Housing charity discovers almost a third of agencies were charging renters more than £400 to set up a tenancy, in addition to the deposit and rent upfront Shelter is calling for a ban on "out of control" letting agent fees that are forcing millions of tenants into debt The housing and homelessness charity says letting agents frequently demand hefty upfront sums to set up a tenancy, on top of the deposit and rent, with the average amount being £350 According to the mystery shopping exercise carried out by the charity among 58 letting agencies across England, almost a third were charging tenants more than £400 to set up a tenancy, with seven charging in excess of £700. This is in addition to the separate sum charged to the landlord by agents to find tenants and set up agreements on their behalf. Alongside the rising cost of rent, upfront fees are putting additional pressure on tenants' finances with a quarter having to borrow money to pay them in the past three years, while one in six had to cut down on food or heating to meet the costs, Shelter found. The charity wants agencies to be barred from charging "administration" and "holding" fees, "check-in" fees, or for credit checks. In some cases, these fees are non-refundable, even if the agreement falls through and the tenant is unable to move into the property. The Office of Fair Trading recently found that of 4,000 complaints made by tenants and landlords to Consumer Direct about lettings agents, a third related to fees and additional charges. It found that landlords and tenants are being "drip-fed" extra charges after signing a contract. Campbell Robb, chief executive of Shelter, said: "Letting agency fees have become truly out of control. When renters have to find hundreds of pounds in fees each time they move – on top of deposits and rent in advance – it's not surprising that fees are causing real financial hardship and, in some cases, preventing people from moving at all. http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2013/jun/12/lettings-agent-fees-out-of-control-shelter

I lived in a house for 5 years and the contract ran out in September 2012. I was in the process of buying a property, so came to an agreement with my landlady to extend my contract by one month. Each year the letting agent had charged a yearly renewal fee, but even though the contract extension was for only one month, they still wanted the entire fee of £156. As far as i'm aware, by signing the contract, i was agreeing to their terms and also the fee. So I decided not to sign. The deposit was paid back in December, minus an agreed amount with the landlady, but due to the house move, a new baby and a new joint bank account, i've only just got round to checking it. It was short and having phoned the estate agent, it turns out they've deducted the 'owed fee' from the deposit before returning it. So it's actually £156 short. The letting agent in question is well established and also part of the tenancy deposit scheme. It's my understanding that they have no right to directly access the money from my deposit and as i never actually signed the contract extension, no right to charge me £156. Obviously, i may be wrong, so was hoping for some advice on where i actually stand with this?

I have been renting a property since February 5th 2013. On February 8th I complained to the Letting Agent about the heating not being sufficient in the property, I was fobbed off saying that 'everything has been checked' and 'no previous tenants had this problem' although they were supposed to have replaced the heating system before I moved in, which I have since found out they haven't done. After numerous emails over the last couple of months nothing has been done. Now recently in the last couple of weeks we have discovered rats living in the wall cavities and under the floors (due to a leak we had with the shower) now when the plumber came for the shower issue he said that more than likely they have chewed through the heating pipes hence the lack of heat. It has taken them 3 weeks since my complaint (although the downstairs tenant complained 8 weeks ago about the rats) for pest control to come out and the plumber who was supposed to come with them still hasn't returned. I am unsure of what right I have and what to do, due to the lack of help from the Letting agent. I feel like everytime I contact him I just get 'fobbed' off. Any advice please?

Hi, I need some advice as I am unsure of my position at the moment. Oct 2012 I found a property to rent through a local letting agents, I paid £300.00 in fees. I applied for the Council bond scheme which had no end of issues with it, fast forward too today it is now all sorted. I am now at the point of signing the AST, however a recent inspection of the property has found both white and black mold all over the place, the wall are not just damp but soaking wet, and the damp proof that was supposed to have been done, wasn't. When I viewed the property in Oct 2012 none of this was evident, and without stripping wallpaper there was no evidence of damp and/or mold issues. At the moment the property is uninhabitable, my partner has serve asthma that a temp drop can set off an attack, it can also affect my health seriously. The Landlord is not refusing to get it sorted but is very apathetic about the whole property. I have found another property that is in better condition etc and tempted to take it, but my question is what can I do to recover the £300.00 in fees I have paid as this is no small amount as I am unemployed after ill health and struggling to find a Job. The fees where to paid for one credit reference on me, drawing up a tenancy, and guarantor paperwork and reference. I have also refused to sign the AST until the issues are either sorted or I get my fees back bar a reasonable charge for the above items.

Hello I'm new to this forum so please bear with me, My daughter has recently moved into a property and now the landlord is selling up so she needs to find a decent house near her daughters school and nursery fairly quickly,she has found a house she likes and has paid a holding fee of £150 which the agents said will be refunded if she's unsuccessful(verbal not written down) my husband and I lent her this money and have agreed to lend her an additional £200 to make up the deposit she needs and act as guarantors for the rent. The agents in question have now said another couple who are employed are interested and its up to the landlord who he chooses, she is a single parent on benefits so we are guessing the landlord will choose the couple. My concerns are A. the agent shouldn't have taken her money in the first place if they weren't actually holding the property for her and B. What if they don't pay it back? We only have modest savings and cant afford to lose that money or lend her anymore if it isn't returned so she could end up homeless or in some dump. So my question is what do we do next and how long do we wait until we complain? I just have a bad feeling shes just been ripped off and in turn it will be us as it was our money, and don't know what to do for the best.

Hiya, I'll briefly explain the situation here and just wondering where I stand with it all really. * Started 6 month AST in april 2012 and has now become a periodic tenancy * Reported rat and damp problems at the end of last year * Reported to environmental health as issues were not being dealt with * Rat problems fixed and damp report done and sent to landlord * Environmental health chased again as damp problem was not being dealt with * Letting agent has come back to me this week saying to fix the damp I will need to move out of the property for a month whilst they fix the issues, as the property will become unhabitable during that period. I have no issues with being away from the property for a month (as i can move in with someone temporarily) but just trying to see if i can technically/legally claim for anything for this as it is not my fault the property is in a bad state and the repairs need doing. Can i claim for moving/storage costs whilst work is going on? I will be able to leave some things in the property but not everything whilst work is being carried out Can i claim for say water/gas/electic bills whilst not in the property? Would they have to do another inventory once I move back in? Can they insist I sign another tenancy agreement or should I be able to still continue using my periodic tenancy? Any help or assistance with this would be much appreciated. Regards, Ziderman

Good Morning I have a letting agent who was managing my flat on a 6 month shorthold tenancy, my tenants moved out after the 7 months and I have now since moved back in. I have asked my agent to claim for a carpet because the tenants moved in a kitten without permission. The pets I presume destroyed the bedroom carpet which was only 6 months old when they moved in. I have also claimed for destroying a large wardrobe left broken and dismantled and one week’s rent owing. My agent asked me to bring in any evidence so I took photographs and took them to his office he then said he would deal with it for me and contact the tenants. Now here we are one month later and I have had a letter from him asking me to open a free account with deposit protection.com, so he can transfer the deposit to me and then he has asked me to pay him £25 per hour to deal with it. Now I am really confused why would I want to do this when I know longer rent out my flat??? ( Please Advise) Right from the start the agent has been really bad he has never kept me informed of any of the little extra he has taken like boiler knobs that got broke n (boiler one year old and under guarantee) I was charged £50 for a plumber to come in and pull one knob off and push it on to the one control needed most. When I came back into the flat, I went up my local plumber supply and bought new ones a full set for £10.It then took me all of 3 minutes to fix them on the boiler. I was also charged another £50 to screw a door handle on (upside down) that had come loose and fit a fire alarm which I have since found out I did not have to have an alarm. I would have fixed one myself if the tenants had asked me for one. Again none of this was I informed of. All throughout the tenancy I was informed of nothing. I was also told that any rent arrears where covered with the management fee. Which is also a lie or I would have the one week’s rent owed by now? I was also given no notice of tenants moving out so could not make any plans with the flat in advance. When I noticed the cat I told the tenants I could not let them have him has I have a allergic reaction to them and prefer no animals. They then told me that the agent said they could have them before they moved in and that he had asked me and I said yes. Again the agent had said nothing to me I then spoke to the tenants and said they could keep the cat providing they had the carpets professionally cleaned when they moved out and paid a pet deposit to the agent. I then spoke to the agent to let him know what I had agreed. Phoning him back a month later he told me he had taken the deposit for the one cat (three months later they moved in a second kitten without permission which I believe may have done the damage to the carpets ) I have asked for the checkout report from them also and still nothing from them I now am beginning to wonder if they ever did one?? I am not being greedy with my claim I did have the carpet professionally cleaned but the urine smells was still there. I have since replaced the carpet with a much cheaper one and only charged for the new carpet not for the cleaning I paid for. I was so glad to get my flat back I have since decided that letting is not for me but I am shocked to see that the agent despite keeping me informed about Zero!! Is he trying to pass the buck on to me? Can you please advise me what to do because I do not have a clue which is why I took on a full managing agent in the first place and did not try to let it out myself? I lived in the unfinished flat upstairs and decided to let my flat out to help pay for materials to complete the one upstairs I was always nice to the tenants and always asked them to come to me if they had any problems . I am excellent at DIY and any job that was done I could have done 100% better. Any advice on this on where I may stand with this matter would be so helpful to me I am hopeless at paperwork and civil matters Lorraine

Hi everyone! I would be grateful if I could have some advice on my current tenancy problem as follows: We moved into our current property in March 2011 and paid a deposit of £800 to the landlord which was paid into the DPS scheme - we had some issues with the letting agent at that time and they eventually chose to back out leaving the landlord and ourselves to arrange the tenancy without their input (beyond doing the initial inspection). We are now coming to leave the property and have logged into the DPS website to 'Request Repayment' as we've done in previous tenancies but this apparently isn't an option for us. It turns out the problem letting agent has replaced the 'Tenant's Email Address and Contact Number' with her own and therefore has full control over whether or not we can reclaim the deposit. Furthermore the Repayment ID she supplied in her email copy of our deposit certificate is invalid as it seems she has deleted a digit before forwarding it on to us. We have not had any contact with the agent since she backed out in March 2011 and due to the problems at that time think she will be difficult about allowing our deposit back (she has already said she wants our bank details/forwarding address before she'll even consider allowing repayment). So I wondered: Is it legal for her to change our contact details to hers and retain control of our money? (I didn't know if it was illegal/falsification of details) If so do we have any legal right to demand our details be changed back? Thank you for your help in advance Lola

Hi All I signed up as I have a question regarding my attempt to surrender my tenancy after 4 months of signing a renewal. I have personal reasons for wanting to leave which do not effect the problem I have. It is a genuine reason I have been at the property for over two years (this is my third renewal). I would rather keep the reason to myself as I do not want to be identified just incase the letting agent may read these forums. I understand that a surrender is a mutual agreement between landlord and tenant to release me from the tenancy agreement. I fully understand I am liable for the rent etc. There are no break clauses in the contract. Here is my issue. The lady I spoke with today (letting agent) has said that the landlord has paid (or will pay in monthly instalments) her £1200 for the year tenancy for management of the property plus £150 admin fee for finding me as a tenant. Now the thing is, she has said If I want to leave then I need to pay £800 to the letting agent plus £150 admin fee to find new tenants. This is due to me leaving four months into the contract (1200 - 400). There is no mention of this in the contract I signed nor do I recall ever signing any other document to say this would be ok to charge in this event. The agent admits it is not in the contract (rather forcefully) and keeps on going on about how I signed a legally binding document. By document they refer to the assured shorthold tenancy document. Not once have they mentioned any other document (such as a terms and conditions document for them as letting agents) outlining these charges. I should point out here the Landlord has not been contacted let alone stated this figure would be required to accept the surrender, this is the letting agent who is asking for this and they said it is not negotiable it must be paid by someone (me or the landlord). So even if the landlord did agree to pay this, they are then going to charge the landlord for a new 12 month period of £1200 plus another £150 admin fee for new tenants. So of course landlord will not agree to this I imagine. The letting agent also threatened to simply not bother emailing the landlord at all the more I pushed her on the issue, it seems to me they want to pocket the £800. I am quite happy to pay any rent up until someone else comes into the property, and even happy to pay the admin fee but I cannot make sense of the £800. The letting agent argues they are entitled to this money as they did the work of finding me as a tenant but to my eyes it is free money for them. I have tried to get advice from the CAB but I was unable too today. Also tried shelter and they were always busy...... My worry is I do challenge them more on the issue and they refuse to ask the landlord full stop about a surrender. I have landlords address which I am considering writing too after I have some facts. Can anyone help? Is it worthwhile checking any industry bodies if this is standard practice? Thanks PS on reflection even if there was some way to prove this charge was dodgy (which it may not be of course also), then they would just go to the landlord and say "you have to pay this" and he will say no I wont I will not release him. Seems I cannot win here.....

Hi Pls advise. Letting agent didnt turn up for payment( he comes in to get paid by cheque everymonth), he didnt turn up for two months(didnt know what happened) no calls, no letter nothing, he showed up later to demand the whole two months rent and even threaten to call balliff. There is no problem in paying him but his action is so annoying i told him f** off. There is enough fund to pay him but is he allowed to demand the two months rent at once while it was him that didnt come to pick up the cheque like he always do for the past two years?

Hi there I resonantly agreed to use a letting agent to manage my property. I received an email from the agent 4 days later after new tenants moved in that a contractor has already completed maintenance in respect of cleaning for removal of rubble and received an invoice of £220 which will be deducted from the next rental collection. When I instructed the agent to handle the rental of the above property I was not given any details or phone call of other charges. As per the ingoing inspection & photographs...the property was left in a terrible condition by the outgoing tenants (unfortunately I didn't use a letting agent with previous tenants and let down, but that's a separate issue) The new tenants could not take occupation of the property prior to cleaning & rubble removal. Therefore the office proceeded with the cleaning & rubble removal as a matter of urgency, in order for the new tenant to take occupation. The agent states there was no alternative but to have the property professionally cleaned & for the rubble to be removed. (I agree, it need to be cleaned but the agent should have notified me by email/phone as per the agreement to give my consent) The agent states that under the circumstances they were acting on the landlords best interest & to accommodate the waiting tenant had to act quickly. Therefore this is an exception but the contract does not allow for any exceptions. I believe the agent is liable for the cost, however there are two clause stating 1) Attend to do repairs and general maintenance of the premises as authorised by the landlord from time to time 2) The Landlord authorises agent to incur reasonable expenses relating to the general upkeep of the PREMISES for which the LANDLORD may be liable in terms of the LEASE AGREEMENT, and to set such expenses off against monies collected by agent on behalf of the LANDLORD from time to time. It is expressly agreed that the reasonable maintenance expenses referred to above shall be limited to £100.00 (plus VAT) per occurrence. If any repairs are reasonably expected to exceed this amount, payment of such expense must be authorised by the LANDLORD. My concern is after indicating these two clause to the agent they now are treating this agreement unfairly. The agent confirmed that they will not hold the landlord liable for the entire cleaning & rubble removal invoice, £220.00...but only for £100.00 as per clause of the authorization. I am concerned about this as the agent treated this issue unfairly; the agent did not follow protocols and have breach the contract. By all these acts, what will the future hold for their next defence when dealing with any issues in a prompt and professional manner if they already acted dishonest and caused me severe problems?

Hi, my girlfriend recently moved to England, and after taking a few flat viewings, we found a really nice place for her. We set about reserving the property, by paying the letting fee. The letting agent said that the tenancy was secured as long as everything went according to plan in regard to the guarantor form. After she paid the letting fee in cash, she was invoiced. At the time I thought nothing of it, but on this invoice it said non-refundable payment. The agent raised this point and said that because he hadn't spoke to us about the fee being non-refundable prior to putting the money forward, that it didn't apply, and crossed it out in biro. From there he just required a guarantor form, because, at this point, my girlfriend did not have a bank account or a job (she needed an address first). After some talk my dad put himself forward as guarantor. We filled out the guarantor form, and sent through proof of address, identity and income. Now as far as I was concerned a guarantor was just somebody that could ensure payment should the tenant not be able to. However it developed over time that my dad would have to sign a co-tenancy agreement alongside my girlfriend and that a direct debit would be set up out of his account. We found out this information at the same time as being told that the property that my girlfriend had put the letting fee down for had been given to somebody else by the landlord, but that there was a bigger and better flat in the same building that she could have for cheaper than the original flat. The letting agent made out that this was the landlord being impatient because a week had passed before we finally sorted the initial guarantor information. Either way I knew my dad wouldn't accept those terms, and so we had to pull out. At this point however the letting agent said that he had passed on the letting fee to the landlord (which made no sense to me as the letting fee is surely for the letting agent), and after I said that we wanted it back, especially considering that money was for a flat that was given to somebody else, the agent said that that might be a problem and that i'd have to give him the weekend to sort it out with the landlord. Following that, I rang the letting agent back after the weekend and he said that the landlord wasn't giving the money back, but that we could have a credit note of the same value to use at the letting agency in the future. Now I'm at a bit of a loss, and was hoping somebody could give me some advice as to what to do next. Has the letting agent pocketed this money and is palming off the blame on to somebody else? Thanks Joel

I have a verbal agreement with my first tenant, who wish to rent my single bedroom for 12 month, but she move out after 3 month. I am going to attend the hearing next week, I have the following evidence: My second tenant can provide the statement to confirm this fact. I also can provide a voice recorde about our conversation to confirm the verbal agreement is exist. Can I win the case if we are on the court?

Hiya all, It's been a while since I posted here so be nice lol! I've had a lot of issues with my previous estate agent and was wondering if anyone can give me any advice. Basically, the responsibility probably lies somewhere between the letting agent and the landlord, but I'd say the letting agent is highly responsible as it was mostly them failing to make any action. The property was let to us (my boyfriend and I) on an AST for 12 months (£425/ month rent, £525 deposit, £150 agent fee). We moved in and noticed a severe condensation mould problem had been painted over. Despite the agent having known about this for a year before we moved in (reported by the previous tenants), they failed to inform us of it on viewing the property or signing the contracts. It was only was we moved in that it came apparent. It had never been treated, just painted over (probably by the previous tenants). Another issue was the fact it was rented and seen as furnished, however, once we moved in, again it became apparent that a lot of the furnishings were not fit for use and the inventory even states this. We were given permission to remove the items, but no compensation of rent or time and had to replace them at our own expense (although we did take them with us when we moved). On the misrepresentation note, I wanted to get my agency fee back and the first year's rent. The mould became very severe and dominated the bedroom, bathroom and much of the kitchen. The only unaffected room was the lounge (well, mildly affected). We were eventually forced to sleep there. It took a year before the agent finally dealt with the problem, telling us often just to clean the mould off ourselves (which wasn't our responsibility and it was too extensive). Finally, after getting Environmental Health in and telling the agent we would charge them for the repairs if they didn't start them in a week (this was on advice I had sought out) they fixed the problem. It was found to be a faulty extractor fan in the bathroom and other faults (poor maintenance- not tenant lifestyle) which caused the mould. During this time, I developed a chronic skin condition called Dermatographic Urticaria and my boyfriend had a bout of excema (he is usually fine). My condition prevails today and I'm basically allergic to touch (that is the disorder), so you can imagine it's very uncomfortable and doesn't look great too. The mould was present for a year but once fixed, we believed our problems were over. We were also in a contract for this period, that is why I want the money back (it was our financial loss at signing a contract which had been misrepresented to us). Also, I want £12.50 / month back for the remainder of the tenancy (we stayed on another 3 years almost where the maintenance was poor but not bad enough to have us move out). This rebate would be for the misrepresentation of the property as furnished and not part-furnished. I also want my time in removing these items reimbursed at min wage for approx. 1 hour per item (8 in total). Our contract had gone on a monthly roll-over at this time, so we did not renew it as such it just continued under the original terms. During the last few months of our tenancy, there was a broken locking mechanism on the front door (the only entry/ exit to the property) and this lasted for 3 months and was only fixed when we moved out. I was advised by the council that they had a maximum of 1 hour to fix the door since it was a fire hazard. We withheld rent during the last month based on the outstanding repair and also because I'd had enough. The agent issued a notice to quit and we were happy to get the hell out of there. As soon as we moved out, they completed all repairs and put the rent up. I wonder if this shows their neglect was an effort to move us out and bump the rent up which would constitute harassment for eviction. I was wondering if anyone knows how much you can claim in compensation for personal injury (mental and physical health- I have mental health problems also which this exasperated). This is in addition to rent rebate etc. Also, how much can you claim for personal inconvenience or stress? I will also be asking for them to compensate my time pursuing the matter which was extensive. I know a lot of people may think why didn't we move out, but originally we were contractually bound to the property and also could not afford to move for a very long time. The problems were less severe without the mould but still present. We stayed on believing the main problem had been resolved but after 3 years I just had enough of their general attitude and lack of maintenance (even if it was just minor things it was lots of them). There was even a period of 1 week where we had no bathroom floor (there was only that bathroom/ toilet in the property as well) because the sub-floor had rotten through. I had asked them a million times to put a new lino down because the current one was very slippery and water stained. I eventually removed it myself to find the problem had been the sub-floor was rotten through and actually had turned to soil. This was when my skin problem really flared up. I am not sure if it was the same time we had mould to be honest, but I know the humidity levels had been very high. Ok, so lots to take in there sorry, hope I've got it all but any questions please ask Thanks for helping!

Hope someone can throw some light on this for me. Details are limited as it relates to a case I heard about through a relative. The summary is that the tenancy has ended for a furnished property and the letting agency is retaining the entire deposit of several hundred pounds and is likely to be demanding an additional amount because of what seems to be fair wear and tear, for which a significant amount is cleaning costs. Something I immediately suspected was that if the landlord was claiming as expenses, a 10% allowance for fair wear and tear, or, renewal allowances, then someone (either the tenant or HMRC) will have been defrauded. Would this be a more effective angle to tackle the apparent greed of the landlord/agent than the tribunal type approach? Appreciate any help....

Hello Ladies & Gents, My son studying in Bristol University 2nd year with other fellow students, they just received a letter from the letting agency demanding a further payment of more than £750 in 7 days or they will face court and even further consequences. The letting agency already taken the initial deposit of £2000. When they moved from the flat last month, they left it clean and tidy. Walls with small scratches painted, which indicate that they are careful and considerate. On several occasions the landlord or his son or his brother (they own the letting agency) come to inspect the flat and intimidate the students and shout at them, too. My son in particular now feels very upset and distressed by this guileful and perfidious method in getting money from vulnerable people like us, especially when we are on disability benefit. Even if I want to pay, I don't have a fiver let alone to pay £150! Can anyone please advise us on how to proceed with this problem? We are not really sure what to do or how to proceed forward. Thanking you and regards.

As title says My letting agent took £100 off me for a credit check to move into my property. I have recently checked all 3 CRA files and nothing shows up on any that they have done any checking. Would a letting agency credit check show up anyways? Or have they just shafted me for £100? thanks

Hi everyone, I am looking for some guidance on an issue we may have upcoming and would like to go into the situation prepared. We moved into a property in Dec 2009 via a letting agent on a assured shorthold tenancy for 6 months, the deposit was protected in a DPS via the letting agent and we received timely confirmation of this. Prior to the 6 month review, we were asked by the letting agent to release the deposit we provided the letting agent with the letters we had from the DPS and the letting agent used this to release the deposit, their reason for this is that the landlord wanted to store the deposit in his own DPS instead. We then signed a new AST for 6 months, and after that we have been on a statutory periodic tenancy. A year ago we got a cat, as we were told the landlord accepted small pets, although when we told the letting agent they wanted an extra £200 adding to the deposit, we explained we were unwilling to do this unless they were able to prove that our deposit was within a DPS , they tried to contact the landlord but a few days later we were told via the letting agent that they couldn't get the proof from the landlord, and not for us to worry because if they hadn't put it into a DPS we would get 3x the amount, but in any case they said they would not pursue us for the extra £200 for the cat. What I'm wondering is if the deposit is not in a scheme (as we signed a new AST AFTER the deposit had been renewed) can the landlord use the initial dps letter to prove it was in such a scheme? We're less concerned about the 3x the deposit but if the deposit is not in a scheme we do not want any undue hassle getting our deposit back. Thank you in advance for all your advice.

I wonder if anyone could answer the following question. We have found a property we wish to rent via an agency we have paid their administration fee and credit check fee of £285.00. Initially we did not want to start the tenancy until the end of August this was rejected and we agreed to start from 6th July 2012, however since then we have found the agency very slow in their communication and doing their searches. On the 10th July they stated they had now received all the information they required and would send the tenancy agreement to us once the 1st months rent and deposit was paid into there account £1487.50. This was done today 11th July we hope to receive the Tenancy Agreement to sign, the agents have stated that the 6th July is still our tenancy start date which we feel is unfair. It was not our fault the delays occurred and we therefore should not have to start our tenancy before we have the right to move in. We argued this and they came back and agreed a new tenancy start date of Monday 9th July, we are still unhappy with this but do not want to loose the flat because of it, I have said that we will proceed but reserve the right to take this matter up with them at a later date. Are the agents acting within the Law, it does not seem right to ask for rent when the property is not available for use. Steve

Hi all! My letting agency refused on THREE occasions to answer me back when I enquired about the protection status of my bond. My old Landlord and I are currently battling in the courts for my last bond, and I would rather it not come down to that again! Now I'm thinking of writing a nicely worded email to the letting agency once more, only this time using a little LBA and telling them that they/the landlord is breaching the law. Now I know the landlord lives in Saudi Arabia, so I'm not sure if protecting the bond will be difficult or not... But hell it's the law isn't it! Anyway my main question was this; if they refuse AGAIN to answer my emails, how within my rights am I to withold the last months rent on the contract and just up and leave with that? I'm guessing not but I really don't fancy another court date Thanks guys!

Hi - I have moved to studio flat and before moving there I had discussed with the Letting Agent on issues with the Property like it had a broken shower and wardrobe was not there. When I signed the contract he said shower is OK and no issues with that, but as I entered the property it was not in much of a hygienic condition, as I told the agent he said he would get that all cleaned but he didn't for a week now, I suspected that and already cleaned everything as can't live in a dirty place, he promised to get a microwave and hoover also, and all he says landlord would provide these and he is discussing, pain is he never updates and calls and says he is discussing with the landlord, there is no SLA for that. I trusted this agent just on words as he was like don't worry we would take care of everything and you would get the house in a good condition but he doesn't seems to know the meaning of word trust. When I call him, he is moreover in a hurry to put down the phone than speak. We are suffering as can't take bath in the shower the water comes with hell of pace and either once hot can't control that and very hot, heating can't be controlled and adjusted. I checked and he is not a member of any official body who governs Letting Agents, any advise would be much appreciated how to complain about these kinds of agents. Thanks.

My partner's house was recently sold by his landlady to a letting agency. The letting agent gave notcie that he was putting up the rent considerably, so my partner gave notice that he was leaving the property before that happens. Since then, the letting agent has sent letters claiming that my partner owes him upward of £400 in utility bills and council tax. The agreement with the previous landlady was that rent covered water and council tax, and gas and electric are paid through meters in the house. My partner has refused to pay, and the letting agent is now threatening bailiff action. We're confident that if the letting agent takes us to court, we have a viable defence; but at this stage we're not sure how this all works. From what we have seen on the bailiff's website, it looks like their solicitors can easily get a court order. Is that the case? Don't we have to have a chance to mount a defence? How does this work?

Hi all, So I'll start at the beginning. My partner and I moved into a house on the 7th August 2010. My partner signed the contract and signed two cheques, one for the first months rent and the second for £450 deposit, to be paid to the DPS. We settled in nicely and enjoying our first home together On the 30th November 2010, I received an email from our letting agent, stating that they would no longer be responsible for collecting out rent and gave us the landlord's details to pay future rent to. We were informed that his brother would be dealing with the property. In January 2011, 5 months after moving in, we realised that the deposit cheque had only just been paid. This was from out joint account, that we put money into and don't really check. We never received a deposit ID for the payment, and as neither of us had used the scheme before we didn't even realise that we needed one until research after we had left. We gave our one months notice in august 2011, and left the property in September. Fast forward to June 2012 and we have still not got our deposit back, despite emails back and forth between myself and LL's brother. Because we don't have a deposit ID, he says he cannot release the deposit. So I stated that if he contacted the DPS and gave them proof of ownership of the house, and a letter stating the letting agents were no longer in business, that should be enough to release the deposit. Is this correct? He states that he does not have a letter stating they are no longer operating and so is unsure as what else to do? Should my partner and I move onto small claims court? Or is there another way? Thanks for reading!

Hi all, I really need advice on this, well the story starts in May a letting agent called "Fraser Knights" has shown us a property which we liked and decided to take it. Firstly they asked us to make payment of £500 for the holding deposit as the property was getting refurbished they asked for a week time to moved us in the property, we agreed to it. So, we supposed to be moving in on 8th of may but on 5th of may I have received a phone call from the letting agent saying that I have to make the full outstanding amount for the property (upfront rent and a month deposit total £2025) otherwise the property will be given to someone else and they said someone will come to your home and pick up the money and I did asked them that the person who will come to pick up the money is he bringing the contract and receipts, etc., with him? they said Yes. When the guy came to my home to take the remaining amount he only give me the receipt and said that the agreement is ready and has been sent to landlord for signing. I was ok with that but then when I called them up on 8th of may to get the keys for the property they said the landlord has given that property to someone else. And when I asked for the refund they said they will do it but its gonna take 21 working days due to the company policy. Still I kept patience and said ok, they sent me confirmation of refund and mentioned in the letter that I will get my money back by 11th of June as the letter was dated 10th of May. Now today is 22nd of June but still I haven't received my money back. Since 11th of June I am keep emailing them and calling them they keep telling me 'Oh sorry the refund processed on 11th of june so give 3-5 working days to reach your account' then I waited another week.. haven't received any money again called them they said 'oh sorry it processed on 14th of june please allow 3-5 working days'. I really dont know what should I do in this situation. I do have receipt of payment for £2025 I do have confirmation of refund requested I do have an email from payment department that refund processed on 14th of June What I can do for it..???? someone please advise me as its really frustrating now that I have waited nearly 2 months and still haven't received money from that agency. plus the stress I had to look for another property as I had given notice to my previous landlord. Please someone advise what to do.??? Thanks guys, Zia

Hello All. My first post and I hoped it wouldn't be a cry for help but that's life. Not an easy one this so any help much appreciated. I received a letter stating that I as a guarantor for my ex-wife should contact my ex-wife who rented a property some months ago to make arrangements to pay for outstanding arrears and repair charges as soon as possible. They included a list of all the charges. On the same day my ex-wife received an almost identical letter asking when will payments be made? The questions I have are these: 1. Should the letting agency have first contacted the ex-tenant to see what payment arrangements they were going to make before contacting me? 2. Can the letting agent demand the money in full either from my ex-wife or from myself or be required to accept monthly payments due to the former tenant not having the full amount to pay in one go? 3. Would 2. discharge any responsibility of the guarantor if such an offer was made by the tenant and payments were made? 4. Should I as guarantor have been given a copy of the original agreement? 5. Is a guarantor liable for letting agent fees such as charges being made to the tenant for correspondence relating to the arrears? 6. If the tenant did not pay the arrears or if the letting agency declined any part payment who would the agency take to court in the first instance - the ex-tenant or the guarantor? 7. Should not the letting agent have had insurance to cover any damage allegedly done by the tenant? Any suggestions as to the next steps to take? Sincere thanks for any advice.