Dealing with problem tenants without losing months of rent
Almost every expensive tenancy problem started as a cheap one that was left alone in the hope it would resolve itself.
Rent arrears and anti-social behaviour are the two problems that cost landlords the most, and both have a defined legal process. The landlords who lose the most money are almost never the ones who acted too aggressively — they are the ones who waited, hoping the tenant would catch up, until the arrears were large enough that only a court could resolve them.
The process is slow, and that is the argument for starting it early. A section 8 notice served at one month of arrears is a cheap administrative step. The same notice served at six months is the start of a long, expensive recovery.
Rent arrears: the sequence
The first step is always a conversation, because a tenant who has lost a job and is engaging is a different case from one who has stopped responding. But a conversation is not a substitute for a process, and the process should run alongside it rather than after it.
- Contact the tenant immediately when a payment is missed, in writing, and record the contact
- Establish the reason, and whether a short payment plan is realistic and being honoured
- Serve the correct notice as soon as the grounds are met — section 8 for arrears, section 21 for no-fault
- Check the notice is valid: deposit protection, prescribed information, gas safety and EPC requirements must all have been met
- Keep a full written record, because a court will ask what was agreed and when
- Consider a mediator before proceedings where the tenant is engaging
The validity trap
A notice that is invalid is worse than no notice, because it wastes the notice period and gives the tenant time. The common reasons a notice fails are administrative and entirely avoidable: a deposit that was not protected within the required period, prescribed information that was never served, an expired gas safety certificate, or a failure to provide the EPC.
These are not technicalities. They are the conditions on which the right to use the accelerated possession procedure depends, and getting them wrong can add months and thousands of pounds to a case that should have been straightforward.
Anti-social behaviour
Anti-social behaviour is harder because it is harder to evidence. Neighbour statements, council logs, police incident numbers and a diary of complaints all help, and the local authority's anti-social behaviour team can be a useful ally rather than an obstacle.
The landlord's obligation is to take reasonable steps, and a failure to act on repeated complaints can expose the landlord to action from the council. Documenting what you were told and what you did in response is what demonstrates that you took those steps.
Common questions
- How long does it take to evict a tenant for rent arrears?
- Realistically three to six months from the point the notice is served, if the tenant does not leave voluntarily and the case has to go to court and then to bailiffs. Serving a valid notice at the earliest opportunity is the single biggest factor in shortening it, which is why waiting to see if arrears resolve themselves is usually the most expensive choice.
- Can I just change the locks when a tenant stops paying?
- No. Excluding a tenant without a court order is an illegal eviction and a criminal offence, regardless of how much rent is owed or whether the tenant is in breach. It can also expose you to a claim for damages. Always follow the statutory process, however frustrating the delay.