4 ms·

Ah, letting agents. I got evicted from a property years ago because they did a surprise inspection while I was out (which is, of course, totally illegal), and

Ah, letting agents. I got evicted from a property years ago because they did a surprise inspection while I was out (which is, of course, totally illegal), and decided they'd found "mountains of cocaine" on the kitchen counters. It was fucking Ajax kitchen cleaning powder. Still, they didn't care. The police (who they contacted) thought it was laughable, but couldn't do anything about the fact they were evicting me.

cpfohl 12y ago
What state did you live in? You've got tenant rights, and one of them is almost certainly "You can't be evicted for cleaning your apartment." Just a wild guess.
- madaxe_again 12y ago
  The fine state of County Durham. As a tenant - a student tenant, no less - your rights are virtually squat.
  - gambiting 12y ago
    That is absolutely not true. Having rented properties in the UK I know that letting agencies will treat you like shit. No matter. Contact the property ombudsman, he will sort them out: http://www.tpos.co.uk/ http://www.tpos.co.uk/ Might even recommend going to court over it.
    - switch007 12y ago
      Brit chiming in here. The contempt that estate agents and landlords have for your privacy, well-being and life in general is almost indescribable.
  - lclarkmichalek 12y ago
    Knowing some landlords, the number one thing they complain about is how impossible it is to evict anyone. I really doubt you had any rights.
    - knodi123 12y ago
      was that last sentence the opposite of what you intended to type?
  - omh 12y ago
    In the UK you almost certainly have an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (even if the agent says you don't). This gives you a lot of strong rights which you can use if you know how. In practice the agent or landlord has a lot of leverage but you can often win if you use the law to your advantage. In particular there is a very specific set of steps they have to follow to evict you.
    - madaxe_again 12y ago
      Oh, I'm aware, and I essentially rolled over as I wan't too bothered about having to move, as I was sick to the eye teeth of dealing with them, and the property was barely habitable. Eviction was their threat if I didn't leave of my own volition.
    - switch007 12y ago
      Licenses/contracts are quite popular in place of ASTs in student/shared/bed sit accommodation. Even in housing association properties, you can have a 2 year "trial" period. You only have to lightly scratch below the surface these days to find rights eroded left and right. EDIT: I said "in place of ASTs", but ASTs aren't always appropriate.
      - mikeash 12y ago
        Do such contracts actually make a difference, though? You can put anything you want into a contract, but that doesn't mean it's enforceable. An apartment lease can say, "Tenant waives all renters' rights under the law," but the tenant will still have all rights granted him by law. Is the problem simply that people believe the enforceability of their contracts beyond what is actually true?
        deleted 12y ago
        [deleted]
        switch007 12y ago
        I understand your point about other laws overruling contract law, but for housing (and I admit I haven't read the Housing Act(s)), I believe your rights under those acts are dependent on what kind of agreement is in place and the housing situation.
  - acallaghan 12y ago
    They thought a student had 'mountains of cocaine'? Don't they realise how expensive that stuff is?!
    - mikeash 12y ago
      Of course not. That would require understanding something beyond one's own immediate world.
ctz 12y ago
What did the court say when they applied for a possession order?
- madaxe_again 12y ago
  To be fair, they just gave me my marching orders and said they'd proceed to eviction if I didn't scram - and scram I did, as the place was falling down anyway.
  - mason240 12y ago
    So were not actually evicted.
    - happyscrappy 12y ago
      He also states: "As a tenant - a student tenant, no less - your rights are virtually squat." This is patently false.
  - path411 12y ago
    So, the ol' bluff a college student because they don't know better.
citricsquid 12y ago
For the sake of clarity it's worth noting that in England tenant rights are quite good. For an eviction to take place it must be ordered by the courts and a landlord can only apply to the courts for possession after providing a tenant with 2 months notice. A quick eviction in England takes 3 months, an average eviction is closer to 5 and in some cases it can take much much longer. The only situation in which someone can be evicted with no notice is if they are a lodger (renting a room with a resident landlord), which wouldn't involve letting agents or inspections. The confusion over evictions in England comes from tenants not understanding their rights, a notice to quit (Section 21) is NOT an eviction. A tenant can only be evicted for rent arrears if they have over 2 months rent due (and bringing the arrears under 2 months at any time invalidates any court action), landlords cannot evict if they have not legally protected the tenants deposit and landlords have no rights to enter a tenanted property unless it is an emergency.
- kjjw 12y ago
  And then you'll never be able to rent again. At least through a letting agent, which is how most rentals occur.
  - kjjw 12y ago
    I'd love to know why this is down voted, because it is unequivocally true. Nearly all letting agents (probably all?) in the UK vet potential tenants and will run various forms of check, including credit checks. They will also ask for previous addresses, and if previously renting, will demand a reference from the previous agency and landlord.
    - AlyssaRowan 12y ago
      (Not legal advice.) Someone giving you a bad reference, or refusing to give a reference, because you won a legal case against them is generally the kind of thing that could get another legal case started.
      - vsl 12y ago

cpfohl 12y ago

What state did you live in? You've got tenant rights, and one of them is almost certainly "You can't be evicted for cleaning your apartment." Just a wild guess.

madaxe_again 12y ago
The fine state of County Durham. As a tenant - a student tenant, no less - your rights are virtually squat.
- gambiting 12y ago
  That is absolutely not true. Having rented properties in the UK I know that letting agencies will treat you like shit. No matter. Contact the property ombudsman, he will sort them out: http://www.tpos.co.uk/ http://www.tpos.co.uk/ Might even recommend going to court over it.
  - switch007 12y ago
    Brit chiming in here. The contempt that estate agents and landlords have for your privacy, well-being and life in general is almost indescribable.
- lclarkmichalek 12y ago
  Knowing some landlords, the number one thing they complain about is how impossible it is to evict anyone. I really doubt you had any rights.
  - knodi123 12y ago
    was that last sentence the opposite of what you intended to type?
- omh 12y ago
  In the UK you almost certainly have an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (even if the agent says you don't). This gives you a lot of strong rights which you can use if you know how. In practice the agent or landlord has a lot of leverage but you can often win if you use the law to your advantage. In particular there is a very specific set of steps they have to follow to evict you.
  - madaxe_again 12y ago
    Oh, I'm aware, and I essentially rolled over as I wan't too bothered about having to move, as I was sick to the eye teeth of dealing with them, and the property was barely habitable. Eviction was their threat if I didn't leave of my own volition.
  - switch007 12y ago
    Licenses/contracts are quite popular in place of ASTs in student/shared/bed sit accommodation. Even in housing association properties, you can have a 2 year "trial" period. You only have to lightly scratch below the surface these days to find rights eroded left and right. EDIT: I said "in place of ASTs", but ASTs aren't always appropriate.
    - mikeash 12y ago
      Do such contracts actually make a difference, though? You can put anything you want into a contract, but that doesn't mean it's enforceable. An apartment lease can say, "Tenant waives all renters' rights under the law," but the tenant will still have all rights granted him by law. Is the problem simply that people believe the enforceability of their contracts beyond what is actually true?
      - deleted 12y ago
        [deleted]
      - switch007 12y ago
        I understand your point about other laws overruling contract law, but for housing (and I admit I haven't read the Housing Act(s)), I believe your rights under those acts are dependent on what kind of agreement is in place and the housing situation.
- acallaghan 12y ago
  They thought a student had 'mountains of cocaine'? Don't they realise how expensive that stuff is?!
  - mikeash 12y ago
    Of course not. That would require understanding something beyond one's own immediate world.

ctz 12y ago

What did the court say when they applied for a possession order?

madaxe_again 12y ago
To be fair, they just gave me my marching orders and said they'd proceed to eviction if I didn't scram - and scram I did, as the place was falling down anyway.
- mason240 12y ago
  So were not actually evicted.
  - happyscrappy 12y ago
    He also states: "As a tenant - a student tenant, no less - your rights are virtually squat." This is patently false.
- path411 12y ago
  So, the ol' bluff a college student because they don't know better.

citricsquid 12y ago

For the sake of clarity it's worth noting that in England tenant rights are quite good. For an eviction to take place it must be ordered by the courts and a landlord can only apply to the courts for possession after providing a tenant with 2 months notice. A quick eviction in England takes 3 months, an average eviction is closer to 5 and in some cases it can take much much longer. The only situation in which someone can be evicted with no notice is if they are a lodger (renting a room with a resident landlord), which wouldn't involve letting agents or inspections. The confusion over evictions in England comes from tenants not understanding their rights, a notice to quit (Section 21) is NOT an eviction. A tenant can only be evicted for rent arrears if they have over 2 months rent due (and bringing the arrears under 2 months at any time invalidates any court action), landlords cannot evict if they have not legally protected the tenants deposit and landlords have no rights to enter a tenanted property unless it is an emergency.

kjjw 12y ago
And then you'll never be able to rent again. At least through a letting agent, which is how most rentals occur.
- kjjw 12y ago
  I'd love to know why this is down voted, because it is unequivocally true. Nearly all letting agents (probably all?) in the UK vet potential tenants and will run various forms of check, including credit checks. They will also ask for previous addresses, and if previously renting, will demand a reference from the previous agency and landlord.
  - AlyssaRowan 12y ago
    (Not legal advice.) Someone giving you a bad reference, or refusing to give a reference, because you won a legal case against them is generally the kind of thing that could get another legal case started.
    - vsl 12y ago