if repairs have not been done for 6 months including no working bath taps for 6 months can i with hold my rent

Question

i have been in contact with the estate agents who rent my property to me repeatably each time with a different excuse as to why they can not repair my bath taps. Each excuse clashes with the previous excuse or they make an appointment & i book time off work and no one shows. so for six months i have been filling my bath with water from the sink taps! Can i withhold my rent until repairs are made?

Answer 1

This following is from shelter charity.

You do not have the right to withhold the rent if you do the landlord might try to evict you rather than do the work. It is not recommended but if you do stop paying rent, keep the rent money in a separate bank account. This will ensure that you can pay off the arrears immediately if you have to.

Most tenants can be evicted if rent arrears build up, regardless of why the rent arrears exist. Though if you are a regulated tenants and assured tenants who owe less than eight weeks' rent the courts will only evict you if the judge thinks it is reasonable to do so. In addition it may be possible to 'counterclaim' against the landlord for her/his breach of their repairing obligations

If you have an assured shorthold tenancy or are an occupier with basic protection or an excluded occupier you can be evicted much more easily. If you have limited rights and the repairs are not essential, it may be better to live with things as they are.

Contact them or CAB if in any doubt as to what to do

Answer 2

YES

you can withhold payment, mainly under the fact that breach of contract has already taken place by the failure to repair the issue with the bath.

your withholding rent (in a safe place as above) will only be a reaction to the prima facie of their breach.

they wouldn't get an eviction order if you wrote them saying why the rent is withheld and that payment in full would be immediate upon repair. they wouldn't get any old soap pass the courts if you could prove you have set the money aside and are able to pay immediately, subject to repair.

if you are kicked out you'll have a nice deposit already saved up for your next place, cos I'd imagine getting your deposit back will be as hard if not worse than getting the repair carried out.

alternatively on a democratic footing, tell them you will get the repair done yourself and deduct it from the rent unless they fix it immdeiately, word the letter as such that non-response can be taken as agreement, and allow 28 days for response, then at 14 days do the same. letter allowing 14 days reminding them of the first letter, at 28 days write to thank them for agreeing and go ahead as described. all mail needs to be sent recorded.registered for proof of receipt by them.

email will work just as well if you can prove receipt of email,

CRO xx

Answer 3

You can't withhold your rent. That would breach your tenancy and give the landlord the opportunity to evict you.

Write a letter to the agent reminding him of the problem. Give notice that if satisfactory repairs have not been carried out within 14 days, you will arrange the repairs yourself and deduct the cost from the rent. If they miss the deadline, you can get things fixed the way you'd like them fixed - but keep all the estimates and bills.

Answer 4

Get the work done and send your landlord the bill! I live in a council house and had a problem with my sink and they told me that it couldn't be done within two weeks, so I was advised to put a bucket there and keep emptying it! I am disabled, and just recuperating from having a new knee and hip so there was no way I could lug buckets around. I got a plumber in and explained the situation to him. He was perfectly happy for his bill to be sent to the council, but I did tell him if they didn't pay to come back and I would. He rang me 8 days later to say the council had sent him a cheque!

Answer 5

First of all any complaint needs to be in writing to be valid in court if it comes to that. List and itemize each problem in detail along with any previous notice given even it was verbal. The landlord or agent knows the law and they realize that you probably have no idea as to your rights so they will push you to the limit. Also be sure to keep an exact copy of any and all complaints and be sure they are dated and signed by both parties if at all possible. As an alternative to having them sign the document if you are presenting it in person, send it certified mail. To cover yourself don't just withhold the rent payments but you can open an escrow account at a local bank (speak to a bank representative for advice in that area) and make timely deposits to cover your rental payments. Give them written notice of your intent to make your rent deposits in an escrow account along with proof of the escrow deposits and written notice of your intent to deposit any and all future rent payments into the escrow account until repairs in question have been made to your satisfaction. You can also notify them in writing of your intent to have the repairs done and pay for them with funds from the escrow account unless they are completed in a timely manner and also state that their failure to do so (within 30 days for instance) implies agreement on their part for you to proceed with having the repairs made from the escrow fund. When you present them with the written documents just watch how fast they move. They will think you have had expert legal advice and are preparing a court case. Landlords and their agents hate going to court especially if they know they are going to lose the case. One important thing is to be professional about it and don't just make idle threats. Do exactly as you say you are going to do. Watch their whole attitude change as they realize they have pushed you to the limit. You may also want to consult with your local tenants rights organization or advocate for their advice just as an added measure. (there are such groups in all cities or counties and it's free). As a last resort...... lawyer up!

Answer 6

I had a friend who could not get her land lord to fix any thing. So she went to the local court house and asked what she could do about it. They told her to put all her rent money into an account - through the court system (I can't remember what the account is called) and just keep paying the rent to that account until the land lord fixes the problem and then and only then could he get his money. It was not long after that her land lord fixed every thing. Because he knew he couldn't kick her out because she WAS paying her rent and he knew that he would not see a dime of it until he fix her place.

Answer 7

I would'nt withhold the rent,you should put your complaint in writing and send it to estate agency, try and find out who owns the property and write to them aswell. Withholding the rent only gives them an excuse to get you out of the property for breaking the contract.

Answer 8

Its never a good idea to with hold rent because of disrepair

What you could do is inform the letting agents...in writing....that if the work is not completed within say 3 days you will be employing someone to do it and would they prefer the invoice sent direct to them or for you to pay it out of the rent.

Another alternative....but slower one...is to contact enviroment health at your local authority...they will sort it

Answer 9

i would stop paying your rent and also ask for some money back from them because they arent keeping to there agreement which you made when you started renting the property, also i wouldnt be to bothered about eviction because they know no one else would live in a house with no bath taps , cut off there money and they will flap and fix it because thats all they care about , MONEY
plus maybe i would go and get advice and sue the esttate agents and find somewere better to live , tenants have rights and it sounds like they have taken yours away from you.

Answer 10

Maybe. Did you give your landlord written notice? If you haven't, you must give at least 30 days BEFORE you can withhold rent.
If you live in either Arkansas or Mississippi, you may not withhold rent for ANY reason.