Daughter 2 is in a part furnished flat in Birmingham and has now found a house, no significant chain, she has the mortgage, survey etc etc and it is all green lights. Buyer is keen to move as well.
The contract for the flat she is in stipulates 1 calendar month notice. She is really close to knowing exchange/completion dates but won't know till next week. She cant' afford to not have somewhere so cannot give notice till the dates are set.
So assuming they are set next week for, say, end Oct she will apparently have to pay right through till end November for the flat. Is that normal, and is there any way around it? (Short of simply moving out and not paying!). I realise she has signed the contract so probably has no alternative.
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How long from exchange to completion?
A week or so's overlap could be used for decoration and a gradual move?
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Daughter has some input into completion date, so she can push it back to take account of her rental agreement circumstances.
Not all landlords are swines, he/she may be more flexible if, say, daughter agrees to prospective new tenants having a look around while she's still resident.
So the answer, as Tony Blair didn't say, is negotiate, negotiate, negotiate.
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A months notice is not unreasonable. She will have to time it well it or lump it.
If there was a deposit, she will have to try and get that back. Thats always a struggle.
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>>So assuming they are set next week for, say, end Oct she will apparently have to pay right through till end November for the flat.
Is this really true?
If notice really is one calendar month then could she give notice on Monday 4th Oct and move out on 4th November?
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Well, in a way she is lucky because many are now insisting on 2 months notice, which really can make life difficult for tenants wishing to move on.
I think a reasonable landlord would let her leave whenever she wants, and only charge her rent until such time as the property is let to a new tenant. The outcome, of course, is likely to depend on how long she has lived there.
Ask her to speak to her landlord as soon as possible.
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>>If there was a deposit, she will have to try and get that back. Thats always a struggle.
If a deposit was taken it's more than likely being held by a third party, and return of this shouldn't be a problem.
Ye of little faith...
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She's been there over a year and been a good tenant, always paid on time etc.
The calendar month notice is literally that - give your notice in on 3 Oct and you have to pay to end Nov. I did call the letting agents to confirm that, as I couldn't believe it! Their attitude was that it was in the contract she signed, so that's that - can't really fault them there!
The new house needs little doing to it and she is keen to be in asap - I did tell her to push out completion to near end Nov but I remember getting my 1st house and how keen I was ti get into it (plus heating etc bills seem extortionate in her flat - old cold place).
She is anticipating a short period (if she wants it) from exchange to completion. I doubt stretching it would jeopardise the deal, and I suppose it may be that if the sellers want to move faster then they will "help" with the flat rental. And of course the Bank of Mum and Dad is always open for business...
Hadn't thought about the deposit - maybe she's forgotten about that too, and it would fund any overlap. Will suggest that to her, and may also negotiate on her behalf once dates are more clear.
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>>give your notice in on 3 Oct and you have to pay to end Nov.
Surely not. Notice given on 3 October and you pay to 3 November.
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>> Surely not. Notice given on 3 October and you pay to 3 November.
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"calendar" month means a full "calendar" month.
It is not same as 28/29/30/31 days, or 4 weeks, etc. which can start from any day of the month.
"She cant' afford to not have somewhere so cannot give notice till the dates are set."
Hence she has to pay the price.
Last edited by: John H on Fri 1 Oct 10 at 14:35
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..."calendar" month means a full "calendar" month.
It is not same as 28/29/30/31 days, or 4 weeks, etc. which can start from any day of the month...
I never knew that.
You might as well say the notice is until the end of the following month, which could be anything from about five weeks to eight or more.
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>>full "calendar" month
I stand corrected, although it's a new one on me. But I would still suggest making contact with the landlord (his address should be in the agreement) particularly in view of your daughters good record during her year as a tenant. And, of course, the landlord may be happy to negotiate an earlier return of the keys than would otherwise be necessary.
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I wasn't aware of the calendar month thing either...sounded a bit of a sharp practice to me, hence my question. But it seems it may be the norm. She's prepared to pay overlapping rent/mortgage, just reluctant if she didn't have to. I'll let her negotiate - the female of the species has a couple of advantages the male doesn't have in his armament!!
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Presumably you are now in a periodic tenancy (monthly, being after the end of the initial 6 month/year fixed term) therefore a month's notice has to be given, and the month is up on the rent date.
www.landlordzone.co.uk/notice_to_quit.htm
So no it's not smart practice, it's the law.
That said, the Landlord might be prepared to be flexible.
Otherwise... daughter can give notice, and then NOT MOVE OUT on the date her house completes. If landlord knows his stuff (very unlikely) he can demand twice the rent from her following the intended departure date.
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Flat rental contracts - getting out of... - Bromptonaut
