Sitting Tenants

Many landlords and investors confuse a Regulated and a Sitting  with a tenant on an AST. To find out more about what the definition of a sitting or regulated tenant then please read the information definition of Sitting Tenant
If want to sell a property with a Sitting tenant there are a number of problems you will have to overcome before you even consider selling your property. A genuine regulated sitting tenant is one that has been in the property for many years without a tenancy agreement. This could be a very difficult situation as the process to evict can be extremely long, extremely costly and more than often a very ‘big headache’.

If you have inherited a property and is occupied, and happily pays rent, but will not sign an agreement then it may be worth while trying to negotiate with them. If they want to remain in the property and are happy to pay rent then taking that step to enter into a tenancy agreement really isn’t such a jump. Many cash property buying companies, like ourselves, are happy to take on a property that has a guaranteed rental income per month.

It is highly charged situation when a landlord is owed rent or the he/she wants their property back and even more explosive when you have a tenant who is represented by solicitor.

Under the Protection of Eviction Act 1977 – the landlord may have deemed to cause harassment if they

Interfere with the the peace or comfort of the resident or members of the household.

Or

The landlord withholds services required by the resident at the household

So as a Landlord do not:

• Change the locks
• Board any entrances
• Board any windows
• Stop utilities like electric and water to the property
• Enter the building without notice
• Get verbally or physically abusive with the tenant
• Throw them out physically

This is inevitably jeopardise the time taken to remove the tenant and it is a criminal conviction if you remove a tenant without a court order.

There are some routes to resolving the situation.

Negotiate with the tenant

Approach with reason, tell them how you feel and find out what the real issues are. If the situation is acrimonious then use a third a party. Use a third party that has a good idea of what to do and history of resolving landlord/tenant problems. They charge significantly less than solicitors. Complete the form here and someone will call you from our office.

You can remove the tenant yourself – If you are not using an agent.

There are plenty of instructions on the internet of how to legally remove a tenant, but invariably administrative errors show up at a court hearing and the judge will ask to reschedule the hearing at extra cost and also loss of rental.

The tenant on the day of hearing may have legal representation and  argue that there are maintenance issues at the property, and that’s why the rent has not been paid. So it’s always a good idea to have a third party, such as a letting agent, visit the property and take pictures.

Many landlords fail to issue notices correctly before issuing proceedings and ensure the serve the correct form of notice on the tenant.

Use a Solicitor to help you to evict the tenant.

This is probably the best way of ensuring you take possession, but ensure they specialise in property evictions. Many solicitors charge ‘an arm and a leg’ for their services. They do sometimes get it wrong.