Ending Landlord-Tenant Contract

LMrB on 22/12/2017 - 05:51

So my friend(let's call him Bob) is a landlord who currently has a tenant in his house. The tenant is 4 months in of a 12-month fixed term contract.

Bob want's to know if he can evict the tenant out and move into his own home to live there permanently. If possible, he plans to notify the tenant on January 7. He knows he has to give notice, but unsure of how long. He would like the tenant to be out by March or April 7th, the sooner the better.

I found that A tenancy agreement is automatically terminated if: … mortgagee—mortgagee take possession
from here, https://flatmates.com.au/info/wa-ending-tenancy

Backstory: Bob was renting a room from his friend but after a falling out he decided he might as well live in his own home and possibly rent out the other rooms.

Home & Garden

Comments

  • mskeggs on 22/12/2017 - 06:26
    +6

    It varies by state.

    • MrB on 22/12/2017 - 11:35

      I'm in WA. Should of stated that first.

  • djsherly on 22/12/2017 - 06:48
    +3

    the mortgagee is the guy who lends the money - ie the bank, so that clause you're talking about means the tenant is kicked out if the bank takes the property off the "owner".

  • modsec802 on 22/12/2017 - 06:59
    +3

    Nice story Mr “Bob”
    A fixed term lease is called a fixed term lease for a reason - it’s fixed.
    Unless “Bob” makes it very attractive to tenant to leave with compensation then nope.

    https://www.commerce.wa.gov.au/consumer-protection/lessor-en…

    • MrB on 22/12/2017 - 11:40

      " A fixed term lease is called a fixed term lease for a reason - it’s fixed. "

      That was the issue I was trying to see if was a way around it.

  • Some Human on 22/12/2017 - 07:09
    +2

    Lease agreement overrides everything.

  • rambutann on 22/12/2017 - 07:45
    +5

    Bob will have to offer some kind of compensation/have a mutual agreement with the Tennant. E.g. 1 months free rent or something. But even then that's a lousy compensation for being evicted after just a couple of months.. I'd be wanting at least 2 months free rent given the fact that there's so much time left on the lease agreement.

    • MrB on 22/12/2017 - 11:42

      No issue with compensation(maybe on how much), but mutual agreement seems to be the only option. It would be 7 months if they moved out April 7.

  • djkelly69 on 22/12/2017 - 08:38
    +3

    Assuming you/Bob are in WA, the answer appears to be that you can't terminate during a fixed term without cause (look at the termination notice and termination by landlord pages linked to on the site you linked above).

    You need to negotiate with the tenant so that you can mutually agree to terminate (offer to pay moving expenses, discount on rent, etc).

  • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 22/12/2017 - 08:43
    +2

    Bob will just have to find somewhere else to live.

    • MrB on 22/12/2017 - 11:51

      Bob already has, but was just seeing if there was any options to move back into his house earlier.

  • Well Wasted on 22/12/2017 - 09:50
    +1

    jeezuz… google W.A. rental law… Mr Bob.

  • c0balt on 22/12/2017 - 10:55

    When I bought my place there were tenants already there with around ~6 months left of the contract but I wanted to move in ASAP.

    I offered them 2 weeks free rent if they moved out within a month. I communicated with them through the REA who also happened to be the people managing the property before I bought it.

    They took it and everyone was happy, except the REA who lost management fees.

    • MrB on 22/12/2017 - 11:49

      That's great to hear, as it's the only option, maybe my friend could be that lucky.

  • bobbified on 22/12/2017 - 11:09
    +1

    If I was the tenant, I'd be pissed, to say the least!
    Moving is not an easy task and it's not one of those things you can just pay someone to do.

    • MrB on 22/12/2017 - 11:45
      +1

      I would be too. It's a young couple and the house already had some appliances like dishwasher, washing machine, and fridge so that could ease them with the moving, but then the hassle of finding another place.

  • Dean29 on 22/12/2017 - 11:50

    Let Bob move in with you until his tennants lease runs out

  • MrB on 22/12/2017 - 12:21

    Thanks all.

    Bob has already recently moved into another place on a monthly basis. I was just checking if the were any options for him to move into his house earlier. I assume he will be making the tenant an offer around mid-January next year.

    If the tenant doesn't accept, then he'll just wait until the contract is over, as per the original plan.

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