Renting out a property.

Devil#20

I'm thinking of renting out a house. If I do then, if at some later date, I want to un-rent it out, what is the law in giving notice and taking back possession of the the property. It's my house but I think I want to buy another house elsewhere to live in. 

Danny1969

At the moment the law on no fault evictions is in limbo, there are changes coming but not gone through yet ... 

If it goes through then no fault eviction period will be 6 months 

Devil#20

Danny1969 said:

At the moment the law on no fault evictions is in limbo, there are changes coming but not gone through yet ... 

If it goes through then no fault eviction period will be 6 months 

What are the proposed changes? So currently I can give 6 months notice for them to vacate the property. What if they refuse to leave? Also if they refuse to pay rent what is the legal position there. Just trying to cover basic scenarios. I've heard of cases where you can't recover your property easily. 

Danny1969

Devil#20 said:

Danny1969 said:

At the moment the law on no fault evictions is in limbo, there are changes coming but not gone through yet ... 

If it goes through then no fault eviction period will be 6 months 

What are the proposed changes? So currently I can give 6 months notice for them to vacate the property. What if they refuse to leave? Also if they refuse to pay rent what is the legal position there. Just trying to cover basic scenarios. I've heard of cases where you can't recover your property easily. 

You can read more about the reform here  

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-fairer-private-rented-sector/a-fairer-private-rented-sector

As a landlord you can face all kinds of problems if you get the wrong kind of tenants or your  good tenants circumstances change and they have no choice but to become a thorn in your side. They can generally reside in your property as squatters for quite a few months before it's possible to get them out. We viewed such a property once. 

One thing to remember is  ... it's a business deal between you and the tenants and if that business deal goes wrong then it's honestly not of much interest to the law or the courts. Yes you have legal recourse but you still can't take the knickers off a bare arse. A lot of people get burned because they can't get their heads around that. 

robgilmo

You do have to understand the rental situation where you live, how easy is it for tennants to find another home, going through estate agents isnt cheap for a tennant, basically they hand the agent a few hundred quid just to be considered, if they have to do this several times they wont be going anywhere as they may not be able to afford to, so first put yourself in their shoes, consider what can go wrong and decide from there.
After a section 21 is issued, if they stay any longer you have to go to court, this can take months and months, if you are going to rent out a home and consider it as temporary I really wouldnt bother.

ToneControl

robgilmo said:

You do have to understand the rental situation where you live, how easy is it for tennants to find another home, going through estate agents isnt cheap for a tennant, basically they hand the agent a few hundred quid just to be considered, if they have to do this several times they wont be going anywhere as they may not be able to afford to, so first put yourself in their shoes, consider what can go wrong and decide from there.
After a section 21 is issued, if they stay any longer you have to go to court, this can take months and months, if you are going to rent out a home and consider it as temporary I really wouldnt bother.

that was changed:
https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/private_renting/letting_agent_fees_for_tenants

Most tenancy related fees are banned.

Landlords and letting agents cannot charge for things like:

• references

• administration

• check out inspections

• credit and immigration checks

• renewing your tenancy when your fixed term contract ends

If your tenancy started on or after 1 June 2019, these fees are banned. This includes tenancy renewals after this date.

ToneControl

Danny1969 said:

Devil#20 said:

Danny1969 said:

At the moment the law on no fault evictions is in limbo, there are changes coming but not gone through yet ... 

If it goes through then no fault eviction period will be 6 months 

What are the proposed changes? So currently I can give 6 months notice for them to vacate the property. What if they refuse to leave? Also if they refuse to pay rent what is the legal position there. Just trying to cover basic scenarios. I've heard of cases where you can't recover your property easily. 

You can read more about the reform here  

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-fairer-private-rented-sector/a-fairer-private-rented-sector

As a landlord you can face all kinds of problems if you get the wrong kind of tenants or your  good tenants circumstances change and they have no choice but to become a thorn in your side. They can generally reside in your property as squatters for quite a few months before it's possible to get them out. We viewed such a property once. 

One thing to remember is  ... it's a business deal between you and the tenants and if that business deal goes wrong then it's honestly not of much interest to the law or the courts. Yes you have legal recourse but you still can't take the knickers off a bare arse. A lot of people get burned because they can't get their heads around that. 

I'd be basing my expectations on what Labour might do if they get into power

https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/renters-reform-bill-labour-promises-slew-of-amendments-in-lords/5118929.article

https://blog.goodlord.co/what-are-labours-plans-for-the-private-rented-sector

Angela Rayner, deputy Leader of the Labour party and shadow housing secretary, recently stated that the party will scrap Section 21 on their first day in office.

The party also aims to “close loopholes that disreputable landlords might use to exploit tenants” following the abolition of Section 21.

rlw

Devil#20 said:

I'm thinking of renting out a house. If I do then, if at some later date, I want to un-rent it out, what is the law in giving notice and taking back possession of the the property. It's my house but I think I want to buy another house elsewhere to live in. 

Frankly, with this level of knowledge, I don’t think you should be renting out your house.

Do you understand what your obligations as a landlord are?  Furniture?  Fire regs?  Your liability?

fretmeister

Even if the no fault eviction changes do NOT come in don’t forget that it can take 12 months to 2 years to get through the court system until you get to evict the tenant.

And do not assume for 1 minute they’ll be paying rent for that time, or that you’ll be able to get it out of them afterwards.

If the OP is serious then he should spend money on a GOOD local property solicitor for the contracts etc AND on a good property management company to actually do the work so he has someone to sue if it goes wrong that isn’t a penniless tenant.

No offence to the OP, but if you are asking for a bunch of forum people for advice to do it on the cheap then you have completely the wrong approach.

If you don’t want to spend money on lawyers, agents, fire safety inspections, Pat testing etc etc then don’t do it at all.

CavemanGrogg

Danny1969 said:

Devil#20 said:

Danny1969 said:

At the moment the law on no fault evictions is in limbo, there are changes coming but not gone through yet ... 

If it goes through then no fault eviction period will be 6 months 

What are the proposed changes? So currently I can give 6 months notice for them to vacate the property. What if they refuse to leave? Also if they refuse to pay rent what is the legal position there. Just trying to cover basic scenarios. I've heard of cases where you can't recover your property easily. 

You can read more about the reform here  

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-fairer-private-rented-sector/a-fairer-private-rented-sector

As a landlord you can face all kinds of problems if you get the wrong kind of tenants or your  good tenants circumstances change and they have no choice but to become a thorn in your side. They can generally reside in your property as squatters for quite a few months before it's possible to get them out. We viewed such a property once. 

One thing to remember is  ... it's a business deal between you and the tenants and if that business deal goes wrong then it's honestly not of much interest to the law or the courts. Yes you have legal recourse but you still can't take the knickers off a bare arse. A lot of people get burned because they can't get their heads around that. 

Not just tenants, nieghbours of a property you are renting out can cause you huge almost unsolvable nightmares, and costs you a absolute fortune too.

Devil#20

fretmeister said:

Even if the no fault eviction changes do NOT come in don’t forget that it can take 12 months to 2 years to get through the court system until you get to evict the tenant.

And do not assume for 1 minute they’ll be paying rent for that time, or that you’ll be able to get it out of them afterwards.

If the OP is serious then he should spend money on a GOOD local property solicitor for the contracts etc AND on a good property management company to actually do the work so he has someone to sue if it goes wrong that isn’t a penniless tenant.

No offence to the OP, but if you are asking for a bunch of forum people for advice to do it on the cheap then you have completely the wrong approach.

If you don’t want to spend money on lawyers, agents, fire safety inspections, Pat testing etc etc then don’t do it at all.

I'm not looking to do it on the cheap so I'm perfectly OK with securing a proper legal footing and ensuring I meet with all the H&S legislation. Presumably, I could offset this expense against any income tax on rent collected. Still early days thinking about my options. 

Kurtis

rlw said:

Devil#20 said:

I'm thinking of renting out a house. If I do then, if at some later date, I want to un-rent it out, what is the law in giving notice and taking back possession of the the property. It's my house but I think I want to buy another house elsewhere to live in. 

Frankly, with this level of knowledge, I don’t think you should be renting out your house.

Do you understand what your obligations as a landlord are?  Furniture?  Fire regs?  Your liability?

Everybody gotta start somewhere. 

Rob1742

I do rentals, it isn’t difficult, but there are certain things you need to do to ensure you are doing things legally.

So with your current level of experience, I’d hand it over to an agent, unless you are someone who is the type to forage around and find the detail on the internet.

From the opening comments, I would suggest you aren’t that type so an estate agent is where I’d go with this.

Its things like taking deposits and putting them in a protection scheme, giving the tenant an information pack, ensuring there is a gas and electrical certificate etc, so I think for the first one I’d go through an agent.

I know of a number of people who wing it, they just don’t really bother and just rent out to friends etc, but if it ever went wrong and you had to evict them, when it goes to court you’d get absolutely hammered by the judge for not being a good landlord.

i had to take someone to court to evict them, it all went well but my solicitor went through every single detail with regards to the lease, the deposit, certificates and everything and he said that if I was lacking in just one area I might struggle to evict them for some time as I’d be seen as a bad landlord.

Luckily I had done everything correctly.

Get an agent, and good luck, we all start somewhere so I hope you enjoy the journey 

Devil#20

Rob1742 said:

I do rentals, it isn’t difficult, but there are certain things you need to do to ensure you are doing things legally.

So with your current level of experience, I’d hand it over to an agent, unless you are someone who is the type to forage around and find the detail on the internet.

From the opening comments, I would suggest you aren’t that type so an estate agent is where I’d go with this.

Its things like taking deposits and putting them in a protection scheme, giving the tenant an information pack, ensuring there is a gas and electrical certificate etc, so I think for the first one I’d go through an agent.

I know of a number of people who wing it, they just don’t really bother and just rent out to friends etc, but if it ever went wrong and you had to evict them, when it goes to court you’d get absolutely hammered by the judge for not being a good landlord.

i had to take someone to court to evict them, it all went well but my solicitor went through every single detail with regards to the lease, the deposit, certificates and everything and he said that if I was lacking in just one area I might struggle to evict them for some time as I’d be seen as a bad landlord.

Luckily I had done everything correctly.

Get an agent, and good luck, we all start somewhere so I hope you enjoy the journey 

Thanks Rob. Last thing I want to be accused of is a bad landlord so realise I have to secure the services of an estate agent who knows the legal obligations. 


rlw said:

Frankly, with this level of knowledge, I don’t think you should be renting out your house.

Do you understand what your obligations as a landlord are?  Furniture?  Fire regs?  Your liability?

With respect @rlw you don't know what my level of knowledge is. I don't do things half-arsed. I know it's a potential minefield and the laws regarding rental are complex and ever-changing. 

Rob1742

Devil#20 said:

Rob1742 said:

I do rentals, it isn’t difficult, but there are certain things you need to do to ensure you are doing things legally.

So with your current level of experience, I’d hand it over to an agent, unless you are someone who is the type to forage around and find the detail on the internet.

From the opening comments, I would suggest you aren’t that type so an estate agent is where I’d go with this.

Its things like taking deposits and putting them in a protection scheme, giving the tenant an information pack, ensuring there is a gas and electrical certificate etc, so I think for the first one I’d go through an agent.

I know of a number of people who wing it, they just don’t really bother and just rent out to friends etc, but if it ever went wrong and you had to evict them, when it goes to court you’d get absolutely hammered by the judge for not being a good landlord.

i had to take someone to court to evict them, it all went well but my solicitor went through every single detail with regards to the lease, the deposit, certificates and everything and he said that if I was lacking in just one area I might struggle to evict them for some time as I’d be seen as a bad landlord.

Luckily I had done everything correctly.

Get an agent, and good luck, we all start somewhere so I hope you enjoy the journey 

Thanks Rob. Last thing I want to be accused of is a bad landlord so realise I have to secure the services of an estate agent who knows the legal obligations. 


rlw said:

Frankly, with this level of knowledge, I don’t think you should be renting out your house.

Do you understand what your obligations as a landlord are?  Furniture?  Fire regs?  Your liability?

With respect @rlw you don't know what my level of knowledge is. I don't do things half-arsed. I know it's a potential minefield and the laws regarding rental are complex and ever-changing. 

PM me if you want to discuss anything. Happy to try and help 

thebreeze

fretmeister said:

Even if the no fault eviction changes do NOT come in don’t forget that it can take 12 months to 2 years to get through the court system until you get to evict the tenant.

And do not assume for 1 minute they’ll be paying rent for that time, or that you’ll be able to get it out of them afterwards.

If the OP is serious then he should spend money on a GOOD local property solicitor for the contracts etc AND on a good property management company to actually do the work so he has someone to sue if it goes wrong that isn’t a penniless tenant.

No offence to the OP, but if you are asking for a bunch of forum people for advice to do it on the cheap then you have completely the wrong approach.

If you don’t want to spend money on lawyers, agents, fire safety inspections, Pat testing etc etc then don’t do it at all.

Fretmeister says everything that needs to be said.  The landlord of the flat below me is getting on for 2 years now with a non paying rogue tenant in the flat.  Numerous court appearances, delays etc. It’s been a nightmare.

spark240

Been renting properties for almost 20 years…generally no issues, we do all letting and maintenance ourselves….our experience of agents has been terrible…and we tried a few.

It is a small business and does come with all of the associated expenses, if the property has no mortgage  it can be an earner, but if you also have to meet costs I’d think a lot about it in the current climate.

Wolfetone

Just remember that it may be your house but it will be someone else's home. If you do decide to rent it out, make sure you are clear to the tenants of your plans so that they can plan their own lives.