to acceptable
channels.

A thorough record of
events, along with photographs, is important – it will prove
invaluable should court intervention be required. Paperwork and
records should also be stored carefully to avoid cases encountering
issues due to missing documents. In the past, we have helped
landlords and agents when cases have gone awry due to paperwork not
being in order – the last thing a landlord needs is to end up back at
square one.

Once a Section 8
notice has been issued, notice period for tenants can range from as
little as 24 hours, to as much as 2 months – the notice period will
depend largely on the reason for the eviction and those living at the
property.

It’s important to
seek legal advice to ensure that eviction of problem tenants is
achieved as swiftly as possible, which will help to prevent
additional damage to the property and limit stress as much as
possible.

Despite the media
depiction of landlords, the law does have the teeth to protect
landlords where tenancy agreements are broken – the key to achieving
the right outcome is acting quickly. Don’t delay and wait for the
problem to worsen.

By Sim Sekhon, MD of LegalforLandlords

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