Landlord reference letter

Earthlinghere · 30-09-2020 8:55pm #1

Hi folks,

I have been living at my current place (rented) since about 3.5 years. So yesterday I requested a landlord reference letter from my landlord. I initially texted him and he didn't respond. So I rang him and he did not answer. When I rang him the second time, he asked if I was leaving. I said no and but I wanted to start looking for a new place (which is true). He said I need to give at least 6 weeks notice, my contract said 4 weeks. (By the way the contract wasn't renewed after the first year, but it had a clause saying the terms to continue after the expiry of the contract.) So, anyway, he agreed to 4 weeks and kept asking again and again if I would give sufficient notice or if I was leaving. I told him I wasn't leaving straight away but need to keep references ready as I would start looking soon. He said yesterday he would send over the reference letter today but he hasn't. I need to remind him tomorrow. It does seem like he is playing games and delaying the reference letter on purpose as he is trying to gauge if I'm leaving soon and how urgently I need the letter.

Anybody have any suggestions? This is very stressful for me and is causing me anxiety. I was thinking of following up today itself but I think I will hold on until tomorrow. I have been a good tenant and have always paid my rent on time. It's frustrating and causing me a lot of stress when the landlord is acting difficult while issuing a reference letter. Anyboday had this type of experience? As a tenant do I have any rights in this situation?

Thanks!

Dav010 · 30-09-2020 10:15pm

You do not have a right to a reference, it is a courtesy on behalf of the Landlord. References are not usually given until notice has been served and property has been inspected at the end of the tenancy. Having said that, if you are a good tenant, you deserve a good reference,

In relation to the notice you need to give your LL, having been there 3.5yrs, you are legally required to give your LL 56 days/8 weeks notice irrespective of what the lease agreement says. Having given the correct notice in writing, you and the LL are free to agree a shorter notice period if you both wish.

Op, you are being a little presumptuous by asking for a reference before you even give notice. The LL may be concerned that you could become a problem tenant after the reference has been given.

Earthlinghere · 30-09-2020 10:43pm

Dav010 wrote: »

You do not have a right to a reference, it is a courtesy on behalf of the Landlord. References are not usually given until notice has been served and property has been inspected at the end of the tenancy. Having said that, if you are a good tenant, you deserve a good reference,

In relation to the notice you need to give your LL, having been there 3.5yrs, you are legally required to give your LL 56 days/8 weeks notice irrespective of what the lease agreement says. Having given the correct notice in writing, you and the LL are free to agree a shorter notice period if you both wish.

Op, you are being a little presumptuous by asking for a reference before you even give notice. The LL may be concerned that you could become a problem tenant after the reference has been given.

Thanks for your response. I didn't realise that I needed to provide 56 days of notice despite what the contract said. A little strange to me. I asked for a letter in advance, as advised by a couple of friends who did the same when they went looking for new places, as LL ref letter is a requirement these days. They did not face any issue in acquiring it, so I didn't expect any challenges either. That said, I now understand that it is a courtesy on behalf of the LL and that I'm not automatically entitled to getting one.

However, I don't see any reason for my LL to be worried, as I have been a good tenant with a good history. Paid my rent on time and kept my premises clean. So why would I go berserk all of a sudden just because I get the letter and intend to leave. But lets say even if the LL had any concerns in that aspect or any concern at all he can talk it out with me, rather than not answer text, call and cause delays after promising to provide letter today. It's just causing unnecessary stress, which one shouldn't be subjected to. I wish the communication had been clearer rather than playing games.

Caranica · 30-09-2020 11:43pm

You probably rattled your ll by insisting on 4 weeks notice. Neither party can contract away your statutory entitlements and he is entitled to 56 days.

Under those circumstances I can see why a reference would take some time to arrive.

Don't expect details either, X rented my property from date to date is probably all they need to provide. Like with a job reference, giving any further detail could be risky.

Not what you want to hear on either matter I'm afraid.

Earthlinghere · 30-09-2020 11:58pm

Caranica wrote: »

You probably rattled your ll by insisting on 4 weeks notice. Neither party can contract away your statutory entitlements and he is entitled to 56 days.

Under those circumstances I can see why a reference would take some time to arrive.

Don't expect details either, X rented my property from date to date is probably all they need to provide. Like with a job reference, giving any further detail could be risky.

Not what you want to hear on either matter I'm afraid.

No worries, I appreciate your response. I'm glad I posted here for thoughts and perspective. Things about notice period and reference letter are clearer to me now than before.

spaceHopper · 01-10-2020 11:04am

He's probably doing other things and from the sound of it it's not urgent, can't expect him to say how high when you say jump give it a week then remind him.

Baby01032012 · 01-10-2020 11:09am

You need to know what your rights and obligations are. These are on the Rtb website. As stated already if you haven’t given notice you can’t expect a reference. How does landlord know you are going to pay your last months rent, he doesn’t even know when you’re leaving and the fact that you tried to cut short your 8 week notice period I certainly wouldn’t give a reference in those circumstances.

crossmolinalad · 01-10-2020 11:16am

Baby01032012 wrote: »

You need to know what your rights and obligations are. These are on the Rtb website. As stated already if you haven’t given notice you can’t expect a reference. How does landlord know you are going to pay your last months rent, he doesn’t even know when you’re leaving and the fact that you tried to cut short your 8 week notice period I certainly wouldn’t give a reference in those circumstances.

But a new landlord wants a reference from a previous landlord before thinking about it to rent out his property to you
No reference no house

wench · 01-10-2020 11:19am

I expect your approach of "I'm not leaving, but I want to start looking" has him concerned.

If you look on Daft, most rentals aren't looking for someone in 4 - 6 weeks time, they're ready now.
For you to be at the point of needing a reference would imply you're about to leave imminently.

Combined with your urgency of a text and two phone calls within 24 hours, I can see why he'd think you're about to jump ship.

Dav010 · 01-10-2020 12:47pm

crossmolinalad wrote: »

No reference no house

No obligation.

Earthlinghere · 01-10-2020 3:27pm

wench wrote: »

I expect your approach of "I'm not leaving, but I want to start looking" has him concerned.

If you look on Daft, most rentals aren't looking for someone in 4 - 6 weeks time, they're ready now.
For you to be at the point of needing a reference would imply you're about to leave imminently.

Combined with your urgency of a text and two phone calls within 24 hours, I can see why he'd think you're about to jump ship.

I see that now, makes sense. And it's always tricky - where you are expected to take up the new place straight away and serve a 4 or 8 week notice period at your previous place. So you either lose the new place, or the deposit, or end up paying rent at two places for the transition month.

Earthlinghere · 01-10-2020 3:32pm

crossmolinalad wrote: »

But a new landlord wants a reference from a previous landlord before thinking about it to rent out his property to you
No reference no house

Yes, that's the glitch. When you go for a viewing, you are expected to have a landlord ref letter at hand. But you can't get one until you have served your notice period. And you can't give notice until you know you got the new place. So, how does one work through this?

Dav010 · 01-10-2020 3:36pm

Earthlinghere wrote: »

Yes, that's the glitch. When you go for a viewing, you are expected to have a landlord ref letter at hand. But you can't get one until you have served your notice period. And you can't give notice until you know you got the new place. So, how does one work through this?

Are there not lots of vacant rentals at the moment? When you serve correct notice, you have two months to find a new place, how long do you need?

Earthlinghere · 01-10-2020 4:01pm

Dav010 wrote: »

Are there not lots of vacant rentals at the moment? When you serve correct notice, you have two months to find a new place, how long do you need?

Ah, so you are suggesting serving the notice and then finding a new place. There definitely are not lots of vacant rentals at the moment, where I live and where I'm looking to rent. And I'm looking to rent a place for my own, not the sharing type. So I'm conscious of my budget and also the fact that there's not that many of them. And to the ones you apply to, you don't always get a response as the demand is far too high, and I am at a disadvantage until I have the ll ref letter. Hope it's clearer now as to why it's so difficult.

LorelaiG · 01-10-2020 5:49pm

Why are you even looking to leave your current property in a housing crisis?

Lux23 · 01-10-2020 5:59pm

My landlord refused so I gave the letting agency his name and number; when the rang he just said we we good tenants and hung up! We still haven't found anywhere but that is more to do with fussiness than anything!

Lux23 · 01-10-2020 6:00pm

LorelaiG wrote: »

Why are you even looking to leave your current property in a housing crisis?

What a ridiculous question!

01-10-2020 6:45pm

spaceHopper wrote: »

He's probably doing other things and from the sound of it it's not urgent, can't expect him to say how high when you say jump give it a week then remind him.

Not urgent from the landlord's point of view perhaps, a bit more urgent from the tenant's. Doing "other things" should really involve assisting his renter if he is giving her an eviction notice through no fault of her own. It's a reference letter FFS not an application form for NASA, it takes two minutes.

Bio Mech · 01-10-2020 6:52pm

LorelaiG wrote: »

Why are you even looking to leave your current property in a housing crisis?

Because you cant secure a property you think nobody else should be looking to move even if they can?

LorelaiG · 01-10-2020 8:14pm

Bio Mech wrote: »

Because you cant secure a property you think nobody else should be looking to move even if they can?

:rolleyes: I'm hardly worried about the OP poaching one of the houses I'm applying for.

OP has admitted that there's nothing wrong with his current property just wondering why the rush to look for somewhere else if that's the case tbh. Being nosey if you like...

Earthlinghere · 01-10-2020 8:25pm

LorelaiG wrote: »

:rolleyes: I'm hardly worried about the OP poaching one of the houses I'm applying for.

OP has admitted that there's nothing wrong with his current property just wondering why the rush to look for somewhere else if that's the case tbh. Being nosey if you like...

I never "admitted" that there's nothing wrong with the current property. If you look at my posts, all I said was I have been a good tenant and paid my rent on time and kept the premises clean. Anyway the property is far from perfect but I have my own reasons for wanting to move out, which I don't wish to discuss here.

gauchesnell · 01-10-2020 10:59pm

I moved back in July and I also asked for a reference letter before I secured a place and before I gave notice. Good way to have all your docs in order. My LL who was great but took about a week to respond to me. A reference letter is just 2 lines thats all.

Not presumptuous at all ..only advice is be patient. I also agreed to go for 4 weeks notice and not the statutory amount. Suited us both. Not having a LL reference doesnt stop you securing a property - dont worry.

Oh and I saw a few posts on this - yes I ended up paying double rent once I found somewhere new. Thats happens. Im in Dublin and found somewhere no probs but yes I paid double rent for one month.

Everyone has their own reasons to move but weirdly during a pandemic is a good time.

Earthlinghere wrote: »

Hi folks,

I have been living at my current place (rented) since about 3.5 years. So yesterday I requested a landlord reference letter from my landlord. I initially texted him and he didn't respond. So I rang him and he did not answer. When I rang him the second time, he asked if I was leaving. I said no and but I wanted to start looking for a new place (which is true). He said I need to give at least 6 weeks notice, my contract said 4 weeks. (By the way the contract wasn't renewed after the first year, but it had a clause saying the terms to continue after the expiry of the contract.) So, anyway, he agreed to 4 weeks and kept asking again and again if I would give sufficient notice or if I was leaving. I told him I wasn't leaving straight away but need to keep references ready as I would start looking soon. He said yesterday he would send over the reference letter today but he hasn't. I need to remind him tomorrow. It does seem like he is playing games and delaying the reference letter on purpose as he is trying to gauge if I'm leaving soon and how urgently I need the letter.

Anybody have any suggestions? This is very stressful for me and is causing me anxiety. I was thinking of following up today itself but I think I will hold on until tomorrow. I have been a good tenant and have always paid my rent on time. It's frustrating and causing me a lot of stress when the landlord is acting difficult while issuing a reference letter. Anyboday had this type of experience? As a tenant do I have any rights in this situation?

Thanks!

Earthlinghere · 02-10-2020 9:36am

gauchesnell wrote: »

I moved back in July and I also asked for a reference letter before I secured a place and before I gave notice. Good way to have all your docs in order. My LL who was great but took about a week to respond to me. A reference letter is just 2 lines thats all.

Not presumptuous at all ..only advice is be patient. I also agreed to go for 4 weeks notice and not the statutory amount. Suited us both. Not having a LL reference doesnt stop you securing a property - dont worry.

Oh and I saw a few posts on this - yes I ended up paying double rent once I found somewhere new. Thats happens. Im in Dublin and found somewhere no probs but yes I paid double rent for one month.

Everyone has their own reasons to move but weirdly during a pandemic is a good time.

Thank you, I appreciate your response I'm in a similar situation.

spaceHopper · 02-10-2020 9:41am

Earthlinghere wrote: »

I see that now, makes sense. And it's always tricky - where you are expected to take up the new place straight away and serve a 4 or 8 week notice period at your previous place. So you either lose the new place, or the deposit, or end up paying rent at two places for the transition month.

Most LL's have a mortgage to pay so yea notice is required, and it's a two way street how would you feel if he rocked up with one of his kids and said move out they are moving in tomorrow.

Graces7 · 03-10-2020 6:02am

Earthlinghere wrote: »

I see that now, makes sense. And it's always tricky - where you are expected to take up the new place straight away and serve a 4 or 8 week notice period at your previous place. So you either lose the new place, or the deposit, or end up paying rent at two places for the transition month.

Possibly it just came as a shock to him? Unexpected. In these difficult times. Let him get used to the idea then ask again?

Earthlinghere · 03-10-2020 11:17am

Graces7 wrote: »

Possibly it just came as a shock to him? Unexpected. In these difficult times. Let him get used to the idea then ask again?

I got it

crossmolinalad · 03-10-2020 12:35pm

Dav010 wrote: »

Are there not lots of vacant rentals at the moment? When you serve correct notice, you have two months to find a new place, how long do you need?

Im my case it took 9 months but luckely the landlord did accept the rentbooks as a reference
last adress i lived 6 years and paid on time , so new landlod said you have paid on time and lived overthere for six years ?? i dont see any problems

Landlord reference letter

Comments