Can you evict an abusive tenant - twice?

[Redflower]

Hello,

 

I live with my partner in a house share with 5 bedrooms. We didn't know anybody before we moved in, it was fully occupied. One of the other tenants called 'Ben' is aggressive and has a bad habit of flying off the handle: shouting, pacing back and fourth through every room and corridor in the house repeatedly, screaming into what sounds like the telephone, non-stop swearing in a way to be intimidating and unapproachable, constantly muttering under his breath and just generally being a very angry person. When he is in an especially bad mood, he throws things and turns a somewhat quiet house into what feels like a prison cell. Ben's aggressive behaviour is not limited to being in a bad mood, he boasts to other housemates about fights he has seen or been involved with and physically acts them out. He's also racist and loves to slam doors repetitively and violently until the early hours keeping us awake. My partner and I completely avoid him and only use the bathroom next door to our bedroom - completely ignoring the living room and kitchen so we don't accidentally bump into him.

 

He was served his first eviction with the previous landlord who tried to evict him on the grounds that he was a smoker. Which didn't work because it breaks discrimination laws, both the landlord and Ben got solicitors and this is still an on-going process. I think the real extent to Ben's abuse towards the last landlord is unknown to us as he seems to have developed an unsavoury reputation amongst the landlords who I have spoken to. I understand if he was being evicted unlawfully but he totally flies off the handle and doesn't have to react the way he does. With the new landlord, I told him the situation and he said he wanted to try to evict him for breaching the peace. My question is, with a previous case on-going will the eviction with a new landlord work this time?

 

Thanks for reading,

Red

[rosephase]

I think you need to start looking for a new place to live. Don't wait for the landlord to maybe sort out what can be done. Living under that stress is awful. The best way to be free of it is to find a new place yourself.

[RedDress]

I think you should just move. Seriously.

 

Let's look at the 'normal' process.

 

Usually landlords are hesitant to evict paying tenants. Before they do, they normally (even legally) have to try to resolve the issue with discussions and warnings. Most 'normal' people will either alter their behavior or move because they are tired of being harassed. In the few cases where it continues to escalate, a landlord may resort to eviction. Most landlords take this seriously and consult a solicitor. In turn, most 'normal' people start to look for a new place to live. Again - whether or not it's justified, who wants to live in a place where the landlord clearly does not want you?? Most people opt for peace. This guy did not do that - he got his own lawyer (which is expensive, time consuming and frustrating). Then, it looks like the landlord sold the place? (To get away from him, maybe? And the case is still ongoing?). Now the new landlord wants to try with a different reason.

 

It sounds like this guy likes to fight. I would not be surprised if he spoke to his lawyer and tried to say that this is another bogus reason. He's clearly in it for the fight, and frankly, (at least where I am) this can take YEARS to resolve. Will he eventually be evicted? Probably. But, as a renter, this really isn't your problem.

 

One of the perks of renting over buying is that at the end of your lease, you can simply move for any reason that catches your fancy - for location, for price, for the color of your walls, for noisy or annoying neighbors.

 

I don't think you should wait it out. I think you should take advantage of the fact that you are renting and simply move. Let the landlord sort all the rest out.

[Redflower]

Thank you for your replies, I have already thought about moving and am in the process of trying to save up. I've just graduated from University and finished a temporary job which lasted less than a month. So I don't have savings, my partner does not quite have enough to save for two deposits and the admin fees necessary for a new place. I spent up on the savings i had for this house - we thought we would be better off and have experienced first-hand how awful (and long) it can get when there are tenants who are determined to cause maximum disruption/distress.

 

In addition, my partner buries his head in the sand and ignores these problems, he doesn't want to move because he's just too lazy. So I'm considering moving myself but feel guilty because then he'd be paying for the room on his own. I think he would be able to afford it - but I don't want to make him feel abandoned with it? Am I thinking about his needs too much?

[LaHermes]

This frightful situation didn't start recently, did it?

 

I find this quite horrifying, and been going on for a long time.

 

 

[RedDress]

Am I thinking about his needs too much?

 

Yes.

 

You aren't abandoning your bf. You are asking him to move with you. If he chooses not to move with you, he is abandoning you just as much as you are abandoning him.

 

You don't need to live in an abusive place where you are worried about going into certain areas of the space.

 

It's ok that your bf is not bothered by it. But, if he can't understand why YOU are bothered by it and would want to move, he's not a very good boyfriend.

 

Your needs matter too.

[Redflower]

Hi LaHermes,

 

That was a house share I lived in and got out of eventually, I had a lot of mental health problems after that. My partner and I moved into a lovely flat in a nice area - we were happy! until the council tax kept creeping up, the landlord sold the flat so we had to find somewhere not as pricey. We opted for a house share as there wasn't enough on the market for our price bracket. We found one in a totally different area, the landlords are good and supportive. But again we have had bad luck.