How to end a tenancy?

G

gnubbit

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Hi,

Hope I'm posting in the right forum. Mods, could you please move this if I didn't?

I plan to leave my rented apartment in about 6 weeks. I've been here 7 years. Initially it was a one year lease which was extended in writing every year until two or three years ago. I haven't had any contact with the landlord since then, the rent just gets paid and he's left us (and the rent) alone.

My lease agreement was for a fixed period so says nothing about giving notice. I had planned to give a month's notice - is this enough? I've had a good relationship with the landlord and I want to be fair.

What should I do about getting my deposit back? I was hoping I could meet the landlord at the apartment and hand back the keys, do meter readings, inspections and get the deposit back then. Does that sound about right?

Also, I paid the deposit with a bank draft (stipulated by agent) and was wondering if I should expect the same. Although I like the landlord, I'm slightly wary of accepting a cheque as he has always been a bit tardy about reimbursing us for various bits of work or items that needed replacing.

Is there anything I should watch out for or get in writing?

Any advice would be welcome.

Thanks,
g
 
Do you have a postal address for him? Write to him straight away and inform him of your intentions. I asume you paid a depost in IR£'s so make sure there is no confusion regarding this so request an exact payment in Euro.

Otherwise, phone him and ask him to call over, and hand him your letter.

The terms of your Lease probably imply that you give 4 weeks notice so he will be better prepared if you give him an extra few weeks on top of that.

I am a Landlord and I always refund deposits by cheque as it leaves a paper trail so that there can be no dispute. Sometimes, I will write a few cheques if there are a few tenants but generally, one cheque is sufficient.
 
Thanks for the reply Hillsalt.

I was planning to give written notice but to phone the landlord the day I post the letter to let him know.

If I give immediate notice I'm worried he's going to want to visit now, possibly bringing people to view. I'm not ok with people viewing while I'm still living here but don't want to offend him by saying no if he asks.

Plus, the place is like a bomb hit it cos we're storing stuff for the new house which isn't easy in a 1 bed apartment with no storage space. I'd rather I had a chance to move all this out and give the place a thorough scrub before he comes by.

Since the flat has been let to us for 7 years I think he's going to need to tart it up a bit before letting it again anway.
 
When you are ready, you need to register post a letter giving notice to the landlord - a months notice is normal and reasonable.

The landlord is not allowed to enter the property without your consent in relation to starting viewings.

You need to offer reasonable access to him none the less. I would suggest you specify that you will be available for him to allow viewings 1-2 weekday evenings [ but lock them in as a Tuesday & a Thursday for example, so that you maintain some control over the transition] and maybe a half day on a weekend. Then you can be there to watch your belongings. It is an inconvenience I know but you can't be accused of blocking access and if the landlord can secure a new tenant with minimal hassle they'll be more inclined to return the deposit without delay.

Best of luck.
 
Captin Sobel said:
The landlord is not allowed to enter the property without your consent in relation to starting viewings.
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AFAIK once a LL gives you reasonable notice he can bring new tenants in to view your place whether you are there or not.

Having said that personally I prefer to have tenants gone before I do viewings.
 
[broken link removed]

The above link tells you the notice periods required, you say the lease was extended on a year by year basis in writing but don't say if it was for a fixed term each time, although your original contract was for a fixed term.

As it has not been formally renewed for 2-3 years, then the notice period you should give your landlord is 56 days.

That said if you have been a good tenant (and probably have been if you stayed 7 years!) then you should be able to come to an agreement with the landlord and set a leaving date that you both agree upon
 
Captin Sobel said:
You need to offer reasonable access to him none the less.
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There is no obligation on a tenant to facilitate viewings. A landlord may wish to enter a premises (with adequate notice and not on an excessively frequent basis) to ascertain the condition of the premises or to ensure that the landlord's responsibilities are being met. This does not extend to a right to show the property in the tenants notice period.
 
hmmm said:
There is no obligation on a tenant to facilitate viewings. A landlord may wish to enter a premises (with adequate notice and not on an excessively frequent basis) to ascertain the condition of the premises or to ensure that the landlord's responsibilities are being met. This does not extend to a right to show the property in the tenants notice period.
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I second that. He can't show the apartment without your consent. He won't want to either if the place is cluttered with your stuff.
 
Thank you all for taking the time to reply.

Hillsalt, I think you're right - it's a nice apartment but isn't at it's best just now. More like an overcrowded Ikea warehouse in fact!

In any case, it wouldn't be acceptable to me to have viewings while I'm still living here. I'm working from home at the mo and it would be too disruptive. The LL mentioned at the start of the tenancy that he wants to put down new carpets etc before the next tenants are in so I'm sure it'll all work out.

Thanks G7979 for the link. I feel that there's been an unwritten agreement regarding the lease extension but if he insists on the 56 days I'll go along with it. It'll give me more time to clean the place up before I go anyway :)

Thanks again folks.
 
No problem, just a quick note about the viewings, most lease agreements have a clause which say something along the lines that you agree to allow the landlord or agent to show the property to prospective tenants/purchasers during the notice period, usually with 24 hours notice or something like that, although yours has expired by now, any lease agreement I have used has a clause that the t & c's of the original contract remain in place in the absence of a new agreement being signed, might be worth reading the old contract again and see if you agreed to that.

However after 7 years I think you should invite the landlord over for a chat, let him or her see the property and decide what work if any they would like to do after you leave, this will give you an opportunity to work out the details for the notice period and the viewings situation and also the deposit return, just keep it very friendly and I am sure it will all work out for the best for everyone. After 7 seven years I am sure some re-decoration will be needed and they will probably not want to show the property until it is at its best, but if you make the first move they will appreciate it and be more likely to agee to your suggestions which means minimum disruption for you.

Where there is no formal contract in place you have what is known as a part 4 or periodic tenancy, www.prtb.ie will give you all the information you need on the rights and obligations of both parties.
 
Thanks G7979. I tried phoning the landlord this morning but I think he's away on holidays, got no answer and there was a strange ringing tone. I had wanted to speak to him on the phone and then follow up the phone call in writing. I've left a message for him to ring me back but if he doesn't, I think I'd better send on the letter anyway so I'm giving as much notice as possible.
 
sounds like the right thing to do, if you are on friendly enough terms with the LL maybe a text as well, and ask them to give you a call when they get back from the holidays, that you are giving notice your new place will be ready on X date and want to go through the details for the handover when they get a chance
 
S.L.F said:
AFAIK once a LL gives you reasonable notice he can bring new tenants in to view your place whether you are there or not.

Having said that personally I prefer to have tenants gone before I do viewings.
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jaybird said:
I do hope you don't take your own advice and enter your tenants place with prospective tenants? I suggest you reaquaint yourself with the residential tenancies act, as if you make a habit of entering rented dwellings without the explicit permisssion of the tenant, you will run into trouble.
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I've read the act throughly.
The only time I'd enter the place is when I've let them know I was doing so with 24 hours notice.
I don't think it is worthwhile to show a flat with tenants already there.
 
It's been very informative reading the posts here as my lease agreement doesn't cover this situation.

I've been fortunate the my landlord never inspected the apartment. He called around to sort a few issues early in the tenancy, marvelled at the cleanliness (which I'm afraid to say has lapsed somewhat!) and we hardly heard from him since.

BTW, I followed your advice G7979 and followed up with a text and received an amiable message back saying he would contact me on his return from abroad.

My plan now is to get all my stuff boxed up and moved out asap so I can give the place a thorough clean before he wants to show it.
 
Sounds like you were a great tenant and landlord will be sorry to lose you. Good luck with the move.
 
Thanks MandaC! The renovations in the new house we're moving to are ongoing so I just hope I have somewhere to move into :)
 
jaybird said:
Then perhaps you should read it again. Chapter 2, Section 16 (C) states:

c)c) allow, at reasonable intervals, the landlord, or any person or persons acting on the landlord's behalf, access to the dwelling (on a date and time agreed in advance with the tenant) for the purposes of inspecting the dwelling,

Key words there are date and time agreed with in advance with the tenant. That does not equate to you informing them that you will be coming in 24 hours. If they do not agree, you had better stay out, as I would imagine that in the event of a complaint from tenants, you would certainly be on the losing side.
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Key word to me is ALLOW

 As you probably know I am a landlord.

I don't barge into someones home but if there are things to be done I make every effort to let my tenants know what is going on.

I had a tenant who wanted me to fix her heating I told her, he (the plumber) would be there during the week but wasn't too sure when exactly.
She told me she would only arrange to be there for 1 hour during the week and didn't want anybody in her home when she wasn't there.
Fair enough!
I tried to explain to her that if a job needs doing when the man gets there you just do it.
So we organised a time for everybody.
I was on time, my plumber was on time, but she couldn't make it and wouldn't give me permission to enter the flat.
So I had to pay a plumber for a wasted hour.

Now I don't bother to give definite I just tell them a tradesman is coming during the week but I'm not sure when.
Now if they want to waste a week sitting at home that's up to themselves.
I must also point out I am always there when work is going on.
 
Agree with SLF - but the key word for me would be "inspecting". This is to allow a landlord access rights if they feel something may be wrong with the structure, heating, plumbing etc. It is not designed to allow landlords view the property with strangers who may decide to rent or just have a nose around.

With a tradesperson, you have control over who the person is and how to cotact them - with a potential tenant, you would have no clue who they are or where they live. What happens if something goes missing or gets damaged?

If a tenant has paid their rent & given valid notice, there is no reason that they should have to allow the landlord access to show the property to potential tenants. It is their home and they have the right to enjoy it as such. I am a landlord, and I would want to have a property painted, cleaned etc, before I would view it to anyone.
 
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