Evictions and notices

If you are renting from a private landlord or agent there are rules they will have to follow to issue you with a legal and valid notice. These rules apply to Wales only and other areas have different rules. The rules include:

• They cannot ask you to leave your home without giving you at least 6 months notice. Find out more from Shelter Cymru.
• The agent or landlord must be registered and licenced with Rent Smart Wales.
• If a deposit was taken, it must be in a deposit protection scheme.

There are different rules which apply if you are in breach of your contract. Visit Shelter Cymru website for notice advice.

If you have been issued a notice to quit from your private landlord or agent, contact the Housing Advice Line on 029 20570 750 as soon as possible. You can also speak to Shelter Cymru for advice. Do not give your keys back or move out without speaking to the Housing Options service first. If you do move out first, the help we can offer may be limited.

If the date on the notice has passed, you still have the right to remain in the property until the landlord applies to court to evict you. Do not hand your keys back to the landlord or move out. You will remain liable to pay your rent so you must continue to do so. If you do not pay your rent, or if you surrender your occupation contract, the help we can offer may be limited.

If you are a housing association contract-holder, you need to speak with your tenancy officer. View the list of Housing Associations in Cardiff.

If you want to challenge your reason for eviction, speak to Shelter Cymru for independent legal advice.

If you are experiencing financial difficulties, speak to your tenancy officer as your landlord might have a dedicated money advice team. If you still need support, you can contact our Money Advice Team on 029 2087 1071 or email advicehub@cardiff.gov.uk.

If you are a Cardiff Council contract-holder then you will need to speak to your tenancy officer.

If you have rent arrears, you must speak to a finance officer on 029 2053 7350. We may be able to help you.

Find out more about how we can help you with your finances.

If you are being evicted for another reason, speak to Shelter Cymru for independent legal advice.

If you have been issued a notice seeking possession because of anti-social behaviour, we strongly advise you to:

• contact the Housing Options Centre on 029 2057 0750, or
• speak to Shelter Cymru for independent legal advice.

You will have a chance to defend any allegations made against you in court.

If you have a fixed term occupation contract which has ended and you continue to live in your property, your occupation contract automatically becomes periodic. This means you can continue to live in your property. If your landlord wishes to end your occupation contract, they will need to give you a valid notice to quit. Visit Shelter Cymru website for notice advice.

If you have not been given a notice to quit, you do not have to leave your property. If you landlord says you need to leave without issuing the correct notice, contact the Housing Options Centre on 029 2057 0750.

If you are living with your family or friend, we can offer help with mediation and do everything we can to see if you can stay where you are. If this is not possible, we will work with you and the person you are staying with to help you move on. It is highly likely to be into privately rented accommodation. We will need a minimum of 28 days’ notice from your family or friend.

Please be aware, if you live with a family member or a friend in a joint occupation contract, you will have different rights of occupation and we recommend you  speak to Shelter Cymru for independent legal advice or contact Housing Options Centre on 029 2057 0750.

We have a prisoner pathway into the service, please speak to your resettlement or probation officer.

If you have been released from prison in Wales, you should have completed a housing application with the resettlement team. If this was completed, you will just need to call us on your day of release to find out details of your placement.

If you have not been released, please visit Shelter Cymru’s website for prison information.

If you live in accommodation you own with your partner and they ask you to leave, you will need to seek independent legal advice on your rights.  You may still be liable for costs such as:

• the mortgage,
• council tax, or
• utilities.

If you live in accommodation that you do not jointly or outright own or rent, we may be able to help you get alternative accommodation in the private rented sector. You can contact the Housing Options Centre on 029 2057 0750.

Find information on fleeing violence on the RISE website.

You can also find help and advice about violence against women, domestic abuse, and sexual violence from Live Fear Free.

If you own your home and are struggling to pay the mortgage, our mortgage and debt team may be able to help you. You can contact them on 029 2057 0750 or email housing.solutions@cardiff.gov.uk.

We will need to see:

• your last 3 months’ bank statements,
• any outstanding bills,
• your most recent mortgage statement, and
• details of any other debts.

If you have been served with a notice of repossession from your mortgage provider or their solicitors, you should contact the Housing Options Centre as soon as possible by:

• calling 029 2057 0750
• email solutions@cardiff.gov.uk

We may be able to offer support with court action, mediation with your mortgage provider, and complete an income maximisation exercise with you.

If you have come to the end of an interest only mortgage, we may be able to help you. In the first instance, we recommend you get independent legal advice for this. However, we can work with you and your mortgage provider to see if we can provide a solution for your housing need.

You may be evicted from temporary accommodation because:

• you have broken a condition of your licence agreement,
• we no longer have a duty to help you, or you no longer want our help, or
• we have found alternative accommodation for you.

If any of these occur, you are no longer entitled to remain in temporary accommodation. Your notice period will vary depending on your circumstances at the time of eviction. In some cases, you may receive little notice.

If you have been evicted from temporary accommodation you can get help and support from independent agencies such as Shelter Cymru or Speakeasy.

If you have a supported standard contact, you may need to leave the accommodation for up to 24 hours if you:

• Use violence against any person in the property.
• Do something in the accommodation which creates a risk of significant harm to any person.

Behave in a way which prevents another resident from getting the support provided through that accommodation.

This type of exclusion only applies to the supported standard contract and not to any other type of contract or licence.

Depending on your situation our Private Rented Sector team may still be able to help you find alternative private rented accommodation.

You should tell the hospital nursing staff as soon as possible so that they know you will be homeless when you are discharged. We have specialist staff who can help you. They will assess your situation and may make a homeless application.

If you have a home already but it needs to be adapted, the hospital can refer you to our Independent Living services team. For more information about this, please contact 029 2184 5050.

You may be able to get extra help if you become homeless.

We will be able to help you if you are currently serving or a former member of the armed forces and are threatened with homelessness or are homeless now.

We must consider whether we can help you using both general rules that apply to everyone, and special rules that apply to people who are or were in the forces.

Please contact us on 029 2087 1071 or 07980953539 or email veteransadvice@cardiff.gov.uk

Extra homelessness rules for the armed forces

You may also be treated as being vulnerable and in priority need for accommodation if you can show that your vulnerability is as a result of being a former member of the armed forces.

When deciding this, we may consider:

• how long you were in the forces and what role you had,
• if you spent any time in a military hospital,
• if you were released from service on medical grounds (and have a medical history release form),
• if you have had accommodation since leaving service and if you have been able to obtain or maintain accommodation since you left, and
• how long it has been since you left service.

To help support your case, you may need to provide medical evidence from the Ministry of Defence including a medical history release form (if you were given one).

You can find more information or contact our Veteran Advice Team on 029 2087 1071 or email veteransadvice@cardiff.gov.uk.

If you have received a notice to quit from your NASS (National Asylum Support Service) accommodation in Cardiff and you have been granted leave to remain, please contact the Housing Options Centre as soon as possible.

You should stay in your current accommodation while we work with you to find accommodation in the private rented sector.

You can contact our Housing Options Service by:

• calling 029 2057 0750, or
• email HousingOptionsCentre@cardiff.gov.uk.

You can also come and see us at the Central Library Hub.

Housing Options
Second Floor, Central Library Hub
The Hayes
Cardiff
CF10 1FL