I have a friend who was renting a property from (as it turns out) an unregistered landlord. He is terminating a 1 year lease 3 months early as he has bought a place (brave man that he is).
The landlord is withholding the deposit. As a landlord myself I have never withheld deposits on early leavers on the grounds that regardless of terms and conditions it makes sense to leave them with some skin in the game (lest they destroy the place before they go).
While he knows he is going early, he kept the place well, paid all rent due, employed a firm of cleaners to clean the place before he left etc. So he feels unfairly treated.
I know the landlord could enforce the lease but given that he is definitely not registered with the PRTB and (probably) not paying tax, is there any leverage here?
The landlord is withholding the deposit. As a landlord myself I have never withheld deposits on early leavers on the grounds that regardless of terms and conditions it makes sense to leave them with some skin in the game (lest they destroy the place before they go).
While he knows he is going early, he kept the place well, paid all rent due, employed a firm of cleaners to clean the place before he left etc. So he feels unfairly treated.
I know the landlord could enforce the lease but given that he is definitely not registered with the PRTB and (probably) not paying tax, is there any leverage here?