Everyone knows, courtesy of Simon and Garfunkel, there are 50 ways to leave your lover, but did you know your landlord has 18 ways to get you to leave?
Many of them are obvious (you broke the law), others are perhaps irritating (the landlord’s granny needs a gaff), while a few are plain obscure (a man of god needs his manse back).
Whatever the reason, they are clearly set out in the Private Housing Tenancies Act, which came into force in Scotland in December last year.
The act hailed the end of no-fault evictions where a tenant can be asked to leave despite not having broken any terms within the contract.
If a landlord wants you out, he or she should serve a notice to leave, citing grounds for eviction and providing evidence.
Crucially, landlords can’t make you leave just because they want to.
1. Say your landlord simply wants to sell the property then they are entitled to. But they have to provide evidence such as a home report- and do so three months after you’ve left.
2. If your landlord defaults on their mortgage or loan, the lender is within their rights to repossess the property and sell it on.
3. And, if they are planning a large-scale refurbishment that would mean living in the property would be dangerous or disruptive you can be evicted, but they must provide evidence of the work – such as planning permission or a contract with an architect.
4. But what if the landlord decides they want to move back in or (5.) one of their family members want to? They are entitled to evict you – but again they need to provide evidence such as an affidavit.
6. Evidence is also required if your landlord decides they want to transform your flat into office space or for any other non-residential purposes.
Landlords can still evict you for breaking the law…
7. You can be thrown out if you have a relevant criminal conviction that gives the landlord clear grounds.
8. The same applies if you, or allow someone else, use the property for illegal reasons or commit a crime within or near the property.
9. If you behave antisocially, causing someone alarm, distress or anything considered harassment – you can also be forced to leave.
10. You can even be evicted if you let someone else into your property who acts antisocially or commits a crime. This doesn’t even have to be a sub tenant or lodger, simply someone ‘the tenant lets into the property on more than one occasion’.
11. If you moved into a property because you needed community care, but have since been assessed as no longer needing any – then the landlord can request the property back.
12. Make sure you read your tenancy agreement, as if you don’t comply and breach any of the terms then you can be asked to leave.
13. And if you leave the property unoccupied and aren’t using it as your main home, the landlord can evict you. However, this doesn’t count if you moved out because the property was in disrepair and you had to leave for your own safety.
But, it’s not all down to you…
14. If your landlord has their registration refused or revoked by the local council then you are liable to be thrown out.
15. This is also true if your landlord has their House of Multiple Occupancy (HMO) licence removed or if they are served an overcrowding notice.
16. You can still be turfed out for rent arrears of three or more months in a row. Whether or not this is mandatory or discretionary is decided by the tribunal on a case by case basis.
17. If you lose your job, and that was the basis for your rental agreement, then you can be served with an eviction order.
18. And, in a bizarre twist landlords can also request an eviction if they are intending to let the property to a religious worker, such as a priest, nun, imam, rabbi or any other denomination.
But, this only works if the property has been previously used for this purpose -so if you live in a manse bear this in mind.
And finally…
The Private Housing Tenancies Act also contains a caveat that means if you feel you were misled into leaving the property by the landlord you can apply to a tribunal for a ‘wrongful termination order’.
If you’re successful, you can receive a payment of up to six months’ rent from your ex-landlord.
But if you refuse to leave a property, the landlord can apply to the same First-tier tribunal for an eviction order, citing one of the 18 grounds above.
