Category: Landlord Advice and help

  • Former footballer Robbie Keane and his wife Claudine win £300K court fight against tenant

    Ex-Premier League footballer Robbie Keane and his wife Claudine have succeeded in a possession claim at the Central London County Court to evict Sandi St Paul and David Lawrence from their Hertfordshire home, worth approx. £3.8m, after Ms St Paul and Mr Lawrence stopped paying the £8,000-a-month rent.

    The Keanes told Central London County Court that there were rent arrears of nearly £300,000.

    The court heard that Mr Lawrence had countersued the Keanes in a bid to offset the rent arrears against alleged failures by the Keanes to make repairs to the property, including a faulty entrance buzzer and to the underfloor heating system however, the judge dismissed the counterclaim due to lack of evidence supporting it and said both defendants had failed to engage with the owners of the house to ‘allow access to assess disrepair’.

     

    The Judge ordered possession of the property and £292,192 in rent arrears, plus £70,000 towards legal fees.

    The Keanes will so be entitled to a further £263.01 for every day after June 20 if the Keanes are not given possession of their property.

     

    Suffering a dispute can have serious implications on you and your livelihood.  Our litigation solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in the litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

  • What is the Renters’ Reform Bill?

    What is the Renters’ Reform Bill?

    The Renters’ (Reform) Bill has been introduced to Parliament in order to abolish section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions.

    Tenants will also be given the legal right to request a pet in their home, which the landlord must consider and cannot unreasonably refuse. Landlords will be able to require pet insurance to cover any damage to their property.

    The government also wants to make it illegal for landlords to have blanket bans on renting to tenants in receipt of benefits or with children to ensure no family is discriminated against when looking for a place to live.

    The government said that the new Bill also protects landlords, making it easier for them to recover properties when they need to so they can sell their property if they want to, or when tenants does not pay rent.

    Notice periods will also be reduced where tenants have been irresponsible e.g breaching their tenancy agreement or causing damage to the property.

    The reforms will also strengthen powers to evict anti-social tenants, broadening the disruptive and harmful activities that can lead to eviction and making it quicker to evict a tenant acting anti-socially.

    It also plans to reform the courts process to cut delays, which is a particular concern for landlords when Section 21 ends.

    Suffering a dispute can have serious implications on you and your livelihood.  Our litigation solicitors helps both tenants and landlords and will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in the litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

  • Landlord possesions claims increased 160% from April to June 2022

    According to figures published by the Ministry of Justice for the period April to June 2022 landlord possession claims have increased 160% from 6,997 to 18,201.

    There has been a significant increase in section 21 evictions, the so-called “no fault” possession claim compared to figures taken in 2019. This could be influenced by previous government proposals to abolish section 21 at an undetermined future point.

    With the recession coupled with the cost of living crisis it might mean that tenants may not be able to keep with their rent payments which may see a further increase in possession claims being made.

    As landlord, you have the right to evict a tenant and take back possession of your property if they fail to pay rent or violate their tenancy agreement, or in the event that you simply want to take back the property without any fault by the tenant.

    Our solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call John Porter or Shalish Mehta on 0161 624 6811or email jap@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.