Miss Naomi Koningen was forced to rent out her property after it failed to sell in 18 months on the market.
However, after withholding rent and now refusing to leave the property, her tenants are using loopholes in the system learned from working as a Housing Officer for Lambeth Council, to stay put leaving Miss Koningen owing her mortgage company £9000.
In September 2010, after 18 months on the sales market, Miss Naomi Koningen was forced to rent out her lower ground floor, two double bedroom apartment in an old Victorian building in Streatham.
Unfortunately from the outset her tenants took it upon themselves only to pay £700 of the £1130 per calendar month as stated in the tenancy agreement, an amount which then declined over the following months until payment stopped altogether.
Miss Koningen says:
“One of the two tenants hadn’t passed the credit check, but desperate to cover the mortgage, I was naïve and took advice that this could just be down to poor credit rating and they could be trusted.”
Residing in the USA, Miss Koningen sent friends to the property to ask for the rent in order for her to pay her mortgage, at which point considerable damage, including a smashed window and broken furniture which had been left by Miss Koningen, as well as a strong smell of Marijuana was noted at the property.
“The tenants used excuse after excuse including unemployment and broken items to avoid paying rent, they refused to leave and told me they would never pay a penny in rent and there was nothing I could do without a court order.”
Paul Shamplina, founder of Landlord Action, a company specialising in tenant eviction, said:
“On instruction in January, we issued Section 21 and Section 8 notice to the tenants. The harsh reality is, that some tenants, and especially in this case, are aware that if they leave a property voluntarily, the council will not re-house them.
"However, if they are evicted, they may be eligible to be re-housed so the tenant has a vested interest to stay put which, in this case, has left Miss Koningen having to borrow money to avoid repossession.”
Offering advice on what to do if a defaulting tenant means mortgage payments cannot be made, David Whittaker of Mortgage for Business, says:
“Essentially, if a landlord finds themselves facing repossession, it is because they have left it too long to act. It is imperative that as soon as the tenant defaults on a payment which could jeopardise the ability to cover the mortgage, the lender is notified immediately.
"Lenders will act sympathetically and often agree a series of actions to avoid repossession. If you do not contact the lender and bury your head in the sand, then the lender must assume you are simply choosing not to pay.
"Often offering some contributory payment by way of demonstrating commitment to the issue, and proof of the steps you are taking to rectify it, will be sufficient.”
Paul Shamplina adds:
“Many landlords who bought properties at inflated prices but with minimum deposit at the peak of the market had unrealistic expectations of cashing in on the then booming market.
"As property prices have plummeted in value, those that have not been able to sell have been forced into the lettings market and whilst the market is buoyant for many, it has left an increasing number of amateur landlords vulnerable to the risks that come with renting a property.
"At Landlord Action, we have seen a sharp increase of cases where we are acting for landlords to evict their tenants, but at the same time, they are having mortgage repossessions made against them. Eviction can be a lengthy process and landlords must act as soon as a tenant fails to pay rent to avoid repossession.”
