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Topic starter
05/01/2012 4:43 pm
Hello all- hope everyone had a lovely festive season- here i am again with yet more questions
I have secured a rental property but not yet signed lease agreement- i have now been offered a great job elsewhere which would mean pulling out of the property which im due to move into in Feb- its likely the agent will want me to pay the full deposit on the flat if i dont proceed however this is problematic for me as i would need that money to fund a deposit for my new place if i take the offered job
All that i have signed was agreement for checks etc but it does say on the form that if i pull out then they may choose to charge me the full deposit- my question is- as i signed that agreement before starting my trust deed would any monies that the agent may want from me for pulling out be seen as a debt because im assuming that if i didnt pay they would pursue me.Therefore could it be added to the TD?
Im not sure what to do really i cant afford 2 deposits but the offered job is good and i couldnt commute- on the other hand i feel awful at the thought of letting anyone down- i cant sleep for stressing about it
Sorry about the long winded question but just wondred what others thought or if anyone ever been in this situation
Many Thanks B
05/01/2012 4:56 pm
Hi Bee.
That's an interesting one. It seems questionable whether you could be expected to pay over the full deposit amount for a property that you haven't actually rented.
My suggestion is that you refuse to pay the money if asked to on the grounds that it is unreasonable.
If they push on the matter you could inform them that you are in a trust deed and give them the contact details for your Trustee and tell them to make their claim to him or her. I doubt that they'll get in touch, I think they'd drop the matter at that point.
If they do get in touch your Trustee can adjudicate whether the debt should go into the trust deed or not on the basis of when the document was signed, and if so whether they accept that the debt is actually due. I doubt anything will reach this point though.
Please don't feel too bad. You contacted the agent in good faith without knowing that your situation and priorities would change. You haven't done anything wrong.
Qualified Debt Adviser & Forum Administrator - Ask me anything about Trust Deeds 
Topic starter
05/01/2012 5:00 pm
Thanks TDA i just feel awful at letting the landlord down and i guess the agent too- i have honestly considered not taking the job because it feels bad to let someone down even though its a lovely flat and will let again easily- time to go speak nicely to the agent- ive already given them £200 so hopefully they will let me out of it
B
05/01/2012 5:35 pm
Bee
Definitely do not let anyone persuade you that you are responsible for a deposit. Letting agents sometimes have a tenant waiting right up to the day of entry to get clearance on references etc. If your proposed entry was to be february, you are giving them loads of prior warning, I doubt it'll be an issue. We have had people's family/work and/or relationships change close to anticipated start of tenancy and it is just a fact of life-things change.
Aside from the above-what on earth was the £200 for?
