Man left furious after his landlord demanded he move out with a week’s notice – here’s what made the bully owner change his mind
A tenant was left shocked and angry after receiving an email from his landlord demanding he vacate the property the following week.
Real estate advisor Jack Rookefrom the United Kingdom, read a contribution describing an email exchange.
The landlord explained that he needed the property so his sick mother could move in and apologized for the inconvenience.
But the request left Jason, the tenant, confused, replying, “I’m sorry, but I don’t really understand what you mean. Move in where? The apartment across the street? Why do I have to move out?”
When the landlord stated that he needed the property urgently, Jason explained that such a request would be in violation of the lease and likely illegal.
But the landlord persisted and the conversation was shared in a TikTok video.
“Jason, this is my apartment and as a landlord I have the right to make decisions in the best interest of my business and my family. My mother is very ill and needs a place to stay nearby. I cannot stress enough how important this is to her well-being,” the landlord wrote.
‘You are now trying to put a sick woman out on the street and I find it disgusting – if I didn’t want you gone before, I absolutely do now. I don’t like inhuman people on my property.
UK real estate consultant Jack Rooke read a contribution detailing the email exchange
“This is a family emergency and I need your cooperation. You must leave.”
Jack admitted it’s a “terrible situation” for the landlord, but ultimately this is “not the tenant’s problem.”
The next morning Jason wrote: ‘Thanks for the nice email. I am of course sorry to hear about your mother’s health, I sincerely hope she gets better soon. I understand that you are upset, so I will ignore your comments about how “inhuman” I am.
“That said, I can’t just ‘move’. I work 50 hours a week from home. It takes time to find a place, time I don’t have. Then I have to deal with work, because we’re in the middle of a project and I can’t take time off. Not that I would, even if I could. That puts my job at risk. You understand that, right?”
But the landlord didn’t appreciate the answer and asked Jason what he didn’t understand about the situation.
In a now-viral TikTok video, Jack pointed out that this should have been the end of the conversation, but the landlord continued (stock image)
“You need to leave. If you want to talk about the law, I’m the one who legally owns the property. I’ll give you two weeks, then the time is up and I’ll change the locks. And I’m not giving you your deposit back.”
In Australia, landlords can evict a tenant without land. However, for a fixed-term agreement, a notice period of 30 days must be observed. For an indefinite-term agreement, this is 90 days.
Such a request would therefore be unlawful.
Jason didn’t hesitate and replied: the apartment was in ‘perfect condition’ and he would get the deposit back no matter what. He also checked the contract.
According to him, it states that the landlord must give notice at least two months in advance, not two weeks.
But the landlord said, ‘I don’t care what the contract says, you’re being unreasonable. My mother is coming in two weeks, you have to be gone by then or I’ll change the locks and keep your deposit. Goodbye.’
After receiving the series of threatening emails, Jason decided to pass the evidence on to the police and Property Ombudsman. He also confirmed that he would be moved on June 29th.
The landlord then changed his tone and wrote: ‘Good morning Jason. Thank you for your email. I’m sorry, I looked at the contract and actually you are right, there is no need to involve the police or ombudsman. I will find another apartment for my mother in the building, please, no worries and no reason to leave.’
Despite this answer, Jason decided to leave the property and expected his full deposit back.
The first video has now been viewed more than 2.6 million times, while the other videos were too many words.
“Take pictures now, the landlord is going to do something small to keep the deposit,” someone commented.
“Did the landlord really think he wouldn’t call the proper authorities?” asked another.
Someone else wrote: ‘I hope the landlord didn’t try to intimidate another tenant who was less well informed.’