I'm not paying rent and can't contact landlord!

dolly sprint

Hi i moved into a 1 bed in september paid 950 deposit and 950 month up front to a letting agent signed lease and moved in with rent to go out on 1st of every month but nobody has taking the rent and im kind of worried now as nearly 6 months after first months emailed the agent twice as all contact was to be done through the agent after second month again and 3 after 3rd month and tried ring so many times cant get trough does this seem a bit dodgy.

quietsailor

Whatever you do keep that rent money somewhere you can't spend it. Through no fault of yours someone has messed up but the LL will come looking for that money and you will have to pay it. Even if you bring a case to the PRTB saying you had no contact info they will tell you that you have to pay the LL, you can't NOT pay. If you spend the money and the LL comes looking for what sounds like 6 months money (6X€950 = €5700) is one hell of a lot of money to find in one go.
Keep a track of calls you make about this, try texts as well as it's hard proof.
Did you get as lease? that should have contact details on it.
You can contact the PRTB to get information on the LL and that'd prove you've been trying to contact the LL to pay rent.

There is a chance there is an innocent explanation for this - the agent might have had a falling out with the LL so now they won't be bothered dealing with anything as they're not getting paid any more - that coupled with a major illness for the LL could explain the lack of contact over no rent but it's strange all the same and alarming - most LLs get excited very quickly when rent doesn't come in.

On the more likely chance the LL isn't up to scratch I suggest making sure you have dated photos of every part of the flat showing the condition, if there are damaged items make a list and send it by text, email or registered post to the agent. The point of all this is to make sure you have a paper trail when you go to leave the house that the house was in a certain condition when you came in and it's as good as you leave.

Was there any broken items that the LL said they'll fix before you moved in but haven't been fixed?

What about the utilities - did you get them changed over to your name/set up and account at that address, if you didn't be careful as you could be caught to pay the previous tenants bills if the LL didn't properly deal with the end of the last tenancy

djimi

Keep sending registered letters to whatever address you have for the landlord & agent (you should been given both), every couple of weeks of so, outlining your unsuccessful attempts to contact the landlord in order to pay rent. Keep copies for yourself. Thats about as much as you can do to cover your ass; other than that all you can do is put the money aside and wait for them to contact you.

amdublin

Id the letting agent just a name or is a company?

Try google and see if you can locate him/her. Do they have an office?

Agree with others! Keep that rent money separate and don't spend it! You will need to pay it one way or another.

dolly sprint

I only have a name and number for letting agent they used to have an office when i searched online went out to where it is meant to be and its not there anymore and yes i have all the rent left aside in my account. as for having address for both was not giving any details on landlord only a name.

amdublin

Try searching on facebook for either of them.

Very very strange!

dolly sprint

I know thats why kind of worried about the whole thing as first property to live in dublin not knowing if someone going to land at the door looking for the money or what..then also was wondering if could be a nama type of thing could it be now owned by the bank and dont realise anybody is in the property it is just very strange.

Arbiter of Good Taste

OP I'm a little unclear. When you say no one has been taking the rent, do you mean that someone - either the LL or his agent is supposed to come and pick it up from you? Or should you have set up a standing order from your bank account? If it's the latter, perhaps the LL doesn't know (unlikely unless he's a professional LL with a number of properties though). The advice about sending registered letters is good. Also try emails. The best way to contact is a way you can keep proof. And definitely keep the rent safe. Someone will eventually look for it!

dolly sprint

the leting agent took are bank details to set it up then when i noticed it had not came out i emailed her a good few times have them all here to keep as proof. unfortunately we dont have an address to send registered letter to.

yankinlk

I would be VERY worried if I was the "tenant". A month or two maybe understandable, but 6 months means there is a serious disconnect between whoever is paying the mortgage ( if there is one) and you the tenant. I would be very slow to just accept the very next person to turn up at the door looking for 6 months rent.

The first thing I would do, if I intended to remain there, is change the locks. You could arrive home one day, and someone may do just that to you! Then you have to try and prove its your stuff inside.

Santa Cruz

dolly sprint wrote: »

I know thats why kind of worried about the whole thing as first property to live in dublin not knowing if someone going to land at the door looking for the money or what..then also was wondering if could be a nama type of thing could it be now owned by the bank and dont realise anybody is in the property it is just very strange.

I think that you could be on to something there. I know of a number of properties which have been taken over by the receiver with the result that rent is being paid for apartments and parking spaces to letting agents but not being forwarded to anyone. This is because the receiver is so overwhelmed with rental properties that they don't know what the score is. The owner has gone awol, left no details of letting agents etc. In some cases the letting agents have gone to the wall as well. I think once you have made a decent effort to pay the rent you need not do anymore. When the lease is up you could always leave and "wait for them to contact you" with a years rent "resting" in your bank account

john.han

dolly sprint wrote: »

the leting agent took are bank details to set it up then when i noticed it had not came out i emailed her a good few times have them all here to keep as proof. unfortunately we dont have an address to send registered letter to.

Shouldn't it have been you taking their details to set up a standing order? very strange

Mrs OBumble

dolly sprint wrote: »

the leting agent took are bank details to set it up then when i noticed it had not came out i emailed her a good few times have them all here to keep as proof. unfortunately we dont have an address to send registered letter to.

Ahh, neither a lettiing agent or anyone else can go to your bank and say "Pay me X per month from dolly sprint's account, here's the number.".

There is a type of thing called a direct-debit, which relies on the letting agent doing something each month to take the money out. But in order to set this up, the bank needs to have an instruction from YOU.

However in general direct debits are a really bad idea, because the other party controls the payment after it's setup. The only exception is for utility companies that are so large that there's a very public trust-factor involved and for which there is a genuinely varying amount each month (eg ESB).

For rent, a standiing order is a better idea. For this, you need to get the letting agent's details, and you go to the bank to set it up yourself. If the amount ever needs to change, then you need to go to the bank (possibly on-line) and change it. The other party does not control any of the details, they just see the amount and the reference code that you set up with it.

Gandalph

Texts suffice better than phone calls. Making copies of letters is a good idea too. If anything out of the blue happens and you have to go to the PRTB it won't matter to anyone what actions you said you took, it will be all about what actions you can prove you took. Email the PRTB and request help on the matter too, it will show that you displayed initiative to make contact with LL/Agent.

Edit; Oh and yeh keep a huge wad of cash in the bank to cover what ever rent you haven't payed already just in case.

djimi

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Ahh, neither a lettiing agent or anyone else can go to your bank and say "Pay me X per month from dolly sprint's account, here's the number.".

There is a type of thing called a direct-debit, which relies on the letting agent doing something each month to take the money out. But in order to set this up, the bank needs to have an instruction from YOU.

However in general direct debits are a really bad idea, because the other party controls the payment after it's setup. The only exception is for utility companies that are so large that there's a very public trust-factor involved and for which there is a genuinely varying amount each month (eg ESB).

For rent, a standiing order is a better idea. For this, you need to get the letting agent's details, and you go to the bank to set it up yourself. If the amount ever needs to change, then you need to go to the bank (possibly on-line) and change it. The other party does not control any of the details, they just see the amount and the reference code that you set up with it.

Its perfectly possible for a third party to set up a standing order to your account, provided you sign the form and fill out the details.

keeponhurling

I'd just "disappear", i.e. move out.
That way you crystalise your €5,700 gain.

Does the landlord have any way to find you if you don't live in that house anymore ?

the_syco

yankinlk wrote: »

The first thing I would do, if I intended to remain there, is change the locks. You could arrive home one day, and someone may do just that to you! Then you have to try and prove its your stuff inside.

Agreed.

On saying that, I'd move out before going on any holidays, in case you come back to find everything in a skip out front.

twinsen

dolly sprint wrote: »

Hi i moved into a 1 bed in september paid 950 deposit and 950 month up front to a letting agent signed lease and moved in with rent to go out on 1st of every month but nobody has taking the rent and im kind of worried now as nearly 6 months after first months emailed the agent twice as all contact was to be done through the agent after second month again and 3 after 3rd month and tried ring so many times cant get trough does this seem a bit dodgy.

Back in 2007 I was renting apartment in Rathmines. I would pay 700 a month. All was good until December when LL wouldn't show up. I would keep calling him every couple weeks, he would say he will show up to collect money but never did until June next year. Weird thing was that I would meet him couple times on the street, as he was living walking distance from me. Then in June he finally showed up, would collect only 3500 from 4200 I had for him. He wouldn't take the rest, and also apologised for not showing up earlier on. Also charged me only 50% of electricity cost for past 6 months.

Graces7

twinsen wrote: »

Back in 2007 I was renting apartment in Rathmines. I would pay 700 a month. All was good until December when LL wouldn't show up. I would keep calling him every couple weeks, he would say he will show up to collect money but never did until June next year. Weird thing was that I would meet him couple times on the street, as he was living walking distance from me. Then in June he finally showed up, would collect only 3500 from 4200 I had for him. He wouldn't take the rest, and also apologised for not showing up earlier on. Also charged me only 50% of electricity cost for past 6 months.

An old blind Yorkshire woman I knew used to assure me "There's nowt so queer as folks." So true.