Rent increases when someone moves out

Mariahol

Hi just looking for some advice on this issue. I am currently sharing in a 3 bedroom house. I moved in at the end of August into a single room that was €400 with 2 girls who were paying €450 for their double rooms. 2 months ago one of the girls moved out and the landlord told us that we now have to make up the rent for the 3 bedrooms between the two of us until we find someone else to move in. This means I now pay €600 and the other girl pays €600. I'm just wondering if this is right? Can a landlord do that? Everyone is telling me that she cant bit the girl I live with says that has always been the way when someone moves out. Any advice would be appreciated.

Bikerman2019

Mariahol wrote: »

Hi just looking for some advice on this issue. I am currently sharing in a 3 bedroom house. I moved in at the end of August into a single room that was €400 with 2 girls who were paying €450 for their double rooms. 2 months ago one of the girls moved out and the landlord told us that we now have to make up the rent for the 3 bedrooms between the two of us until we find someone else to move in. This means I now pay €600 and the other girl pays €600. I'm just wondering if this is right? Can a landlord do that? Everyone is telling me that she cant bit the girl I live with says that has always been the way when someone moves out. Any advice would be appreciated.

It is all down to your rental agreement / lease. What does it say?

LilacNails

No that doesn't sound right. I have never had to do that when someone moved out here.

Mariahol

There was no contract when I moved in. None of them ever had to sign one

LilacNails

LilacNails wrote: »

No that doesn't sound right. I have never had to do that when someone moved out here.

Tenants being joined and severely liable for rent is a common t&c in a lease agreement.

punisher5112

Move into the double....

Grolschevik

Sounds like it's 1200 for the house, and you divvy that up between you however you see fit.

Edit: sounds like the landlord is taking a hit anyway, according to your numbers. 450+450+400 versus 600+600.

Mariahol

I have recently moved into the double and have the single room up for rent

Mrs OBumble

LilacNails wrote: »

No that doesn't sound right. I have never had to do that when someone moved out here.

Yes, it does sound right. The rent needs to be paid. If the headcount goes down, the payment per head goes up.

Get the empty room filled ASAP.

Pawwed Rig

Get another tenant maybe?

JimmyAlfonso

This is normal enough. When the girl moved out did the landlord make ye aware at the time (or the other girl should have mentioned it to you at the time - sounds like you only found out after the fact). When I lived in houses like this the person moving out would only get their deposit back if they filled their spot in less than a month. Times were different a few years back and no trouble filling a room I guess.

Vestiapx

Mariahol wrote: »

Hi just looking for some advice on this issue. I am currently sharing in a 3 bedroom house. I moved in at the end of August into a single room that was €400 with 2 girls who were paying €450 for their double rooms. 2 months ago one of the girls moved out and the landlord told us that we now have to make up the rent for the 3 bedrooms between the two of us until we find someone else to move in. This means I now pay €600 and the other girl pays €600. I'm just wondering if this is right? Can a landlord do that? Everyone is telling me that she cant bit the girl I live with says that has always been the way when someone moves out. Any advice would be appreciated.

When you moved in who placed the advert and who interviewed you for the position, who did you pay the deposit to?

Mariahol

Vestiapx wrote: »

When you moved in who placed the advert and who interviewed you for the position, who did you pay the deposit to?

The girl that was the longest in the house placed the advert, interviewed me and I gave the deposit to her

Vestiapx

Mariahol wrote: »

The girl that was the longest in the house placed the advert, interviewed me and I gave the deposit to her

Ok well then the landlord is right you are part of a group that rent the house from the landlord and when the group is smaller the rent per member is larger.
If the girl you mention didn't tell you this then she either assumed or conviently forgot.

How much notice did the girl moving out give ?

I've just realised something, the rent is 1200 a month has the landlord confirmed that it was always 1200 or is it definitely 1300 for the three ?

Mariahol

Vestiapx wrote: »

Ok well then the landlord is right you are part of a group that rent the house from the landlord and when the group is smaller the rent per member is larger.
If the girl you mention didn't tell you this then she either assumed or conviently forgot.

How much notice did the girl moving out give ?

I was told when I was already living in the house that this happens when someone moves out. The girl moving out had already told us that she was looking for a new place for a while and then she told us about 2 weeks before moving out that she was moving. She also paid a months rent in advance so that was paid up until the end of december

Mariahol

Vestiapx wrote: »

Ok well then the landlord is right you are part of a group that rent the house from the landlord and when the group is smaller the rent per member is larger.
If the girl you mention didn't tell you this then she either assumed or conviently forgot.

How much notice did the girl moving out give ?

I've just realised something, the rent is 1200 a month has the landlord confirmed that it was always 1200 or is it definitely 1300 for the three ?

The 3 rooms are 1,300 and now that we are paying 600 each it's only coming to 1,200 so I dont know. The landlord has never said anything the girl that was first in the house is the one that deals with her all the time

Meeoow

If the 3 of you rented the house together, fair enough.
But if you only moved in and rented a room, I don't see why you would be liable for the house rent.

Vestiapx

Mariahol wrote: »

The 3 rooms are 1,300 and now that we are paying 600 each it's only coming to 1,200 so I dont know. The landlord has never said anything the girl that was first in the house is the one that deals with her all the time

Is the tenancy registered with the prtb ? If so I think you can get the rent from that.

Del2005

Meeoow wrote: »

If the 3 of you rented the house together, fair enough.
But if you only moved in and rented a room, I don't see why you would be liable for the house rent.

The OP has no idea what they rented though. They need to see the lease to find out what they are renting.

The only good thing about the person moving out if they are renting the house is the landlord has fecked up and could have trouble increasing the rent if they get another tenant.

Meeoow

Del2005 wrote: »

The OP has no idea what they rented though. They need to see the lease to find out what they are renting.

The only good thing about the person moving out if they are renting the house is the landlord has fecked up and could have trouble increasing the rent if they get another tenant.

Is it the landlord or the other tenant though? Maybe the house was always 1200 per month, and the 2 original tenants told OP that they were paying 450 for the double rooms, but they were really paying 400.
If I rented a room in a house, no way would I cover an extra room. Obviously, OP needs to clarify whether they signed an agreement to rent a room, or to share a house.

Meeoow

Meeoow wrote: »

Is it the landlord or the other tenant though? Maybe the house was always 1200 per month, and the 2 original tenants told OP that they were paying 450 for the double rooms, but they were really paying 400.
If I rented a room in a house, no way would I cover an extra room. Obviously, OP needs to clarify whether they signed an agreement to rent a room, or to share a house.

If the house is shared rather than individual leases (which it sounds like it is as LL did not advertise for room to rent), would you be concerned about being evicted if rent is not received in full?

Del2005

Meeoow wrote: »

Is it the landlord or the other tenant though? Maybe the house was always 1200 per month, and the 2 original tenants told OP that they were paying 450 for the double rooms, but they were really paying 400.
If I rented a room in a house, no way would I cover an extra room. Obviously, OP needs to clarify whether they signed an agreement to rent a room, or to share a house.

That's why they need to see the original lease.

If I was paying money for a service I'd want to know what it was before handing over my money.

The OP has no idea what they are renting or what their status is. If they are renting a room they are a licencee and can be kicked out if they don't pay up. If they are renting the house they are a tenant and can't be evicted, but are responsible for the full rent.

Curious1002

Call Threshold and RTB and describe your situation. You will get a better and more professional advice there.

Pawwed Rig

Curious1002 wrote: »

Call Threshold and RTB and describe your situation. You will get a better and more professional advice there.

You have obviously never dealt with either. Threshold have been known to give out incorrect and illegal advice in their time and I doubt the RTB have a tenant hotline.

Curious1002

Pawwed Rig wrote: »

You have obviously never dealt with either. Threshold have been known to give out incorrect and illegal advice in their time and I doubt the RTB have a tenant hotline.

I did, in fact. Threshold provided me with absolutely the best advice I could get, won my case thanks to them.
There are plenty of uninformed or misinformed tenants here and lots of landlords who provide totally wrong and self serving advice to her so her best option is to contact Threshold and talk to them, not here. I guarantee they will tell her she does NOT need to pay extra. There is absolutely no chance she is liable to pay the increased rent. Period. No matter how aggravated all the landlords in here are - you do NOT pay the extra rent whatever the owner says you should do. It's his job to fill the room or to go after the initial 3 tenants who rented the place first. With no lease he can cry me a river. Wait for him to open the RTB dispute against you and people there will laugh at his face.
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Curious1002

Curious1002 wrote: »

I did, in fact. Threshold provided me with absolutely the best advice I could get, won my case thanks to them.
There are plenty of uninformed or misinformed tenants here and lots of landlords who provide totally wrong and self serving advice to her so her best option is to contact Threshold and talk to them, not here. I guarantee they will tell her she does NOT need to pay extra. There is absolutely no chance she is liable to pay the increased rent. Period. No matter how aggravated all the landlords in here are - you do NOT pay the extra rent whatever the owner says you should do. It's his job to fill the room or to go after the initial 3 tenants who rented the place first. With no lease he can cry me a river. Wait for him to open the RTB dispute against you and people there will laugh at his face.
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It is entirely likely that if it is a shared tenancy, each tenant is joint and severely liable for the rent. Until the op confirms the terms of the lease, you have no way of arriving at a definitive conclusion that the tenants are not liable for the rent.

What we do seem to sure if is that the op did not rent on a room only basis directly from the landlord. If the LL does not receive full rent from the remaining tenants, a notice of arrears may be issued, followed when the restriction is lifted, by eviction.

I do agree with you that threshold may tell the op not to pay, they have been known to give advice contrary to tenancy legislation and to overhold.

Incidentally, you might want to consider the implications of saying it is the landlords job to find someone to replace a departing tenant in a shared tenancy, would the op really want to leave that decision solely in the LLs hands? I wouldn’t.

BrokenArrows

If he rents a room directly from the landlord then he doesn't pay extra.

If he is a joint tenant then he does pay more because he is jointly liable for the whole rent regardless of the number of tenants.

Curious1002

Dav010 wrote: »

This is misinformed drivel.

It is entirely likely that if it is a shared tenancy, each tenant is joint and severely liable for the rent. Until the op confirms the terms of the lease, you have no way of arriving at a definitive conclusion that the tenants are not liable for the rent.

What we do seem to sure if is that the op did not rent on a room only basis directly from the landlord. If the LL does not receive full rent from the remaining tenants, a notice of arrears may be issued, followed when the restriction is lifted, by eviction.

I do agree with you that threshold may tell the op not to pay, they have been known to give advice contrary to tenancy legislation and to overhold.

Incidentally, you might want to consider the implications of saying it is the landlords job to find someone to replace a departing tenant in a shared tenancy, would the op really want to leave that decision solely in the LLs hands? I wouldn’t.

I lived in a shared accommodation and we ourselves were replacing the outgoing tenant but under no circumstances we were liable for their rent if there was a week/month break in finding the replacement. When all the people moved out and i was left living there on my own for 2 more months until my own termination date expired, i never paid a penny more. The LL told me to rent the remaining rooms for 2 more months to someone or to pay extra so just in case I called Threshold and they confirmed that 100% i dont have to pay and can enjoy the whole house until I go. This is identical situation, no lease in place like the girl said, so absolutely nothing the landlord can do to enforce this sick rule. I am sure that the girls are not sitting on their butts waiting for the LL to find a replacement and they actually look for someone who they will be comfortable with and on time. But they can't live with fear that they have to pay extra until someone agrees to live with them. That's a total BS. Dont provide such misleading and self serving advice to people.

Curious1002

Curious1002 wrote: »

I lived in a shared accommodation and we ourselves were replacing the outgoing tenant but under no circumstances we were liable for their rent if there was a week/month break in finding the replacement. When all the people moved out and i was left living there on my own for 2 more months until my own termination date expired, i never paid a penny more. Just in case I called Threshold and they confirmed that 100%. This is identical situation, no lease in place like the girl said, so absolutely nothing the landlord can do to enforce this sick rule. I am sure that the girls are not sitting on their butts waiting for the LL to find a replacement and they actually look for someone who they will be comfortable with and on time. But they can't live with fear that they have to pay extra until someone agrees to live with them. That's a total BS. Dont provide such misleading and self serving advice to people.

The op is not aware of the terms of the lease, that does not mean there is not a lease agreement. Departing tenants can assign their interest in the lease, the tenancy rights imparted by doing so are important to the new tenant. The LL will have a copy of the original lease agreement.

The t&cs which formed your tenancy do not necessarily apply to others, the RTB site clearly outlines that tenants should check if they they are joint and severely liable for rent/bills when moving into/replacing another tenant. If your lease did not include such a clause, you were lucky, it would have been a lot easier to evict you if you were in rent arrears.

https://www.rtb.ie/beginning-a-tenancy/choosing-a-property

Pawwed Rig

Curious1002 wrote: »

I guarantee they will tell her she does NOT need to pay extra. There is absolutely no chance she is liable to pay the increased rent. Period..

You cannot guarantee anything as you do not know the OPs status. They don't even seem to know their own status

spaceHopper

This goes one of two ways, you each rent a room from the LL so if one moves out its his problem not yours

Or the three of you rent the house from the LL and it makes on difference if there are 1 2 or 3 of you in it the rent is 1300 it's up to you how it is divided.

Also look at it this way he's running a business and he has to pay his mortgage.

You could call the RTB for advice they will set you straight and they carry more weight than threshold

Graham

Mod Note

Curious1002, please dial down the tone of your posts please. The goading is unnecessary and unwelcome.

Keep in mind there is nothing like enough information posted to ascertain the OPs position. You have no idea whether the OP is actually renting a room, is a joint tenant or something else. If you guess wrong, tenants might find themselves on the wrong side of an eviction notice. Don't do it.

Do not reply to this post.

the_syco

Curious1002 wrote: »

I lived in a shared accommodation and we ourselves were replacing the outgoing tenant but under no circumstances we were liable for their rent if there was a week/month break in finding the replacement.

Were you renting the room, or part of a lease for the house? It sounds like you had the former, whilst the OP has the latter. Unfortunately, without a lease the OP won't know if they are due to pay the rent or not.

OP; do you pay the rent to the landlord, or the "head tenant"?

Mariahol

the_syco wrote: »

Were you renting the room, or part of a lease for the house? It sounds like you had the former, whilst the OP has the latter. Unfortunately, without a lease the OP won't know if they are due to pay the rent or not.

OP; do you pay the rent to the landlord, or the "head tenant"?

I pay the rent to the head tenant and she transfers it to the landlord. I have never met the landlord. She told the head tennant that she is to do all advertising, interviewing possible tenants etc.

Meeoow

Mariahol wrote: »

I pay the rent to the head tenant and she transfers it to the landlord. I have never met the landlord. She told the head tennant that she is to do all advertising, interviewing possible tenants etc.

Has the head tenant been looking for a replacement for the other tenant yet? She gave a fair bit of notice that she was leaving didn't she?
What's on your lease?

Mariahol

Meeoow wrote: »

Has the head tenant been looking for a replacement for the other tenant yet? She gave a fair bit of notice that she was leaving didn't she?
What's on your lease?

Yes it has been advertised since the start of december. I havnt seen the lease or know if there is one I signed nothing moving in and nobody else had either. The advert is for a single room to rent

Mariahol

Mariahol wrote: »

Yes it has been advertised since the start of december. I havnt seen the lease or know if there is one I signed nothing moving in and nobody else had either. The advert is for a single room to rent

Ask your landlord for a copy. Note that there is no requirement for the lease to be written, but it does make life easier, and clearer for all concerned.

You don't have to sign a lease for one to exist. There is an 'implied lease' which provides all of the protections of an actual, physical lease, under the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA). It is to stop unscrupulous landlords from not providing leases as a means to bypass the Act.

However, that might mean SFA to you, depending on the living arrangements. If you were paying the head tenant, who in turn was paying the landlord, then you are not covered by the provisions of the RTA. You are a licencee, and have the same rights as someone who's sleeping on the sofa after a house party.

You and the other housemate have, essentially, been fcuked over by the one who left. They should have found someone to take over their portion or regularised the situation with the rent.

I'd tread carefully. The best solution, in the medium to long term, is to get the other room rented ASAP (covering the rent between yourselves until then) and request a lease. I'd request a separate lease for your room plus equal share of the common areas, if you want some sort of security.

The landlord may refuse, as is their right. They may jack up the rent, based on where the property is and how long ago they last increased it. They could, legally, throw all your sh1t out into the front lawn and change the locks, if the lease was with the old head tenant and you and the other one are licencees.

The other option is to have one lease and you all sign it. But if this happens again, and your other housemate fecks off without saying anything, you're now responsible for the whole rent. It's much less hassle for the landlord to go this route, but it carries significant risk as well, so be prepared to stand up for yourself. You would all be joint and severally liable for the rent, not to mention any other damage that could be inflicted, so it's in your best interests to look out for numero uno.

Bottom line: Get the landlord's number, sit down and have a chat with them and see what they have to say. Get a lease sorted ASAP. Get the other room rented out even quicker than ASAP.

Curious1002

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