If you own a property, you may be trying to rent it out to another person. This is a great way to make supplemental income and help someone find a place to live. While being a landlord can be a great experience, what should you do when your tenant stops paying rent or begins to damage your property, and you need to evict them?
Eviction is a costly and multistep process that if done carelessly could cost thousands of pounds and may not achieve the desired goal. During the eviction process, a landlord should keep constant contact with a renter and use proper forms and deadlines to protect themselves and the property.
While it might seem simple on the surface, there are many times when you might experience issues throughout the eviction process. Here are some things you should keep in mind while considering eviction at one of your properties, and remember to consult a law center or solicitor if you have any questions about any step in this process.
What Types of Eviction are There in the UK?
When talking about eviction, you might think that there is one type of eviction. You are a landlord and you want to remove someone from your property, and evicting that person is the way that you can remove them from the property. In reality, there are a couple of different types of eviction that you might encounter in the UK.
Each of them is intended to be used in different situations, so it is important to be familiar with each and the situations in which they can be used. With that in mind, here are each of the different types of eviction in the UK.
The first type of eviction in the UK is called section 21 eviction. A section 21 notice of seeking possession is the more common type of eviction notice that you might encounter. This is the notice that you will use for a tenant after their fixed-term rent finishes or if you have a “periodic” tenant. There does not have to be a breach of a contract for a landlord to be able to use this type of eviction.
The other type of eviction in the UK is known as section 8 eviction. A landlord will want to use section 8 to give notice of eviction if the tenant has broken any part of the rental agreement. A section 8 eviction will have different notice periods from section 21 as well as different information you will need to include on the notice form. For section 8, you will need to include the terms of your tenancy that you believe have been broken by your tenant.
When Can You Use Section 21 Evictions
There are certain situations where you can use section 21 evictions. Remember that every step of this process can cost you money, and you want to ensure that you follow the proper steps while moving through the eviction process.
Courts typically are not very lenient with landlords if they do not follow the proper process. You don’t want to spend hundreds of pounds to go to court just to be told that you improperly evicted someone. With that in mind, here are some situations where you can and cannot use a section 21 eviction according to the UK government.
Situations Where You Can Use Section 21
You will want to use a section 21 eviction in any situation where there has not been a breach of contract or the agreement between the landlord and tenant has expired. A section 21 notice can be used alongside and section 8 notice, or it can be issued on its own.
There are two times in which you can offer a section 21 notice to your tenants. The first is after the fixed-term residency is concluded. To issue a notice in this situation you will need a written copy of the fixed term agreement. If instead, your tenant has an agreement under a periodic timetable with no fixed end date you may also issue this type of notice.
Situations Where You Cannot Use Section 21 (England)
There are some situations where you cannot use section 21, which may vary depending on which part of the UK you are in. Here are some of the reasons that you cannot issue a section 21 notice in England.
- It is less than 4 months from the beginning of the tenancy
- The fixed term of the agreement has not ended (unless specified otherwise)
- You did not issue the notice on form 6a
- The council has issued an improvement notice on the property in the last 6 months
- The council has issued a notice of emergency repairs in the last 6 months
- The tenant has been charged unlawful fees or deposits
- If you have not given the tenants copies of these three items
- The government’s guide “How to Rent”
- The property’s Energy Performance Certificate
- The property’s Gas Safety Certificate (if the property has gas installed)
Situations Where You Cannot Use Section 21 (Wales)
The reasons that you cannot use section 21 in Wales are similar but different from those above. Make sure that you check each of these if you own a property in Wales. You cannot issue a section 21 notice in Wales if any of these things apply.
- It is less than 4 months from the beginning of the tenancy
- The fixed term of the agreement has not ended (unless specified otherwise)
- The property is categorized as a house in multiple occupations (HMO) and does not have an HMO license from the council
- The tenant first moved in after April 2007 and you haven’t put their deposit in a deposit protection scheme
- The tenancy started after November 2016 and you do not have a landlord license
When considering eviction make sure to check local regulations for the area where your property is located. Keep in mind that this is not an executive list of when you can or cannot issue a section 21 notice. Consult with a legal expert if you have any questions on when you can use this type of eviction.
Remember that regulations can change quickly, and you need to be aware of how they will affect your case.
When Can You Use Section 8 Evictions?
Section 8 notice of evictions is slightly different than section 21. Instead of a notice of change after a previous agreement is complete, a section 8 eviction notice will be done when the tenant has broken part of their agreement with you as their landlord. While it can be used alongside a section 21 notice, if there has been a serious breach of your agreement by your tenant, it may be best to use a section 8 notice. Here are some situations in which you can use section 8.
To issue a section 8 notice you will not use the 6a form that was mentioned earlier. Instead, you will use the “notice seeking possession of a property let on an assured tenancy or an assured agricultural occupancy” form. This form will allow you to specify the specific portion of your agreement that they have broken. The type of breach will determine how much notice you need to give your tenant, as you will need to put that on the form as well.
How Much Notice Do You Have to Give Before Eviction?
The type of eviction that you are moving forward with, as well as the circumstances, will determine how much notice you are legally required to give your tenant. Be very careful with these numbers, as landlords often get into trouble because they didn’t give enough notice to their tenants prior to eviction.
For a section 21 notice, you need to give your tenants at least 2 months’ notice. This number can be larger if your tenant had a fixed term agreement that extends into a periodic agreement.
For example, if the tenants had a fixed one-year agreement with three-month rental periods, after that year you will need to give your tenant 3 months’ notice prior to eviction. In Wales, the remainder of this periodic agreement is onto the 2-month minimum. So, if your tenant is one month into a three-month period you need to give them 4 months’ notice (two remaining months plus 2 months minimum).
For section 8 eviction the amount of notice needed prior to eviction can vary depending on the breach of the agreement. This website lists some of the common offenses as well as the amount of notice a landlord needs to offer.
There are some things that you will want to pay attention to while looking at this list. For example, are these the standards for England or Wales? Each of these has similar but ultimately different amounts of notice you need to give. Are the grounds mandatory or discretionary? The grounds describe the breach warranting a section 8 notice and whether after the time of notice has passed a judge may grant immediate possession to the landlord or whether the eviction process may continue.
What Steps are There to Eviction
Now that we are more familiar with the process of eviction you might be wondering what steps there are to the process. This website outlines some of the steps that you will go through while going through this process as a landlord. Remember to follow any national and local regulations throughout this eviction process. Also, it is always a good idea to keep a written record of any steps that you take while going through this process.
The first thing you need to do is issue a proper possession notice to your tenant. This notice must be issued in the proper formatting, 6a form for section 21 and the section 8 form otherwise. You need to keep a written copy of this form as proof that you served this notice on the day that you purport to. You may also file an N215 with the court as a statement that your tenant has received notice.
This process cannot proceed until the notice period has expired. Once the notice period has expired, if the tenant has not vacated the property you will need to take this process to a county court. Only after receiving a possession order from a judge can you move to take possession of your property in this instance.
If you still have a tenant residing in the property, at this point they will need to be removed by the county bailiffs. Do not try and remove your unwelcome guests by yourself, even after receiving a court order. Forced removal should be left to the court and its officials. If you get involved in this process yourself, you could be charged with harassment.
Are There People You Cannot Evict?
Another question that you might be asking yourself is; are there people that you cannot evict from your property? There isn’t an easy answer to this question. Something to keep in mind is that there are laws in place to help the landlord, but there are also laws in place in support of tenants.
A judge typically will take these laws and try and find an outcome that is fair. In situations where crimes have been committed or the property has been damaged the law will generally side with you, the landlord. In cases where there are young children or people that are immunocompromised (during the pandemic), the law may side with the tenant and prevent eviction. If you have any questions about whether you are barred from evicting your tenants, consult with a legal expert.
How Much Will The Eviction Process Cost You?
Eviction is a lengthy process with the shortest type of eviction taking at least 2 to 3 months to complete. More complex evictions could take months or even up to a year to complete. During this time, you could be losing out on unpaid rent, court fees, and costs to repair your property if it is damaged by the unwilling tenants.
To avoid these fees, you can hire a property management company like this one. These companies offer guaranteed rent, which means that they will pay you a regular amount each month regardless if someone is renting your property, or the tenants are paying rent. These companies will sometimes handle all of the eviction processes so you don’t need to worry about forms or court appearances.
