Wednesday, 11 May 2011

Why is Philip James letting agency charging me for an empty property?

I gave notice on my rental property early. Now the letting agent says I should pay running costs until new tenant moves in


    I moved out of a rental property – where I had signed a 12-month contract – eight months early, with two months' notice. The keys were handed in and bills paid up until the date I moved , 10 January. I obtained meter readings and the final bills were made from these figures. I have letters from the different energy providers – TV licence, council tax etc – that my balance is now zero on each account. However, I have just received a bill for £190 for five weeks' electricity usage from when I was no longer living at the property, or had the keys. The letting agency, Philip James (PJ), wants me to sign a form that says I was responsible for the property until a new tenant had moved in, or my year contract had come to an end. They also claim that I need to pay any running costs involved in this period. I thought that, if the property was vacant, there shouldn't be running costs. They had a £950 deposit, from which they have taken £800 to cover the rent for the month I had left early and they had not managed to find a tenant. I have also paid them a £450 re-advertising fee before I moved out. VB, Manchester  from the link: http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/apr/09/philip-james-letting-agency-empty-property

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