3 ms·

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.
      • omh 12y ago
        My understanding was that, roughly, if you pay a regular payment as rent for a property then you have an AST - whether the contract says so or not. This is mainly in the context of house/flat rentals though; I realise that perhaps per-room rentals may have special cases.
  • 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.