Complicated Situation with Two Letting Properties and Tenants

[Communist99]

I will try to be as brief and succinct as possible as it is a very complicated situation.
Apr 2009 - Apr 2010 we allowed a letting agent to find tenants. We will call this letting agent 1 (LA1). We had issues with late payment and bouncing cheques but eventually everything was paid in full. We continued and signed a new contract for April 2010 - April 2011. After a couple of months of non-payment and bounced cheques we went directly to the tenants. They informed us of another letting agent involved. We will call them ARC.
We then put the pieces together and realised LA1 had a contract with ARC, and ARC had a contract with the actual occupants.
We chased LA1 for money but to no avail. We chased ARC for money and they said they will no longer pay LA1 as there was some breach of the government protected deposit scheme and will pay us directly.
After months and months of chasing ARC and them promising to pay us but making up innumerable excuses they have not paid us.
We found out about ARC in August 2010 and have been in dialogue with them as much as possible (when we have been able to find the manager who is as elusive as the Higgs boson).
ARC have said they have paid LA1 up to the end of September 2010 but will now pay us( the landlord) henceforth. They also wanted to create a new contract directly with me which I reluctantly agreed to. However, no sign of a contract appeared and every time I questioned them about it they made up excuses saying that they will draw one up.
I do not know the occupants' names. I am sure there are two of them. ARC have basically rented out our property with no contract between us and them and a number of month of rent are still owing, 8 in total since Oct 2010 to present.

What is my best course of action now as I have found out that ARC no longer exists as an organisation?

I want the occupants out. I tried to work out an amicable option with ARC but having dealt with them for 1 and a half years now I know they are as crooked as they come, and then some. What are my rights and what notices do I have to issue to the occupants and/or ARC?

I am due to meet the guy who was in charge of ARC along with the occupants tonight in a few hours at the property address in question.

If there is anything else I should know that I haven't addressed then please do let me know.

Thank you in advance

[theartfullodger]

Do you have copies of all tenancy agreements, inventories, deposits taken, rent paid to agents (any & all agents..)???


The contract, the tenancy, if between you & tenant.. the agent(s) should be just that, agents of landlord..

I'm confused as to how ARC got involved.. are you saying LA1 decided to engage ARC to do the work, without your prior agreement - without there being any contractual relationship between you & ARC???

When was the last new/renewed tenancy agreement started (date..) and how long was the initial fixed term of this last agreement..

This is in England??

La lotta continua

[Communist99]

I have copies of two tenancy agreements.
These were drawn up by LA1. From Apr 2009- Apr 2010 and the second one from Apr 2010 - Apr 2011.
Yes, LA1 got ARC involved, unbeknownst to me, in order to find tenants. This was without my agreement, without my knowledge, and of course without my approval. There was no contractual arrangement between me (the landlord) and ARC.

I'm not too clued up on all the technical jargon as I am pretty new to this stuff. It was a shorthold agreement for 1 year originally (Apr 2009-Apr 2010) with a second shorthold agreement from Apr 2010 - Apr 2011). There are no other contracts which have been signed by me. So the initial fixed term was one year, and another one year contract after that.

Yes, this is in England; Birmingham.

[theartfullodger]

Have either agents served s21 notices & do you have copies? Was there a deposit, was it protected & has "prescribed info" served on tenant?

[Communist99]

There are no S21 notices that I am aware of.
I was informed there was a deposit but I never received it. To the best of my knowledge LA1 kept that deposit and never returned it. They informed ARC that they (LA1) were the landlords. I was also told by ARC it was not put in a safety deposit scheme, so that deposit is essentially lost.
I don't know what is meant by prescribed info.
I have just spoken to a family member who is helping me out. He says there is currently only one tenant to the best of his knowledge. I don't know if that is helpful or not to my situation.
ARC has not served any s21 notices to my knowledge and neither have I.

Would it be best to serve them with an S21 notice today? The wait period on such a thing is two months but if something can be resolved today then perhaps he may move out sooner?

What is the best course of action for the missing 8 months of rent?

[westminster]

You need to get professional legal advice, from a specialist in landlord and tenant law. This situation is too complex to address on a forum; you need someone to look over all the documentation and talk it through with you. From the sound of it, whoever is occupying the property may not be your tenant, so you cannot take action to evict the occupier.

Do not rely on guidance from a family member. I would recommend that the first step is to find a public access barrister, because you are more likely to get correct guidance from a barrister than a solicitor. You may also need to litigate, in which case a barrister is what you need to help with that. Whoever you approach will also be honest and direct about whether they are the right person to help you or not. See http://www.barcouncil.org.uk/about/f...ess-directory/

In future, do not place matters entirely in the hands of a letting agent, particularly an agent who is not a member of a professional body such as ARLA, and just think it'll all be okay. Anyone can set up as an agent, with no qualifications - anyone. You need to do serious research into the legalities of being a landlord.