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Legal Advice

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Being a Landlord can be stressful, especially when navigating the legalities of rent arrears, problem tenants, eviction notices and housing law. That’s why we at Eastern Landlord Association offer discounted legal advice from local solicitors, as well as our free legal surgeries. We also offer a free advice line to help put your mind at ease. With over 300 rules and regulations governing property rental, it’s important to get the right advice.

 

Our legal advice service is here to:

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  • Help you understand the legal obligations.

  • Provide guidance and documentation.

  • Save money by doing things yourself.

  • Avoid making expensive mistakes.

 

Why is legal advice important?

 

Over the last decade, the government have passed many new laws and regulations specifically targeting the private rental sector. This has only been exacerbated by COVID-19, and emergency regulations and laws that came with it. In 2021 alone, 8 new laws came into effect. These changes affect everything, from the model tenancy agreement, eviction notices, dealing with rent arrears, the eviction process and temporary updates to section 21 notices. 2021 also saw changes to how much letting agencies and private landlords can charge in fees to potential renters.

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Without expert advice in property law, housing laws and the regulations surrounding assured shorthold tenancy you’re running the risk of breaking the law, and opening yourself up to costly legal battles with tenants.

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Tenant Eviction

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Questions relating to tenant issues are the most common that we receive. Before advising on the correct process to evict a tenant, it is important to understand the type of tenancy that you have. For example, you may have given an assured shorthold tenancy to your tenant, but this does not necessarily mean that it will be a shorthold tenancy according to the law. This can happen when the tenant is a limited company. Once this is established, a valid eviction notice can be served:

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S8 Notice – if the tenant has broken the terms of the tenancy, as legislated within Sch.2 of the Housing Act 1988.

S21 Notice – to be used if you require 'no fault'  possession of the property after a fixed term ends.

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Once the eviction notice has expired, if the tenant has failed to vacate the property, you can apply to the court for a possession order. If you are not claiming any unpaid rent, you can apply for an accelerated possession order.

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If your tenants still refuse to leave, you can apply for a warrant for possession, which means bailiffs will remove the tenants from the property.

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How we can help

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Members of Eastern Landlords Association are eligible to book a 15-minute slot with a litigation expert from Fosters Solicitors during one of our free monthly legal surgeries. These sessions are designed to give you the chance to start the conversation about your legal issue – and should you require further advice, Fosters offer discounted rates to ELA Members.

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Members can also take advantage of our Landlord advice line, by calling or emailing our experienced staff, Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm on 01603 767101 or info@easternlandlords.org.uk. We can answer questions surrounding simple contractual matters, evictions or problem tenants.

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Documents relating to legal processes are available via our exclusive Landlord's Toolkit.

 

If you’d like more information on membership, contact us today.

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