Tenant has not paid rent since March 2020

NoRegretsCoyote said:
No one knows the circumstances in any pseudonymous forum.

I re-iterate the claim that travel from Poland to Ireland remains possible. This is a positive not a normative statement.
Click to expand...
Indeed, but its not advisable to put ones health and the health of others at risk by crossing a continent to stack beans in another country.
 
Last edited:
Sarenco said:
The tenant has abandoned the property with rent left outstanding. That property could be housing somebody else.
Click to expand...

I have a good friend and an uncle who've returned to Ireland for Covid and will probably stay put. This was never a plan but life happens.

OP has a tenant who is in her home country (for whatever reason) and is not coming back for paid employment in Ireland. She has stopped paying rent.

To me these are all signals that she's not coming back at all.
 
If the renter is not replying to messages or emails, OP has to assume she's gone and not returning.
 
Sarenco said:
Why so?

The tenant has abandoned the property with rent left outstanding. That property could be housing somebody else.
Click to expand...
Ruthless!
Yes the person is in arrears, but property is hardly classed as abandoned. Steady on ...
Recall , there is small matter of worst worldwide pandemic in 100years ongoing since February in Europe.

Presume you advocate same attitude from the OPs bank, if they have fallen behind by two months, thats it, court order and repossesion, tough sh**e Paddy .

Sleep well.
 
Whoa! Steady on folks! The OP can't just assume the tenant has "vacated" the property and move in and change the locks. There's a huge risk that this could be ruled an unlawful eviction by the RTB and the landlord can face a whopping compensation award. Some facts need to be established first!
 
fidelcastro said:
We dont know the circumstances. With this approach, we might as well call it a day and open up 100%. What was the point of last 2 months of lockdown and massive financial expense locally of tens of billions - ah grand.?
Click to expand...
The point will soon be that without an economy we'll have no money to pay for anything including hospital staff and medication.

The pain of the tens of billions has yet to come. people have lost sight of that, due to their fear of getting Covid.

I’m pointing out that I know people travelling across borders. Including Ireland.
 
Just to remind people, this is what the OP actually posted
lostman said:
My tenant has not paid rent since March 2020 and I am paying my mortgage so I am in financial stress. She is from Poland and works in a local supermarket. She travelled to Poland before the lockdown and she is not able to come back to Ireland as there is no flights available.
Click to expand...
How anyone can leap from there to say the property is abandoned is beyond me. The OP is clearly maintaining contact with the tenant and has confirmed that the tenant said they are unable to return to Ireland. Now you may be cynical and say that to you this sounds like a ruse but that's only speculation on your part. The OP and the tenant will know better than any of us on that point.
The OP has not been back since the first post but hopefully they are able to resolve this without putting themselves at risk of any unlawful eviction. Hopefully the OP has been in touch with their bank to discuss options.
 
Well is it this

Baby boomer said:
Whoa! Steady on folks! The OP can't just assume the tenant has "vacated" the property and move in and change the locks. There's a huge risk that this could be ruled an unlawful eviction by the RTB and the landlord can face a whopping compensation award. Some facts need to be established first!
Click to expand...

or this

Sarenco said:
If I was in the OP's shoes, I would change the locks and try to re-let the property.

The property has been vacated, with rent outstanding, so this is perfectly legitimate.

Section 37(2) of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 provides that a tenancy will be deemed to have been terminated by the tenant upon any rent owed by him or her being in arrears for a period of 28 days or more if -

(a) whether before or after the end of that period, the tenant has vacated the dwelling; and
(b) no notice of termination has been served by the tenant in respect of the tenancy.

That provision has not been impacted by The Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (COVID-19) Act 2020.

The OP can obviously retain part or all of the deposit to cover the rent arrears. I would write off any arrears over and above that amount.

It probably makes sense to advise the tenant of this course of action as a matter of courtesy.
Click to expand...


If I were the landlord I know I would like to hear the second. But is it well based.

As anonymous internet posters go Sarenco has an impressive track record on tenant and property matters.

If the tenant isn't paying rent AND cannot be bothered to even make contact with the landlord, I wouldn't waste my sympathy on them.
 
Baby boomer said:
The OP can't just assume the tenant has "vacated" the property and move in and change the locks
Click to expand...
The OP told us his tenant travelled to Poland before the lockdown and has not returned. Factually, it is absolutely clear that the tenant has vacated the dwelling - whether or not she intended or intends to return to Ireland is irrelevant.

It is also clear from the OP that she is in arrears on owed rent for a period of 28 days or more.

Therefore Section 37(2) of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 applies - the tenant is deemed to have terminated the tenancy.

The OP can't unlawfully terminate a tenancy that no longer exists.
 
Hmmm, no offence, but I'd like the security of counsel's opinion on that, Sarenco! I think vacate has to mean more than not being physically present at a moment in time. At a minimum, if the tenant hasn't removed her belongings, cancelled services and redirected her post, and states she is only temporarily absent and wishes to return to the property in due course, it's hard to consider how the property is vacated in any meaningful sense. Clearly, there is contact ongoing so she hasn't vanished from the face of the Earth, nor does she appear to be evading communication.

You must also consider that the interpretation of 'vacated' will be in the hands of the RTB, not a body noted for a sympathetic approach to landlords. I can imagine sympathy for a tenant with a hard-luck Covid tale of being stranded abroad will only be amplified in the current times we're in.

The best practical advice for the OP is to test out the tenant's intention to return. If he were to offer to forgive the rent arrears in return for written confirmation that she is terminating the lease, then that would be a good outcome.
 
Baby boomer said:
At a minimum, if the tenant hasn't removed her belongings, cancelled services and redirected her post, and states she is only temporarily absent and wishes to return to the property in due course,
Click to expand...
Where are you getting these facts?! They're not in the OP.

Regardless, these "facts" are completely irrelevant. Vacating a dwelling simply means leaving the property uninhabited. The property has clearly been left uninhabited for weeks, with rent outstanding - the tenant has not been "temporarily absent".

The OP is in the business of providing accommodation for a return - he is not running a charity.

The best practical advice, IMO, is to cut his losses and re-let the property.
 
Sarenco, imagine just for a second you are the tenant. Imagine you went home for 2 weeks before these restrictions were in place. Imagine you do intend to come back to Ireland (you have no evidence to suggest that they do not). Imagine you are currently struggling financially because you are not receiving any support payments during this time (they won't be receiving any COVID related payments from the government here as they are not in the country - see another thread started by Purple on this). Imagine you are keeping in contact with the landlord and explaining your predicament to them (again as per the OPs only post in this thread this does sound like what is happening).
Imagine now that you find out that your rental property in Ireland has been let to someone else. Imagine your belongings have all been removed from the property.
Imagine you might have a good case to bring to the RTB here.
 
Ceist Beag said:
Imagine you might have a good case to bring to the RTB here.
Click to expand...
I don't see any case.

The law provides for what happens in these circumstances - the tenant is deemed to have terminated the tenancy.

The OP cannot be censured by the RTB for unlawfully terminating a tenancy that no longer exists.

As a matter of curiosity, how long do you think the OP should leave the property vacant without receiving any rent? Three months? Six months? A year?

Again, the OP is running a business - not a charity.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top