Possession/ Repossession of Property
A landlord may need to obtain possession of his property for many reasons; when a tenant is no longer paying rent; breaching terms of the letting agreement such as subletting the property to other people. The Landlord must follow the legal procedure to obtain an order for possession or else he may commit a criminal offence e.g. by just changing the locks.
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Mostly tenancy agreements are assured or assured shorthold tenancies (AST). This means they are protected by the Housing Act and a landlord or owner must follow specific rules to ensure the tenant leaves. A section 8 can be used during the fixed term period of the AST (6 months) while the section 21 can only be used after the fixed term has ended.
The two main notices used are a Section 8 Notice or a Section 21 Notice. Section 8 provides for obtaining possession and outstanding rent but this is not guaranteed. If all the paperwork is in order then section 21 guarantees possession. Outstanding rent can be recovered through a separate action. Normally a Landlord will use accelerated possession proceedings to obtain possession as it does not require a hearing unless something is amiss such as no proof of service.
The Section 8 Notice must specify the grounds on which the landlord relies. In most cases it is rent not paid or irregularly paid which results in a mandatory order from the courts. A tenant will often try to pay rent prior to any hearing as a court will seldom provide a possession order if the outstanding rent is less that two months.
A Section 21 Notice can be served at any time. The possession date must be at least two months from the date the notice is served and the date of possession cannot be earlier than the end of any fixed term period. If the rent is paid on a periodic basis the date has to be two months from the end of the rental period (normally stated in the lease), or the date rent is due.
If the property is not vacated by the dated in the notice then possession proceedings must be commenced. The main types of possession proceedings are accelerated or normal. Accelerated proceedings are quicker and cheaper as they require no hearing but unfortunately any outstanding rent arrears cannot be claimed.
The possession order states the date the property is to be vacated. If this does not occur the landlord must return to the court to enforce the order for possession by applying for a Warrant of Possession. The Warrant is enforced by the Bailiff at no cost but it may take some considerable time (four weeks) for the Bailiff to visit.
If the proceedings are transferred to the High Court a High Court Enforcement Officer may execute a Writ within 48 hours of being instructed. The disadvantage of the Writ is that the cost is up to £1,000 depending on the complexity of the application.
Monies owed may be recovered by different methods depending on the tenant and if they have any assets. Such methods are as follows: attachment to earnings, third party debt orders and charges on assets such as property.
Please call on 0208 789 2556 or 07851306136 or use our online enquiry form
Debt Satisfaction
Certificate of Satisfaction
Quite often a company will require a debt to be satisfied and a certificate of satisfaction obtained proving the debt no longer exists. This often occurs if buying or selling a company or seeking finance. The County Court Judgement (CCJ) register contains details that a lender will check when deciding whether to provide credit or loan facilities. If a debt is unsatisfied (not paid) it may prove more difficult to obtain funds and on less favourable terms.
An application can be made in writing to the court that last heard your case for a ‘Certificate of Satisfaction’ enclosing the details of the debt and the attempts to clear it.