A tenant lawyer is a tenant advocate who can provide information and consultation with tenants and landlords in the event of an eviction, subletting issues, repairs to be made on the rented property, as well as negotiating new leases.
Landlords are allowed to evict their tenant immediately without going through any legal procedures when the tenant has been guilty of illegal activities such as:
* Drug use or distribution inside the property;
* Selling drugs out of the premises which may attract undesirable clientele;
* Installing any equipment without prior consent from the landlord;
* Illegal activities that pose a threat to other people outside the premises.
However, it is important for landlords to keep records of all these occurrences during tenancy so that they can serve the tenant with a notice to vacate the property in future.
Finding a tenant lawyer can be done online. It is best to locate a tenant lawyer who is well versed and focused on lease renewal issues, especially those relating to repairs, since legal requirements on repair obligations vary from state to state. TenantLawFinder provides suggestions for tenant-friendly attorneys in different locations within the UK, which includes London, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool or Glasgow. They provide useful advice about tenant rights and responsibilities that may help landlords avoid bad tenants as well as catch slumlords.
A tenant-right council provides information about rules of tenancy that applies to all types of tenancies, not just assured shorthold tenancies.
Brief details about tenant and landlord rights in the UK:
What are tenant’s rights?
Tenants have the security of tenure, which means they cannot be evicted without going through legal procedures. Tenants also have the right to exclusive possession except where the landlord needs access to the property for repairs or carrying out any other activity that is permitted by a tenant in the agreement. If the tenant refuses access, the landlord can apply for an injunction from court barring tenants from preventing them from accessing their own property. The only time when a tenant can be evicted immediately is if the tenant has been carrying out illegal activities such as drug dealing or using drugs on-premise, which may attract undesirable clientele as well as being a serious health risk to children and elderly people living in the surrounding area.
Tenants also have the right to live in a property that is safe and secure with all facilities provided as well as being free of damp, noise disturbances from neighbouring properties and tenant cannot be locked out by landlords for any reason except when the tenant has breached tenant’s obligations like not paying rent on time or causing damage to landlord’s property.
What are landlord’s rights?
Landlords can evict tenants only if the tenant has breached the tenant’s obligations, like not paying rent on time or damaging the landlord’s property. In the UK, a landlord has to give tenants sufficient Notice before applying for an eviction order. They may issue a Notice seeking possession which requires the tenant to vacate the premises within 14 days. Otherwise, they will be evicted by bailiffs coming premises. In the case of tenant’s non-compliance with tenant obligations, the landlord can apply for a court order that would require the tenant to vacate the property within 28 days.
Landlords are required to give details of any change in the landlord’s circumstances before the tenant enters into a tenancy agreement that could be material such as bankruptcy or bankruptcy notification from HMRC prior to the tenant moving into premises.
A brief outline about how the eviction process works:
The notice period will depend on state and ground for evictions:
If the tenant doesn’t pay rent on time, they will usually get a 14-day notice which allows them three days to pay rent after receiving the Notice or vacate premises without paying further rent. If the tenant remains in possession beyond seven days, the landlord can apply for an eviction order from the court.
Tenant breaks tenant obligations like causing damage to landlord’s property and tenant is unwilling to rectify tenant breaches can be evicted immediately by applying for a court order within 14 days of tenant breaching tenant obligations.
Landlords may also apply for an eviction order if the tenant commits anti-social behaviour which none of the other tenants is willing to tolerate, and it has caused disruption or annoyance in surrounding areas. Anti-Social behaviour includes fighting, making excessive noise, using drugs on-premise and selling drugs openly in common areas.
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