How is last month's rent handled here?

We are used to/would like to pay our last month's rent from our deposit.  We've been here nearly four years, fwiw, in this rental home.

Our deposit equals 1.5 month's rent, plus accrued interest.  We'd like to apply this deposit to our last month's rent, and then our landlady would have the rest (approx. £1k) toward repairs, cleaning.

If we have to pay our last month's rent, AND she keeps the deposit, then we are worried that if we have to fight her over any of this money, we'll be living in the States and it will be difficult.  She is permitted to keep this deposit for six weeks after we leave the house.

Thanks!

Unfortunately if that is what it says in your lease, then your landlady is entitled to stick to that.  Have you asked her about it? She might be agreeable to your suggestion.   

Maybe you could suggest a preliminary walk through before the actual move out date, so that the landlady can see there is no major structural damage.  She might be more agreeable to let you pay rent out of your deposit, if she knew there were no problems.

Our lease says the deposit can be applied toward any unpaid rent.  If we simply don't pay last month's rent, then I assume the deposit would be used (per the lease agreement).  But that seems a bit hard ball, for lack of a better term.

I like the idea of a prelim walk through to assure her there is no structural damage.  The estate agents were here yesterday to assess the home value (she is selling the home; good timing for her and us) so they should be able to weigh in on this, too. 

If that's what you lease says, then what is the problem? Just let her know ahead of time that's what you want to do.

Yes, fair enough, we can let her know that.  I think we were looking more for the custom of how these things are handled here, but having thought about it, who cares?  The lease agreement is all that matters, not 'how it's done'.

Thanks very much!

I think that a lot of it will depend on your relationship with your landlady.  In the past I have cancelled my direct debit a month in advance and let them keep the deposit simply because I didn't trust my landlady.

Vicky

I think that a lot of it will depend on your relationship with your landlady.  In the past I have cancelled my direct debit a month in advance and let them keep the deposit simply because I didn't trust my landlady.

Vicky

Ditto!  Many are not to be trusted.

I agree, it really varies from one landlord to another.  When we moved out of our London flat, our landlord was quite happy to deduct our last month's rent from the deposit but when we moved out of our house in Canterbury they weren't and in fact wanted an additional 3 weeks rent as we gave notice on something like the 3rd of the month instead of the 1st! I cancelled our standing order and told them to get stuffed! That was a letting agent though, not a private landlord/lady.

Our psycho landlord really tried to pull one last fast one on us. We gave our 30 day notice on the first of the month and told her to take the last month's rent out of the deposit (and she could gladly keep the £400 to get her out of our lives). Anyway, the handover day (house left in nice shape, I took tons of pics as proof) she pulls out a blank template lease and says "you owe me another £800 because you were supposed to give two months notice" there was a break clause in this fake/blank lease but not in the real one. My husband asked why she was showing him a blank template and not the actual lease and she said "oh the actual lease is at home somewhere".    Yes, truly psycho! I had a copy of the real one in my work bag because I didn't want to lose it during the move...and of course it was 30 days...I had read that lease over and over prior to giving notice.

Needless to say I was baned by my husband from attending the handover...and it was a good thing because I would have probably ripped her head off. (Some of you know the prior troubles she gave us so I would have probably ended up in jail....the ironic part is I have never physically harmed anyone in my life but that woman could really push my buttons). 


One thing I forgot to mention....the landlady was in her early 60s! She presented herself as this middle class, proper lady but boy did she have a lot of tricks up her sleeve. Bottom line, message to all.... watch your back because even the ones that appear to be nice can be vipers.

Jules -

I know what you mean about that there's always 'someone' who you really clash with for whatever reason!

There's a certain somebody that I wouldn't just send a bag of poop to (a la niku 2 idea!) but I really have the strong urge to find out their home address and send around a ton of manure dumped (excuse the pun!) on their driveway!

that would really make my day with that person !

I think you should name and shame the landlady who has irked you!

Cheers! DtM! West London & Slough UK! - and a GOOD landlord!!!

There's a certain somebody that I wouldn't just send a bag of poop to (a la niku 2 idea!) but I really have the strong urge to find out their home address and send around a ton of manure dumped (excuse the pun!) on their driveway!

that would really make my day with that person !

HA! If I knew I could get away with it and not confess to my husband....I would!   

Unfortunately my guilt and his "higher road" mind set won't allow me to do it. 

She will get her just do in another way, although, I won't know about it. I will say that I did feel like ratting her out to her mortgage lender because they didn't know that she was renting the place out.  She even put a clause in the lease that we had to collect her mail...hmm, didn't realize why until we figured out she was so ruthless. Oh yeah and Corgi since she refused to get an annual inspection on the gas boiler.