Q: MY LETTING agent has sent me a letter saying that the rent is increasing and I will struggle to meet this new increase.

I feel upset because I have replaced at my own cost some of the carpets within my flat, decorated, as rooms badly needed doing and repaired garden fences with the landlord's approval.

All on the understanding that the rent would be kept lower as I know the landlord who lives locally and he visits occasionally.

So why the increase and what can I do about it?

Mr R Fukit

A: Firstly it is not uncommon for rents to increase as costs generally increase for both landlords and tenants, which is termed ‘inflation’.

For example leasehold properties incur block management fees which can be higher due to, for example, extra maintenance or repairs to higher buildings insurance costs etc.

It sounds like you may already be in contact with the landlord in which case you could try writing directly to your landlord, asking him to pop around to see you.

This will then give you an opportunity to explain your financial situation and hopefully the landlord can see how well you are looking after the flat that and be willing to negotiate with you a figure that you feel happier paying.

Though as a general rule, whilst some tenants do take on some of the landlord's repair obligations, it is usually best these are left as a landlord expense.

The reason is that repair costs are tax deductible and the most tax efficiently way of dealing with these is as a landlord expense.

There are examples of where rent can in increased.

For example it may be that your fixed term tenancy agreement already had clauses within it stating the rent increases every defined period of time in line with for example ‘retail price index’.

You would not be able to do anything about this should the Landlord insist on the increase.

However a clause that states that the Landlord has the right to increase to any figure he/she wishers would not be enforceable.

The reason is that the clause needs to contain a ‘provision’, some form of certainty of what the increase will be.

Should this tenancy become a statutory periodic tenancy then any rent increase clauses in the fixed term agreement will lapse as confirmed in the case of London District Properties v Goolamy.

From what you have said it would appear that you probable have a statutory periodic tenancy in which case I would suspect that the Letting Agent has sent you a S13 notice under Housing Act 1988.

This should be in a ‘prescribed form’ and should also include notes which details how to appeal against the rent if you think that the increase is unfair.

This is via a ‘Rent Tribunal’ who will look at the market rate for your property in your area.

The very fact that you have done favours for your landlord would not be taken into account.

So it is important that you do not over provide any gratuity without first obtaining some undertaking from your landlord as to how possible rent increases will be handled in the future to avoid your current dilemma.

Please continue to send in your letting related questions to steven@sawyersestateagents.co.uk