sorenlorensen Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 Hi all Apologies for the following saga but I could really do with some advice as I feel like a bit of a mug and I am going out of my mind with worry about whatmy position is here and what I can do. I let my home to tenants in October (young Chinese couple) they had refs and all seemed OK - even went round first couple of weeks to deal with initial requests and all seemed above board. BTW - had to let privately in end as 4 agents could not let it in 6 months. Got concerned when rent was not paid at end Jan and tried to contact them - no reply to phone, mail , text - also went round a few times this week and knocked on door and got no answer - looked through window and place seemed rather odd (messy but half empty). I got a shock yesterday as they were still not responding to contact and went round to see them. Neighbours then told me that the house was raided by police on 29th Jan as part of a drugs investgation. Also according to neighbours they have had a large amount of people staying in the property with many cars parked across the street coming and going at all hours - needless to say neighbours very angry. Trouble is the place is not sealed up and the police have not been in contact with me - almost 10 days after the event. I have now contacted the police and have a call with the relevant officer on Monday - I checked the web and found a report that said that the house was raided but nothing illegal was found in it and that a number of people have been arrested and bailed on suspicion of supplying drugs and immigration offences. Neighbours said that the day after event 2 chinese people went into the house and removed a lot of stuff (including TV's etc) and I can see a set of keys on the mat. They are not responding to any calls (now I know why) but no-one has been back to the property since that day and my rent is unpaid. It seems (and what I am being told is) that I will not see them again but in any case I do not want these people back in my house after all of this and I need to know my rights. A standard AST (which I found on a Landlord website) was used but to be honest I am not even sure that the tenants gave me their real names or if their ID's were fake - as they seemed to use a number of names. My AST has the following clause (see below) which I am hoping will mean I can end the contract soon and get rid of them and move on with my life and sort my property out with decent tenants. ==== AST CLAUSE ==== 5.6 Abandonment 5.6.1 If it comes to the attention of the Landlord that the Premises have not been occupied by the Tenant for more than 21 days and the Tenant has not given the Landlord notice in accordance with clause 3.6.4 above, and if, following further investigation by the Landlord, the Landlord forms the belief, and has reasonable cause to believe, that the Tenant has ceased to reside at the Premises, the Landlord may treat the Premises as being abandoned by the Tenant and re-enter the Premises and thereby bring this agreement to an end. Such entry by the Landlord will not affect any right or rights the Landlord may have against the Tenant in respect of any subsisting breach by the Tenant of the Tenant's agreements and obligations under this agreement as at the date of the re-entry ===================== Any advice you can give that on the steps I need to take that would allow me to end this nightmare quickly (and as cheaply) as possible. Or am I OK to enforce the abandonment clause and be done with it with that? Thanks very much Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trenners Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 Hi, The thing to establish is - has the property actually been abandoned ... or are the tenants in prison (awaiting trial) ... which is why they never answer your calls, don't pay any rent and are never in the property when you call around. You need substantial evidence to proof abandonment. All of the keys posted through the letterbox would clearly show the tenants have no intention of returning. If you enter the property - looking for evidence of abandonment - then you do NOT want to find food in the fridge / cupboards, clothes in the wardrobes, beds that look like they have been slept in recently etc etc. The laws on abandonment are not clear cut and it is worth taking pictures because, at a later date, you may need to justify your actions if the tenants turn up and claim that you have illegally thrown them out of their home and that they had not abandoned the property but had, instead, simply been held at the police station! I would enter the property, look for evidence of abandonment (taking photos) and, assuming no food in the fridge etc, I would secure the property by changing all the locks and put a note of the door stating that the locks have been changed and you believe the property has been abandoned and if anyone knows the whereabouts of the tenants then they should contact you within the next 21 days. Leave all your contact details on the notice and clearly display it on the front and rear entry doors. If they contact you within the 21 day period then you MUST give them a set of keys to the property (otherwise you would have illegally evicted them). If they do not contact you then I would invoke the abandonment clause in the tenancy agreement, remove and store all their possessions for 28 days, and then re-let the property. Finally - it is interesting in a buoyant rental market why a letting agent couldn't find a tenant in 6 months and the only tenants you could secure were, alledgely, drug dealing illegal immigrants. What is wrong with the property? Over priced or poorly presented or really bad area? Good luck Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sorenlorensen Posted February 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 Thanks Mark Just spoke to the police - basically confirmed what I was told. They arrested and bailed them - they gave my property as their address but since the day they took stuff away no one has been back. Police seem to think that it is common for them just to move on. I can only assume the keys that I found are the only ones and I believe them to be the originals but I will be changing locks anyway. As it seems they were disturbed by the police they have not removed everything - I was told by neighbours and police that the day after the raid two people turned up and cleared a lot of stuff out (tv's etc) but there is still a lot of stuff/mess/food there. My gut is telling me that they are not coming back after this time or they would surely have been back straight after they were bailed instead of taking stuff out the place. I am sort of inclined to just go in and take it back but I understand the issues raised by that. My worry here is the length of time it takes to get possession through court as I will not be getting any rent and I need to cover the mortgage in the meantime. I am hoping that after 21 days I can legally take it back without having to go through any courts as I cannot afford to cover the mortgage for a long time. The AST I had stated a 1 year term - does this mean that is binding to that or is there a default position of 6 months?? Regardless of this I understand that a Section 8 notice can break the AST as they have breached the contract on a number of fronts - but I really was hoping that it was a straightforward as following the abandonment clause and taking back the place after 21 days - I guess it may not be that simple - thoughts welcome. In terms of agents - I don't understand it either - none of them could shift it and they kept saying it was because the market got flooded with sellers now renting. The house is in a good locations and is effectively brand new - I spent 6 figures on developing it and came with all the mod cons you could want - I was hoping to let it to a family but had no choice to advertise it myself alongside the agents and that is how I ended up with a 'nice' young chinese couple....... Obviously I am worried that the rental market is still not good but would welcome comment on that - sounds like others are doing OK - don't know if it is just my luck. Thanks for the advice. ===== Hi, The thing to establish is - has the property actually been abandoned ... or are the tenants in prison (awaiting trial) ... which is why they never answer your calls, don't pay any rent and are never in the property when you call around. You need substantial evidence to proof abandonment. All of the keys posted through the letterbox would clearly show the tenants have no intention of returning. If you enter the property - looking for evidence of abandonment - then you do NOT want to find food in the fridge / cupboards, clothes in the wardrobes, beds that look like they have been slept in recently etc etc. The laws on abandonment are not clear cut and it is worth taking pictures because, at a later date, you may need to justify your actions if the tenants turn up and claim that you have illegally thrown them out of their home and that they had not abandoned the property but had, instead, simply been held at the police station! I would enter the property, look for evidence of abandonment (taking photos) and, assuming no food in the fridge etc, I would secure the property by changing all the locks and put a note of the door stating that the locks have been changed and you believe the property has been abandoned and if anyone knows the whereabouts of the tenants then they should contact you within the next 21 days. Leave all your contact details on the notice and clearly display it on the front and rear entry doors. If they contact you within the 21 day period then you MUST give them a set of keys to the property (otherwise you would have illegally evicted them). If they do not contact you then I would invoke the abandonment clause in the tenancy agreement, remove and store all their possessions for 28 days, and then re-let the property. Finally - it is interesting in a buoyant rental market why a letting agent couldn't find a tenant in 6 months and the only tenants you could secure were, alledgely, drug dealing illegal immigrants. What is wrong with the property? Over priced or poorly presented or really bad area? Good luck Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trenners Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 Hi, You don't need to involve the court if you repossess the property under abandonment laws - unless the tenant actually turns up and, instead, states that you illegally evicted them. So - secure the property (by changing the locks), put a notice on the property stating you think the property has been abandoned, wait 21 days, remove the tenants possessions and store them in a secure place (for a further 28 days) then re-let the property. Take lots of digital photographs along the way ... and you should be fine .... best Wishes Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sorenlorensen Posted February 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 Sound advice -thanks very much. Hi, You don't need to involve the court if you repossess the property under abandonment laws - unless the tenant actually turns up and, instead, states that you illegally evicted them. So - secure the property (by changing the locks), put a notice on the property stating you think the property has been abandoned, wait 21 days, remove the tenants possessions and store them in a secure place (for a further 28 days) then re-let the property. Take lots of digital photographs along the way ... and you should be fine .... best Wishes Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPEEDTWIN Posted February 9, 2009 Report Share Posted February 9, 2009 Just as back up to be safe i might be worth serving a s21 and s8. I think ground 14 would apply. For the cost of a couple of stamps it would be a bit more sercurity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sorenlorensen Posted February 10, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2009 Just as back up to be safe i might be worth serving a s21 and s8. I think ground 14 would apply. For the cost of a couple of stamps it would be a bit more sercurity. Thanks - intend to do S8 today - have meeting with police to give statements and get their opinion on what appears to be a drugs outfit operating from a number of places (luckily not mine) to see if they expect them back or even to appear back in court. On what I saw in the place yesterday it has been cleard of all valuables and wardrobes/drawers emptied, keys left on doormat and table and no on has been near since 29th Jan - all points toward abandonment I think. So will serve S8 to property wait till 21 days are up and then clear it out and start working towards relet. Cannot for the life of me see that this lot are coming back and playing tenant games - but you are right serve notice to be on the right side of law. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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