House we are renting needs major repairs - Where do I stand.

banana1975

I am wondering if anyone can help me.

I live in a 3 bed house which I have rented with my partner and 3 children for the last 7 years. We rent off a friend who is always really slow to complete repairs on the house.

However we have a major problem with the roof on the kitchen extension as the builder has not left enough pitch to the roof and it has caused leaks in the ceiling and needs to be replaced.
Also there is a problem with the flooring in the same room and damp due to a water pipe underneath the flooring not being capped off properly which has caused part of the kitchen wall to bulge out.

He is sending round a builder tomorrow to have a look but I am worried that the house will be completely thrown into chaos when the work is carried out and make the kitchen unusable. We have 3 young children of 9, 3 and 15 months.

Do I have any rights as a tenant to request a rent reduction for the time due to the works being carried out or request for alternative accomodation but if I have to pay for this I then could not afford to pay my rent as well and don't feel that I should be out of pocket for repairs that if carried out when first mentioned would not have been such a big job?

Any advice in this area would be much appreciated.

Microstar_2

Some LL's can be very tardy when it comes to repairs - although IME its usually cheaper to jump on small problems and fix them right away before they become big problems.
What I do with my tenants is to give them 100% rent discount whilst any major repairs are taking place (this is fair IMHO and also guarantees their cooperation with me and the builders!).
If very major work is required (e.g. shutting off water for days at a time or taking an external wall down) the house is not habitable, then your landlord should sort out alternative accommodation for you at no additional cost to yourself.

clutton_2

if this is your friend - then he is not treating you very well - by not doing repairs on time. i think you need to wait till you know what the builder says and what action the LL proposes to take. Then talk to him and ask him what his solutions are - and explain that living in a building site is not very conducive to looking after very young children - and how does he propose to do to deal with the situation ?


then come back and tell us what he said

poppysarah

I think you should chose your friends more carefully.

Landlords have obligations in law and you should contact shelter for exact info on what you need to do.

tbs624

As a LL he has specific obligations under S11 of the LL &T Act 1985,and as a friend he should also want to do right by you. Don't let the fact that he *is* a friend get in the way of all of this from your end, however.

It's always best to get all repairing issues in writing - if reported first by phone, the follow it up with a letter confriming your understanding of what has been agreed/suggested.

You could write along the lines of :

Dear LL/Fred
Re: Property address
We are writing to confirm that the following repairs issues have been discussed with you:

(List each problem , date it started and (if this is not first notification) when you first notified the LL).

As I’m sure you’ll appreciate, not having full use of our kitchen causes us considerable inconvenience, especially with a young family. We confirm that we will be available on date for the builder to make his preliminary visit and ask that a firm, & early, date is then given to us for the necessary work to be undertaken.
Yours etc

Then wait until the builder has been before following it up. Keep copies of your letters. You may want to take some photos of affected areas but try not to worry too far ahead - you have to do these things in stages. As Clutton says, post back when the builder & LL have been out to discuss it.

mlz1413

As a tenant you are not responsible for paying for repairs to the house unless they are caused by you ie damage.

Do you have an offical agreement in place? You really should not be worrying about paying for a re-roof!

Re the mess and using the kitchen talk to the builder and ask what is involved and how much disruption there will be - its often quicker for a builder to be able to work in an empty house than worry about making good every night. Plus you can't stay in a house with no kitchen and 3 children.

With that information as Clutton says approach your LL and ask how they intend to deal with it. If you are worried about your LL not doing something then write to them afterwards saying what you have agreed to and asking them to advise you if you are wrong.

tbs624

mlz1413 wrote: »

..Do you have an offical agreement in place? ..

That's irrelevant for repairs to the structure of the property, including leaking water pipes etc- they are the LL's responsibility and as such are covered by statute.

mlz1413

tbs624 wrote: »

That's irrelevant for repairs to the structure of the property, including leaking water pipes etc- they are the LL's responsibility and as such are covered by statute.

Don't disagree TBS624, just wanted to know as its a friend.

barnaby-bear

banana1975 wrote: »

I am wondering if anyone can help me.

I live in a 3 bed house which I have rented with my partner and 3 children for the last 7 years. We rent off a friend who is always really slow to complete repairs on the house.

However we have a major problem with the roof on the kitchen extension as the builder has not left enough pitch to the roof and it has caused leaks in the ceiling and needs to be replaced.
Also there is a problem with the flooring in the same room and damp due to a water pipe underneath the flooring not being capped off properly which has caused part of the kitchen wall to bulge out.

He is sending round a builder tomorrow to have a look but I am worried that the house will be completely thrown into chaos when the work is carried out and make the kitchen unusable. We have 3 young children of 9, 3 and 15 months.

Do I have any rights as a tenant to request a rent reduction for the time due to the works being carried out or request for alternative accomodation but if I have to pay for this I then could not afford to pay my rent as well and don't feel that I should be out of pocket for repairs that if carried out when first mentioned would not have been such a big job?

Any advice in this area would be much appreciated.

It can be wise to remember though that for planned repairs a LL has the option to give you your two months notice, then do the repairs and re-rent the improved property (after 7 years you may not be on market level rent)... so if it is uninhabitable you do have the right to alternative paid for accommodation he also has the option to do the work without you there... asking for a rent reduction though would mean he gets some rent while it's going on and you get a discount....

banana1975

Thanks for your replies.

We pay well under the market value for our house and he has mentioned that we need to sit down and discuss rent increase - which is not a problem with us as long as all the repair works are carried out.

He is a friend of my partners and actually bought the house as he knew that we were stuck for a place to live. He spent a lot of money doing up the house but has fallen back on his laurels in regards to keeping the house up together.

He is actually quite useless as a landlord and although we never pay for any repairs that are needed my Dad who is in the building trade has helped with many a small repair now and then.

I have another question in regards to carpets in rental properties. As I have said we have lived here for 7 years and as the carpets we only cheap they have now started to look a bit worse for wear in the main through way. Can I ask for them to be changed?? I am willing to pay some towards it but do not want to fork out for them entirely.

It is a tricky one as my partner does not want to ask for a rent reduction but I feel that it is only fair when so much upheavel is going on. I would like to think that he will not take the 2 month notice option and re-rent as I think that he quite likes the fact that it is us that are renting from him.

mlz1413

I'd be tempted to take him up on that chat about rent, you have lots of things to discuss - on going problems that need sorting, worn out things that need replacing and rental at 7 years ago rate.

If you can get the major problems sorted and can pay more in rent then LL will probably be happy to sort out.

But if he doesn't really like doing the leg work and is renting it to you at a good price why not offer to get the quotes together, work out if the place will or won't be habitable when the work is done and offer to go to friends/family for a week if he throws in new carpets through out whilst your out? This is all tax deductable stuff as it is renewals rather than upgrades.

Re the LL doing it up and renting to someone else can you afford to go else where (not saying you should just asking if this could be a major upset finanically).