L insists that rent be paid from tenants' joint account

[Anna Morris]

Hi there

My friend and I are planning to move into a 2 bedroom rented propery in London next month.

The Landlord is insisting that the rent is paid every month from one account. That's £1100 from one account every month. My friend and I are close, but we want to pay our portion of the rent (split evenly) from each of our own accounts.

I've been renting flats for 6 years and never ever had to pay from one account, it's always been my portion of the rent from my own account.

What's angered me is that the tenants currently there (two friends) pay from seperate accounts. But the landlord insists it must be from one, for us!

I don't want to lose the flat, but also I don't want to anger the landlord. I have said that I do not agree with him and am waiting for a response.

He says we are jointly responsible for the rent and wants it from one account just in case one of us can't pay it one month! Surely that's not fair on the person responsible for it coming out of there account?

Please advise!

a
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[sam_ldn]

One option is for you and your friend to set up a joint bank account & use this account to pay the rent. It could also be used to pay the bills.

[Poppy]

I hope you realise that you are both equally responsible for paying one hundred per cent of the rent.

The landlord can ask that he receives a single payment from the both of you. Equally there is nothing to stop you paying two amounts on or before the rent day. You simply need to weigh up whether you want to start your landlord/tenant relationship on a silly difference of payment methods.

Does this sound like a landlord you want to rent from? What's preventing the two of you arranging things between yourselves whereby one gives the other half the rent, and that person gives the landlord the whole amount?

Sam's idea is equally feasible. The choice is yours.

[davidjohnbutton]

From an accounting point of view, as a landlord myself, its a lot easier if you are looking for one payment to arrive in relation to one property than it is to correlate two payments from different sources for that one property, both of which might arrive on different dates.

If the landlord has a number of properties, he will obviously need to know who has paid in what for which property. Having two payments coming in as aforesaid makes it just that bit more difficult - why should the landlord have extra admin duties? There is nothing sinister or wrong about insisting the rent payment arrives as a single payment each month and clearly that is what this landlord wants in order to keep his books straight.

[Anna Morris]

Thanks for your messgaes Poppy and Sam and for clearing that up. I don't think it's a 'silly' to question it though - I was simply confused and didn't know if it was ok or not.

[Paul Gibbs]

What would LL do if you failed to pay in a single payment from a single account. It would be in breach of the agreement (assuming it is an express clause) but in reality I highly doubt a LL will issue a s8 notice under ground 12 and be successful in getting possession - that being said if it does annoy them they might serve a s21 for the end of the tenancy and not renew it, but you have that risk anyway.