DMB1602 Posted January 10, 2013 Report Share Posted January 10, 2013 partially my own fault, but for the past 30 months or so i have allowed my tenant to run up arrears on the promise that before the termination of her annual tenancy agreement, all outstanding arrears will be paid. hence this HB tenant, who signed the current tenancy agreement whereby on the 1st of each month she would pay £1062, has in fact paid just £980, usually two or three days before the END of the month. for the previous 2 years she has in fact paid up all the arrears some 2 - 3 days before the termination of her TA, so i have not in fact lost out financially but i have allowed it to occur mainly for a quiet life. however, she is a particularly ungracious, complaining, and rude piece of work and i now wish to issue her with a formal notice of payment arrears. her TA expires at the end of may and i feel very strongly she will refuse to leave even tho she has already been issued with her signed S21 notice (signed at the same time along with her current TA) tho i know this is a separate matter. i need to know how to construct a letter to her regarding her current arrears (currently some £1636, includind this month`s rent) demanding immediate payment and a committment to paying her rent on the 1st of the month as opposed to current practice of paying on the the 27 - 28th of each month. i am aware that HB is normally paid (to the tenant) some 14 days in arrears and i am sure she will try to point this out as some sort of justification. if anyone can assist in helping me construct a formal notice of breach of tenancy i would be most grateful, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grampa Posted January 10, 2013 Report Share Posted January 10, 2013 HB is paid either 2 or 4 weekly so if 4 weekly the date the tenant pays you would/should be a day or so earlier each month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carryon Regardless Posted January 10, 2013 Report Share Posted January 10, 2013 I'm a little lost with what you expect or want here. You already have a formal agreement for when rent is paid, that's in the AST. Why do you think another piece of paper will change her attitude to paying you ? Until she believes you are serious in taking some form of action she will continue as she is. There is nowt wrong with enjoying the quiet life but I guess you must decide on that or getting shut of her in favour of replacing her with an, as yet, unknown. Prior to repossession you 'could' take County Court action for recovery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMB1602 Posted January 10, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2013 I'm a little lost with what you or expect ant here. You already have a formal agreement for when rent is paid, that's in the AST. Why do you think another piece of paper will change her attitude to paying you ? Until she believes you are serious in taking some form of action she will continue as she is. There is nowt wrong with enjoying the quiet life but I guess you must decide on that or getting shut of her in favour of replacing her with an as yet unknown. Prior to repossession you 'could' take County Court action for recovery. the idea Cor, is to issue her w a formal letter/warning, in the expectation she will either object or refuse to adhere to the instruction within a set period. THEN i would have grounds to issue her with an eviction notice for non payment (breach of contract). my request is for guidance on how the formal letter to her is consructed and actually worded. if on the other hand she complies then a small victory of sorts will be accomplished before trying to get rid of her on expiry of AST. my fear is that upon realisation i am not going to renew her tenancy she will withold even more rent.. if she does comply then hopefully i will not be more out of pocket than i anticipate due to the process of seeking court eviction after 31st may. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMB1602 Posted January 10, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2013 thanks Grampa, i understand what you say, but technically she is IN breach because her AST states a payment to be made on the 1st of each month? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grampa Posted January 10, 2013 Report Share Posted January 10, 2013 Yes but to be fair if you are going to accept a tenant on HB it is a bit naive to think you will get the rent on time in the same manner as a working tenant. A tenancy agreement will normally be pcm and as HB is paid 2/4 weekly you have to be flexible with HB tenants but also pro active with dealing with payment issues before any arrears build up too much. I would guess 90% + of all HB tenants have some form of delay with their rent payment at least once and most a lot more. It goes with the territory regardless of what the tenancy agreement states re payment dates. I dont serve s21 at the start of a tenancy because most tenant have forgotten about it and it loses its effect if you are using for a tenant to get back in line. I find it best to serve s21 as soon as there are issues to resolve, to give them a kick up the jacksee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMB1602 Posted January 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 14, 2013 so, once again, can anyone suggest how i go about formatting a letter to this tenant indicating she is in breach of her contract - over £1600 in arrears, - and then follow up proceedure should, as anticipated, she refuses to comply? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mortitia Posted January 14, 2013 Report Share Posted January 14, 2013 DMB - I don't see what you are going to achieve by sending such a letter. If the tenant is in arrears then start going down the Section 8 route for possession but be warned - if there is any disrepair at the property - and you say she is a 'complaining' tenant which would suggest with respect there are issues then be prepared for Section 8 to fail. What is so difficult about writing what you have already suggested in your text? There is no classic, formal letter template for this sort of thing as it is almost pointless. Get her out and be happy Mortitia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKL Posted January 17, 2013 Report Share Posted January 17, 2013 A common misconception with regards to arrears is that, because rent is (typically) paid a month in advance, rent is in arrears as early as one day after the due date. As has been pointed out, any formal demand is likely to carry the same weight with your tenant as the terms of the AST. Regardless, the forms and guidance section of my own website contains a template for a 'formal demand for overdue rent' if you wish to pursue this; the letter includes the caveat of possible legal action, the costs of which she may be liable to pay. I recommend telephoning or writing informally in the first instance, advising that you intend to issue a formal demand, and then issue the formal demand two or three days later. If the rent remains unpaid, you can issue a Section 8, but be warned: Your tenant needs to be more than two months' in arrears both on the date that the notice is issued and on the date of the court hearing for mandatory (ground 8) possession to be granted. This being the case, you are likely to be seeking eviction based on discretionary grounds 10 and 11. You need to provide evidence; without a detailed rent book, this is likely to be fruitless. The court may still rule in favour of the tenant, and may empathise more readily with a DSS tenant. You can hope that the threat of legal action, and the fact that you communicated informally beforehand, compels your tenant to be reasonable. Please also be aware that a new tenant is an unknown quantity; you have stated that, despite how difficult she is to deal with, your current tenant does not leave you financially compromised. Whatever course of action you decide to take, I wish you luck. Regards A Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snorkerz Posted January 18, 2013 Report Share Posted January 18, 2013 she has already been issued with her signed S21 notice (signed at the same time along with her current TA) Can you prove that the s21 was served during the current tenancy if the tenant alledges it was served during the previous (periodic?) tenancy? I minute either way . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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