English Deutsch Français Italiano Español Português 繁體中文 Bahasa Indonesia Tiếng Việt ภาษาไทย
All categories

This is complex. I am living in a shared house. There is one other tenant. Up to yesterday the landlord was living in the house, too. We recently found out that he is £16,000 in arrears on the mortgage and the bank is about to start repossession proceedings (if they haven't already). He has now abandoned the property. He moved out this morning. He has told us it is "every man for himself" and told us to open his mail when it arrives so we can tell when the bank will evict us. We do not expect to see the little b*st*rd again. What is our legal position?

2007-07-06 04:24:52 · 7 answers · asked by drrwalker2003 3 in Business & Finance Renting & Real Estate

7 answers

Your legal position remains that of "tenant."

If you hold an Assured Shorthold Tenancy it will survive the foreclosure process. When the term is up, expect the bank to ask you to leave. All of the normal rules will still apply as their legal position as far as you are concerned is that of your new landlord, nothing more. If your landlord holds a damage deposit they must credit you with that even if the landlord didn't hand it over to them when he departed.

If you don't hold a formal tenancy agreement then you are month-to-month and the bank will probably ask you to leave once the foreclosure process is complete. You still retain your statutory rights and may be able to draw out the process for a fair bit of time as long as you continue to pay your rents when due.

Oddly, you still owe the current landlord the rent until the foreclosure process is completed. I'd post it to him when it's due but don't open any mail addressed to him as that is an offence under the law without his written authorization.

2007-07-06 04:38:43 · answer #1 · answered by Bostonian In MO 7 · 1 0

You havnt really got one, your name is not on the mortgage, and unless you have some kind of legal documentation saying you have secured tenancy then the house's ownership will revert to the mortgage lender, and you will be out on your ear, as the lender will auction off the house to recoup some of its losses, the best you can do is rent a 2 bed flat with the other tenant, and share the bills, if you feel brave enough, sit tight and wait for the bank to get an eviction order, that could take a few weeks, but it will happen, if your former landlord owes that much to the bank, he probably owes more to other peple as well, bailiffs could visit, make sure any personal items of worth that belong to you are out of the house, because unless you have reciepts to prove you own them, they will be taken, the best thng you can do is get out as quick as you can, this could turn very nasty..

You could go to your local housing authority, but there really isnt much point, a single person with a full time job [making assumptions here] will NOT be a priority on any housing list.

2007-07-06 04:46:25 · answer #2 · answered by magpyre 5 · 0 0

Firstly DO NOT open his mail- unless he gives written permission- you will be breaking the law. Do you have a contract with him? You need to seek legal advice from your local housing authority, C.A.B or www.shelter.org may give you some advice on this matter. You could also ring a solicitor for half an hour free advice. Either way i would start looking for somewhere else to live. I think you can kiss your deposit goodbye- but then again you will have rent that you will be saving in lieu because it sounds like you have no forwarding address for this man. He won't be paying your deposit back- so like he said- it's everyman for himself. Good luck.

By the way i think repossession takes months!!! We had a house repossessed years ago - it took months.

2007-07-06 08:22:40 · answer #3 · answered by Ellie 6 · 0 0

Your landlord has the right to have reasonable access to your room in order to do repairs that are required. He should come to an arrangement with you for the most suitable time and you should allow him access within reason for workmen to do repairs. This should be within the working day etc. He should not go snooping in your private property and through your things and if I was you I would change the lock on your room.Even better look for somewhere else to live as he does sound a pervert.Ask at your citizens advice centre for your rights and make enquiries at your local housing dept.

2016-04-01 00:23:22 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

Go to your local Housing Advice center immediately. Same thing happened to me but my "landlord" was a Housing Association tenant not only behind with his rent but renting out rooms illegally. The Housing Association allowed me to stay. Your situation is more complex and you should seek proper advice (Housing Advice Center or Law Center)

2007-07-06 04:30:36 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

You are not liable in anyway but you are not entitled to stay in the house either. I would get out and not get caught up in the mess otherwise you could find your belongings being repossed in error and this could cause you loads of agrro. If you owe him rent, don't pay it to him just incase this does happen

2007-07-06 05:04:27 · answer #6 · answered by Debs 3 · 1 0

Not good.

I would look for another property ASAP. If he doesn't care about serious CCjs and court orders and possible bancuptcy, he doesn't care about your deposit!

2007-07-06 04:28:07 · answer #7 · answered by Marky 6 · 0 0

fedest.com, questions and answers